Harvest horticultural peat remained unchanged

The harvest of horticultural peat amounted to 1 604 000 cubic metres in 2018, which means it was on the same level as the previous year despite favourable weather. One reason for this was the increased risk of fire that affected harvesting of horticultural peat; as in forestry, harvesting must be done in the evening and at night, and is more limited.

Horticultural peat is used mainly as a soil improver in gardening.

Use of peat increased

Combustion of peat and peat briquettes is almost exclusively used for the production of electricity and district heating, often together with biofuel. In 2018, the combustion of peat increased by 33 percent. The reason for this was a cold winter and a shortage of biofuels in Sweden and its neighbouring countries. Peat is mainly combusted in biofuel boilers, which led to greater demand for peat.

Peat and peat briquettes accounted for approximately one percent of the national (territorial) greenhouse gas emissions in 2017.