RMK Research Council supports research about the afforestation of cut-over peatlands and the impact of drainage canals  28.07

One of the supported projects will identify how to maximise the removals of green house gasses when restoring the cut-over peatlands; the other one will determine how the reconstruction work of drainage canals impact the water quality in a sparse peat bog forest. They will also examine which measures taken to protect the water most effectively saves the environment.

“Afforestation of cut-over peatlands is one option in how to reuse depleted and abandoned peat mining areas. The project will provide new knowledge on how different tree species began to grow in cut-over peatlands and what will be the emissions of green house gasses in afforested cut-over peatlands,” Kristjan Tõnisson, Member of RMK’s Management Board, explains the content and aim of the project. He added that abandoned cut-over peatlands emit a lot of green house gasses, which can be diminished by afforesting or restoring the water regime of cut-over peatlands.

“There is no thorough research on the impact of the afforestation of cut-over peatlands on the green house gasses emissions,” he notes.

According to Tõnisson, they will also receive important data from other supported research projects.

“Sparse peat bog forests are habitats with fertile soil that have emerged as a result of forest drainage, where it is important that the drainage system works effectively because it ensures the rapid growth of the forest,” he explains. The research project will evaluate the efficiency of various environmental facilities in preventing the transmission of sediments in the water and this knowledge can be applied to diminish the environmental impact of forest improvement systems.


The Professor of Physical Geography and Landscape Ecology at the University of Tartu leads the cut-over peatlands project and Ülo Mender and the Co-Professor of Environmental Technology, Kuno Kasak leads the sparse peat bog project.

RMK supports the projects with a total of 430,000 euros within the three year period.

This year, RMK proposed ten topics for researchers to apply for funding, with seven projects being applied for. In addition to the selected topics, the applicants wished to examine forest passerines, European spruce bark beetles, forest streams and gain new knowledge about remote monitoring.

The research council highly appreciated the projects – they included both applied and more basic research projects. The chosen ones were a good combination of both and will provide guidelines for better forest management and preservation for RMK. Additionally, they will provide added value for research.

RMK Research Council began its activities in 2008. During this time, they have supported 19 applied research studies and paid 2.8 million euros.
You can learn more about the research projects here: https://www.rmk.ee/metsa-majandamine/teadustegevus/toetatud-uurimisprojektid

RMK takes into consideration the results of already completed research in their daily work.

Researchers of the University of Tartu and Estonian University of Life Sciences are part of the RMK Research Council, the Chairman of the Board, Aigar Kallas and Member of the Board, Kristjan Tõnisson.

An artificial wetland/cleansing marsh with dense reed vegetation can effectively catch surface depositions as well as nutrients. Under the support of RMK, researchers will also examine which measures taken to protect the water saves the environment most effectively. Photo: Kuno Kasak

Further information:
Kristjan Tõnisson
Member of Management Board, RMK
kristjan.tonisson@rmk.ee
+372 5691 8728