Nestled in the middle of the Lower Mainland in the heart of Delta is the largest raised peatland on the west coast of North America—Burns Bog. That is only a few of the accolades heaped on Burns Bog. It is the largest undeveloped urban are in North America. It is the only known estuarine raised peatland left in the world because it is at the mouth of the Fraser River. And it is largest raised peatland found in a Mediterranean climate!
On top of all that it stores more carbon than a tropical rainforest because it is a carbon sink. That’s because for thousands of years plants have died and sunk to the bottom. They haven’t completely decomposed because sphagnum moss came in and acidified the water.
Peatlands like Burns Bog are often called Mother Nature’s “history books” because of their ability to preserve things like “bog bodies.” This includes humans and animals as well as plants.
The irony is Burns Bog is better known internationally than locally. “I still meet people who have never heard of it or visited it,” states Eliza Olson, founding President of the Society. To combat this, the Burns Bog Conservation Society gives field trips to schools and community groups in the Delta Nature Reserve.
The Delta Nature Reserve is on the edge of Burns Bog. It is called the ”lagg.” It was set aside in the early 1970s as an outdoor classroom. Later the Burns Bog Conservation Society built over 5 km of boardwalk so that more people could have access to it during the fall as well as the summer months.
Summer Day camps take place in July and August and the Stepping into Nature Festival takes place in early October for grades 6 and 7. This festival has high school students taking a leadership role along with people from different groups. The Grade 6 and 7 students go from station to station discovering something new at each one.
The Burns Bog Conservation Society founded November 14, 1988 on Prince Charles birthday is a registered charity whose mission is “saving Burns Bog and other peatlands education and research. They need to be saved for us, wildlife and the planet.”
Less than 3% of the earth’s surface is covered with peatlands. This small percentage stores ten times more carbon than tropical rainforests. Project Drawdown recognizes saving peatlands as number 13 out of a 100 ways to save the planet.
If you would like to support the work of the Burns Bog Conservation Society you can do so by making a gift through its website, to its office at 4-7953 120 Street, Delta, BC, V4C 6P6 or you can leave a legacy gift to the Burns Bog Conservation Foundation at the same address.
The Foundation is a registered charity as well. Its role is to build an endowment fund where the interest is used to fund the activities of the Society. In addition it has a capital fund that will be used to build a world-class education that people from round the world will come and see.
Come out to one of the Society’s events. These include the Earth Day Pilgrimage to Burns Bog, the Jog for the Bog in July, browse its Used Book Sale at Scottsdale Centre, Delta, or join us at the PubOne20 for its Summer Social in August. Check out our website www.burnsbog.org for details and registration.
For “peat’s sake, don’t use peat” in your gardening!
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