The Association of Peat Companies “Lietuviškos peatės”, which has been operating for thirty years and unites almost twenty peat extraction, production and trade companies, changes its name and becomes the Association of Growing Media Producers (ATGA).
According to Giedrius Kavaliauskas, Executive Director of the Association, with the change of the name, the main directions of the Association’s activities will remain the same, but more and more attention will be paid to the aspect of sustainability.
The Association of Growing Media Producers (ATGA), which has been active since 1994, has two dozen members. The Association’s activities are based on the principles of sustainability, openness to innovation and community, with the aim of developing a growing industry and sharing knowledge and experience with other organisations.
“The industry has changed considerably since the association was founded. Previously, everything was focused on peat extraction, but now more than 90% of the total is peat. The association’s members are producers of growing media. With the name change, we will continue to focus on sustainability. Our goal is a sustainable industry. The members of the association already apply the highest standards and best practices in their activities, and use peatlands in a way that takes into account environmental, social and economic aspects,” comments Kavaliauskas.
Aiming for the best possible environmental performance
According to the speaker, the issue of sustainability is very important, as the production of growing media is one of the areas that produces carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The members of the association develop a sustainability strategy to make their activities as environmentally friendly as possible, and analyse scientific studies on CO2 emissions from growing media and their cyclical nature.
“This means that we don’t just focus on the growing stage of the plant – we look at where the raw material goes after the plant has been grown, whether it’s put into the ground or composted. In other words, we’re looking at how many more life cycles it has. This will help us determine the real CO2 emissions,” he says.
In the near future, the association intends to strengthen its dialogue with the Ministry of Environment. The main issues raised are national GHG emissions and the necessary adjustments to legislation on piecemeal reclamation to contribute to reducing the environmental impact of the peat industry and to the implementation of national climate change mitigation commitments.
“Companies have a duty to restore the wetland regime in depleted areas by reclaiming them. In view of the regulatory framework and the desire to adapt to the Climate Change Policy, the members of the Association propose to carry out reclamation in instalments, without waiting for the end of the exploitation of all the fields, as provided for in the current legislation. Partial reclamation would reduce GHG emissions, ‘lock them in’, which would partially offset the CO2 emissions from the companies’ operations in the future,” says G. Kavaliauskas, Executive Director of ATGA.
The main challenge is to reduce the use of peat in growing media
Just as the horticulture industry in Europe is working hard to reduce the use of peat in growing media by replacing it with alternative renewable raw materials, Lithuanian industry is also taking action in this area.
“Lithuanian companies are already using a range of alternative raw materials such as wood fibre, perlite, coir and bark compost or sapropel. These substances help to ensure optimal conditions for plant growth while reducing the amount of peat used in growing media. The companies work closely with local growers and scientists to find new solutions, improve the composition of growing media and propose new technologies. This cooperation is essential to find effective alternatives to peat and to ensure that new materials meet both agronomic requirements and environmental standards,” he notes. G. Kavaliauskas.
He said that Lithuanian industry is trying to use peat resources sparingly by producing mixtures of peat and alternative materials. This allows for a more economical and rational use of Lithuania’s natural resources, while ensuring that the plants grown receive all the nutrients they need and optimum growing conditions. The growing media industry is moving towards sustainability by actively seeking and applying innovative solutions to improve the environmental status of peatlands.
In Lithuania, peatlands cover around 650 000 ha. hectares, of which the peat industry uses around 2%. y. Just under 14,000. ha. At present, almost all peat raw material extracted in Lithuania is used for crop production and the production of growing media.
