Whilst hiking across the peat mires of central Sweden, I kept coming across this oily residue seeming to leech out of the peat. Upon close inspection, it looks just like when oil from a car engine leeches out onto the road or into puddles.
Online, I can't seem to find a clear answer to exactly what is going on here. If you know, please get in touch with the contact button at the top of the page!
The theories of others online ranged from the oil being actual engine oil leaked from snowmobiles during the winter when it's covered in snow to shale rocks beneath the peat leeching their natural oil. However, the most agreed upon theory seems to be that the oil is a product of the breakdown of plants.
Peat is an incredibly interesting product of a low rate of decomposition. Peat is quite literally extremely highly concentrated biological matter, therefore containing large amounts of energy. Peat bogs often form where the biological matter cannot decompose, like in very cold, waterlogged environments. Because of its high energy content, it can be burned as a high yielding fuel, and has historically been used for this purpose. It should come as no surprise that a hydrophobic, probably hydrocarbon-rich oil could be leeching out of it, as it is pretty much on par with coal, oil and natural gas.
Environmental Issues:
As peat is highly concentrated biological matter, it makes for an incredibly dense natural sink for carbon. However it is also a very fragile sink for carbon. Drying of peat and similarly warming of permafrost causes decomposition to begin and the stored carbon to begin to be turned to CO2 and CH4, which are released into the atmosphere and further accelerate global warming. Procedures to re-saturate drained peat bogs, sometimes using small wooden dams, are being implemented to stop the release of greenhouse gases in this way. Wooden dams, sometimes referred to as 'leaky dams' can also have a bonus effect of reducing flood risk.
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