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Restoration of Lakes, Streams, Floodplains, and Bogs in Europe pp 243–263Cite as

Effects of Drain Blocking on the Acrotelm of Two Raised Bogs in the Irish Midlands: A Quantitative Assessment

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Part of the book series: Wetlands: Ecology, Conservation and Management ((WECM,volume 3))

Abstract

The development of the acrotelm on two Irish Midland raised bogs, Raheenmore Bog and Clara Bog East, where drains were blocked in 1995–1997 is described. The acrotelm of both bogs was surveyed in 1991 and 1992 before the blocking and again in late 2002 and early 2003, when effects seemed visually clear. To quantify the effects, both acrotelm depth and transmissivity were measured and compared in Raheenmore Bog and transmissivity in Clara Bog East. Because acrotelm transmissivity depends on the flow rate, a direct comparison was not possible. It was made by comparing field data with theoretical values based on upstream flow path length, surface slope and specific discharge of water from the bog. The results show a significant positive effect on both acrotelm depth and acrotelm transmissivity.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Discharge in volume per area per time, which is equivalent to length per time, e.g. mm d-1

  2. 2.

    Transmissivity is the integral of hydraulic conductivity k over the depth of the aquifer, often, but incorrectly, described as the product of k and aquifer depth (kD).

  3. 3.

    The geometric mean is defined as the n-th root of the product of n numbers. It can also be found by calculating the arithmetic average of their logarithms and obtaining the inverse logarithm of the result.

  4. 4.

    Standard error of the mean, see, for example Sachs (1982).

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Acknowledgement

The work described in this chapter was funded by National Parks and Wildlife, Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Dublin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soil Physics, Ecohydrology and Groundwater Management, Environmental Sciences Group, Wageningen University, 47, 6700 AA, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    S. van der Schaaf, M. J. van der Ploeg, S. H. Vuurens & M. M. J. ten Heggeler

Authors
  1. S. van der Schaaf
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  2. M. J. van der Ploeg
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  3. S. H. Vuurens
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  4. M. M. J. ten Heggeler
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Correspondence to S. van der Schaaf .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Crop Research Institute, Drnovska 507, Praha 6, 161 06, Czech Republic

    Martina Eiseltová

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van der Schaaf, S., van der Ploeg, M.J., Vuurens, S.H., ten Heggeler, M.M.J. (2010). Effects of Drain Blocking on the Acrotelm of Two Raised Bogs in the Irish Midlands: A Quantitative Assessment. In: Eiseltová, M. (eds) Restoration of Lakes, Streams, Floodplains, and Bogs in Europe. Wetlands: Ecology, Conservation and Management, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9265-6_13

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