Gambut
[[Berkas:Mohos Peat Bog 1.jpg|ka|jmpl|350px|''Bog'', lahan gambut di [[Transilvania]] ]]

'''Gambut''' adalah jenis tanah nang tabantuk matan akumulasi sisa-sisa [[tumbuhan]] nang satangah marusak; karana ngitu, kandungan bahan organiknya tinggi.<ref name=anwar_245>Anwar, J., S.J. Damanik, N. Hisyam, A.J.Whitten. 1984. ''Ekologi Ekosistem Sumatra.'' Gadjah Mada Univ. Press. Jogyakarta. Hal 245-251</ref> Tanah nang tabantuk di [[lahan basah]] ngini disambat dalam [[basa Inggris]] sabagai '''''peat'''''; wan lahan basar di babagai bagian dunia dipinandui lawan bamacam ngaran kaya ''bog, moor, muskeg, pocosin, mire,'' wan lain-lain. Istilah "gambut" sorang diserap matan [[Basa Banjar|basa daerah Banjar]].

Sabagai bahan organik, gambut kawa digunaakan sabagai sumbar energi. Volume gambut di saluruh dunia dikira-kira sabanyak 4 triliun [[meter|m]]³, mancakup wilayah sakitar kurang labih 3 juta km2 atawa sakitar 2% dari laweh daratan di dunia, wan mangandung potensi energi sakitar 8 miliar terajoule.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldenergy.org/documents/ser2007_executive_summary.pdf |title=Survey of Energy Resources 2007 |accessdate=2008-08-11 |author=World Energy Council |date=2007 |format=pdf |archive-date=2008-09-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080910214607/http://www.worldenergy.org/documents/ser2007_executive_summary.pdf |dead-url=yes }}</ref>

== Pambantukan gambut ==
[[Berkas:Torfabbau-.jpg|jmpl|250px|Panambangan tanah gambut di Frisia Timur, Jerman ]]
Gambut tabantuk pas bagian-bagian tumbuhan nang gugur tahalangi panyabuhannya, biasanya di lahan-lahan nang basah, lantaran kadar kaasaman nang tinggi atawa kondisi anaerob di perairan setempat. Kada heran amun kabanyakan tanah gambut tadiri dari serpihan wan potongan-potongan sisa tumbuhan, daun, ranting-ranting, daun-daun, bahkan kayu-kayu ganal, nang balum habis-habisan marusak. Kadang-kadang ditamukan jua, karena kurangnya oksigen basifat manghambat dekomposisi, sisa-sisa bangkai binatang wan [[kararangga]] nang jua tasimpan di dalam lapisan-lapisan gambut.

Lazimnya di dunia, disambat sabagai gambut amun kandungan bahan organik di dalam tanah mancapai labih matan 30%; tagal [[hutan rawa]] gambut di [[Indunisia]] umumnya baisi kandungan mancapai labih matan 65% wan kadalamannya mancapai labih matan 50 cm. Tanah lawan kandungan bahan organik antara 35-65% jua biasa disambat ''muck''.<ref name=anwar_245/>

Panambahan lapisan-lapisan gambut wan derajat panyusutan (humifikasi) taganal bagantung lawan komposisi gambut wan intensitas panggenangan. Gambut nang tabantuk di kondisi nang sangat basah akan kurang terdekomposisi, dan dengan demikian akumulasi nya relatif hancap, dibandingakan lawan gambut nang tabantuk di lahan-lahan nang lebih kering. Sifat-sifat ini mamungkinakan buhan ahli iklim manggunaakan gambut sabagai indikator parubahan iklim di masa lalu. Demikian jua, malalui analisis kapada komposisi gambut, tarutama tipe wan jumlah panyusun bahan organiknya, ahli arkeologi kawa mangkonstruksi gambaran ekologi di zaman purba.

Dalam kondisi nang pas, gambut jua marupakan tahap pamulaan pambentukan batu bara. Gambut bog nang hanyar, tabantuk di wilayah lintang tinggi di akhir Zaman Es tarakhir, sakitar 9.000 tahun nang lalu. Gambut ini masih tarus maningkat kandelnya lawan laju babarapa milimeter satahun. Tapi, rupa bumi diyakini tabantuk sakitar 360 juta tahun nang lalu; wan wahini mangandung sakitar 550 Gt karbon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.imcg.net/docum/peatrenewable.pdf |title=Peat should not be treated as a renewable energy source |accessdate=2007-02-12 |author=International Mire Conservation Group |date=2007-01-03 |format=pdf |archive-date=2007-06-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070610155639/http://www.imcg.net/docum/peatrenewable.pdf |dead-url=yes }}</ref>

== Gambut sabagai ''sumber energi'' ==

Gambutnya empuk dan mudah ditekan. Pas ditekan, kandungan banyu di dalam gambut kawa dipaksa kaluar. Bila dikeringakan, gambut kawa dipakai sabagai bahan bakar sumber energi. Rumput adalah bahan akar penting di nagara-nagara di mana pohon langka kaya [[Irlandia]] wan [[Skotlandia]], sacara tradisional rumput dipakai gasan bamasak wan pamanas rumah tangga. Sacara moderen, gambut dipanen dalam skala industri wan dipakai gasan bahan bakar pembangkit listrik. Pembangkit listrik tanaga gambut pangganalnya ada di [[Finlandia]] (''Toppila Power Station'') nang baukuran 190 MW.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.industcards.com/st-other-finland.htm |title=Salinan arsip |access-date=2011-10-04 |archive-date=2016-05-16 |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160516041914/http%3A//www.industcards.com/st%2Dother%2Dfinland.htm |dead-url=yes }}</ref>

=== Gambut di Indunisia ===
Luas lahan gambut di Sumatera dikira-kira berkisar antara 7,3 sampai 9,7 juta hektare atawa kira-kira saparampat luas lahan gambut di saluruah wilayah ''tropika''. Manurut kondisi wan sipatnya, gambut di sini kawa dibedakan atas gambut ''topogen'' wan gambut ''ombrogen''.<ref name=anwar_245/>

'''''Gambut topogen''''' adalah lapisan tanah gambut nang tabantuk karana genangan banyu nang tahalang drainasinya di tanah-tanah cekung di balakang pantai, di pedalaman atawa di pagunungan. Gambut jenis ngini umumnya kada talalu dalam, sampai sakitar 4 m haja, kada asam wan relatif subur; lawan zat hara nang baasal matan lapisan tanah mineral di dasar cekungan, banyu sungai, sisa-sisa tumbuhan, wan banyu hujan. ''Gambut topogen'' takadang kada banyak ditamui.<ref name=anwar_245/>

'''''Gambut ombrogen''''' labih rancak ditamui, walaupun sabarataan gambut ombrogene dimulai sabagai gambut topogen. Gambut ombrogen labih tuha, umumnya lapisan gambutnya labih tebal, sampai ka dalam 20 m, wan permukaan tanah gambutnya lebih tinggi daripada permukaan sungai nang paraknya. Kandungan unsur hara tanah sangat terbatas, hanya berasal dari lapisan sulfur wan banyu hujan, jadi kada subur. Sungai atawa [[tatah]] nang kaluar matan wilayah ''gambut ombrogen'' mengalir banyu nang asamnya tinggi (pH 3,0-4,5), baisi banyak asam humus wan warnanya coklat itam kaya warna banyu teh nang pekat. Itulah sababnya sungai-sungai nang kaya itu disambat jua sungai banyu hirang.<ref name=anwar_245/>

''Gambut ombrogen'' kebanyakan tabantuk kada jauh dari pantai. Tanah hudahnya baasal matan tanah nang ditanam bakau nang lalu garing; kandungan garam wan sulfida nang tinggi di tanah itu manyabapakan saikit dihuni ulih mayat-mayat nang marusak. Maka mulailah terbentuk lapisan kabut di atasnya. Panalitian di [[Sarawak, Malaysia|Sarawak]] manunjukakan bahwa gambut mulai tabantuk di atas lumpur mangrove sakitar 4.500 tahun nang lalu;<ref>Wilford, G.E. 1960. Radiocarbon age determinations of Quaternary sediments in Brunei and north east Sarawak. ''British North Borneo Geol. Survey Ann. Rep.''</ref> pamulaan lawan laju penambangan sakitar 0.475 m/100 tahun (pada kedalaman gambut 10-12 m), tagal imbah itu dikurangi jadi sakitar 0.223 m/100 tahun pada kedalaman 0-5 m<ref>Anderson, J.A.R. 1964. The structure and development of peat-swamps of Sarawak and Brunei. ''J. Trop. Geog.'' '''18''':7–16.</ref> Patarnya maningkatnya umur hutan di atas tanah gambut ngini maningkat labih lambat akibat manurunnya kasadiaan hara. Salah satu contoh daerah gambut ngini adalah [[Kuta Palangka Raya|Kuta Palangka raya]], [[Kalimantan Tangah|Kalimantan Tengah]], dibangun di atas lahan gambut ''ombrogen''.


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== Types of peat material ==
Peat material is either fibric, hemic, or sapric. Fibric peats are the least decomposed, and comprise intact fiber. Hemic peats are somewhat decomposed, and sapric are the most decomposed.
'''Phragmites''' peat is one composed of reed grass, ''[[Phragmites]] australis'', and other grasses. It is denser than many other types of peat.
Engineers may describe a soil as peat which has a relatively low percentage of organic material. This is because it exhibits poor consolidation properties.

==Characteristics and uses==
[[Berkas:Peat-Stack in Ness, Outer Hebrides, Scotland.jpg|thumb|A peat stack in [[Ness, Western Isles|Ness]] in the [[Lewis|Isle of Lewis]] ([[Scotland]]).]]
[[Berkas:Peatcuttingulsta.jpg|right|thumb|Worked bank in [[blanket]] bog, near [[Ulsta]], [[Yell, Shetland|Yell]], [[Shetland Islands]]]]
[[Berkas:Shovel-Falklands.jpg|thumb|[[Falkland Islanders]] shovelling peat in the 1950s]]
[[Berkas:IMG Peat2930a.jpg|thumb|Industrial milled peat production in a section of the [[Bog of Allen]] in the Irish Midlands. The ''turf'' in the foreground is machine produced for domestic use]]
[[Berkas:Toppila power plant.JPG|thumb|Peat-fired power plant in [[Oulu]], Finland]]
Peat is soft and easily compressed. Under pressure, water in the peat is forced out. Upon drying, peat can be used as a [[fossil fuel|fuel]]. It has industrial importance as a fuel in some countries, such as [[Ireland]] and Finland, where it is harvested on an industrial scale. In many countries, including  Ireland and [[Scotland]], where trees are often scarce, peat is traditionally used for cooking and domestic heating. Stacks of drying peat dug from the bogs can still be seen in some rural areas.

Peat is also dug into [[soil]] to increase the soil's capacity to retain [[water|moisture]] and add [[nutrient]]s. This makes it important agriculturally, for farmers and gardeners. Its insulating properties make it of use to industry.

Peat fires are used to dry malted [[barley]] for use in [[Scotch whisky]] distillation.  This gives Scotch whisky its distinctive smoky flavour, often called "peatiness".

Although peat has many uses for humans, it also presents severe problems at times. When dry, it can be a major fire hazard, as peat fires can burn almost indefinitely (or at least until the fuel is exhausted), even underground, provided there is a source of oxygen. Peat deposits also pose major difficulties to builders of structures, roads and railways, as they are highly compressible under even small loads. When the [[West Highland Line]] was built across [[Rannoch Moor]] in western [[Scotland]], its builders had to float the tracks on a mattress of tree roots, brushwood and thousands of tons of earth and ashes.

During prehistoric times, peat bogs had considerable ritual significance to [[Bronze Age]] and [[Iron Age]] peoples, who considered them to be home to (or at least associated with) nature gods or spirits. The bodies of the victims of ritual sacrifices have been found in a number of locations in [[England]], [[Ireland]], and especially northern [[Germany]] and [[Denmark]], almost perfectly preserved by the tanning properties of the acidic water. (See [[Tollund Man]] for one of the most famous examples of a [[bog body]]).

Peat wetlands formerly had a degree of metallurgical importance as well. During the [[Dark Ages]], peat bogs were the primary source of [[bog iron]], used to create the swords and armour of the [[Vikings]].

Many peat swamps along the coast of [[Malaysia]] serve as a natural means of flood mitigation.  The peat swamps serve like a natural form of water catchment whereby any overflow will be absorbed by the peat.  However, this is effective only if the forests are still present, since they prevent peat fires.

Peat is also an important raw material in [[horticulture]]. However it is recommended to treat peat thermally e.g. through [[Soil steam sterilization|soil steaming]] in order to kill inherent pest and reactivate nutrients. Furthermore peat is used in medicine and [[balneology]] to produce filters and [[textiles]]{{fact|date=January 2009}}}.

Peat is sometimes used in freshwater [[aquarium|aquaria]], most commonly in soft water or [[blackwater river]] systems, such as those mimicking the [[Amazon River]] basin. In addition to being soft in texture and therefore suitable for demersal (bottom-dwelling) species such as ''[[Corydoras]]'' catfish, peat is reported to have a number of other beneficial functions in freshwater aquaria. It softens water by acting as an [[ion exchange]]r, it contains substances good for plants and for the reproductive health of fishes, and can even prevent algae growth and kill microorganisms. Peat often stains the water yellow or brown due to the leaching of [[tannin]]s.<ref>{{cite book | last=Scheurmann | first=Ines | others=(trans. for Barron's Educational Series, Hauppauge, New York: 2000) | title=Natural Aquarium Handbook, The | year=1985 | publisher=Gräfe & Unzer GmbH | location=Munich, Germany }}</ref>

===In Ireland===
In [[Ireland]], large-scale domestic and industrial peat usage is widespread. Specifically in the [[Republic of Ireland]], a state-owned company called [[Bord na Móna]] is responsible for managing peat production. It produces milled peat which is used in power stations. It sells processed peat fuel in the form of peat [[briquette]]s which are used for domestic heating. These are oblong bars of densely compressed, dried and shredded peat. Briquettes are largely smokeless when burned in domestic fireplaces and as such are widely used in Irish towns and cities where burning non-smokeless coal is banned. [[Peat moss]] is a manufactured product for use in garden cultivation. Turf (dried out peat [[sod]]s) is very commonly used in rural areas.

===In Finland===
Thanks to the climate, geography and environment of [[Finland]], bogs and peat bogs (''turvesuo'' in [[Finnish language|Finnish]]) are widespread. Twenty-six percent of the land area of Finland is bog of some sort. Because of this abundance of sources, peat is available in considerable quantities: Some estimates put the amount of peat in Finland alone to be twice the size of [[North Sea]] [[oil reserves]].<ref name="autogenerated1">[http://www.vapo.fi/eng/search/index_eng.php?id=694 VAPO<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref> This abundant resource (often mixed with wood at an average of 2.6%) is burned in order to produce [[heat]] and [[electricity]]. Peat provides approximately 6.2% of Finland's annual energy production, second only to Ireland.<ref>[http://www.ktm.fi/index.phtml?l=en&s=179 Työ- ja elinkeinoministeriö<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref> The contribution of peat to [[greenhouse gas]] emissions of Finland can exceed a yearly amount of 10 million tonnes carbon dioxide, equal to the total emissions of all passenger car traffic in Finland.

Finland classifies peat as a slowly renewing [[biomass fuel]]<ref>http://www.motiva.fi/fi/kirjasto/uusiutuvatenergialahteetsuomessa/muutbiomassaenergianlahteet/turve.html</ref> as opposed to the stance of the [[European Union]] and [[Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change]] which classify peat strictly as a [[fossil fuel]]. Peat producers in Finland often claim that peat is a special form of [[biofuel]], because of the relatively fast retake rate of released [[Carbon dioxide|CO<sub>2</sub>]] if the bog is not forested for the following 100 years. Also, agricultural and forestry-drained peat bogs actively release more CO<sub>2</sub> annually than is released in peat energy production in Finland (approx 30 [[TWh]] versus 25 TWh).<ref>[http://www.borenv.net Boreal Env. Res<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref> The average regrowth rate of a single peat bog, however, is indeed slow, from 1,000 up to 5,000 years. Furthermore it is a common practice to forest used peat bogs instead of giving them a chance to renew, leading to lower levels of CO<sub>2</sub> storage than the original peat bog.

At 106&nbsp;g&nbsp;CO<sub>2</sub>/[[Joule|MJ]]<ref>http://www.imcg.net/imcgnl/nl0702/kap05.htm</ref>, the carbon dioxide emissions of peat are higher than those of coal (at 94.6&nbsp;g&nbsp;CO<sub>2</sub>/MJ) and [[natural gas]] (at 56.1) (IPCC). According to one study, increasing the average amount of wood in the fuel mixture from the current 2.6% to 12.5% would take the emissions down to 93&nbsp;g&nbsp;CO<sub>2</sub>/MJ, though little effort is made to achieve this.<ref>[http://virtual.vtt.fi/inf/pdf/workingpapers/2004/W12.pdf VTT 2004: Wood in peat fuel – impact on the reporting of greenhouse gas emissions according to IPCC guidelines]</ref>

The state-owned company [[VAPO]] is the world leader in peat production with 21.7 million cubic meters in 2003.<ref name="autogenerated1" />

Peat extraction is also seen by some conservationists as the main threat to mire [[biodiversity]] in Finland. The [[International Mire Conservation Group]] (IMCG) in 2006 urged the local and national governments of Finland to protect and conserve the remaining pristine peatland ecosystems. This includes the cessation of drainage and peat extraction in intact mire sites and the abandoning of current and planned groundwater extraction that may affect these sites.

==Environmental and ecological issues==

[[Berkas:Co2.recent.ch.png|thumb|Increase, and change relative to previous year, of the atmospheric concentration of [[carbon dioxide]].]]

Because of the challenging ecological conditions of peat wetlands, they are home to many rare and specialised organisms that are found nowhere else. Some environmental organisations and scientists  have pointed out that the large-scale removal of peat from bogs in Britain, Ireland and Finland is destroying wildlife habitats. It takes centuries for a peat bog to regenerate.

Recent studies indicate that the world's largest peat bog, located in Western Siberia and the size of France and Germany combined, is thawing for the first time in 11,000 years. As the permafrost melts, it could release billions of tonnes of [[methane]] gas into the atmosphere.

The world's peatlands are thought to contain 180 to 455 [[petagram]]s of sequestered carbon, and they release into the atmosphere 20 to 45 [[teragram]]s of methane annually. The peatlands' contribution to long-term fluctuations in these atmospheric gases has been a matter of considerable debate.<ref>"Rapid early development of circumarctic peatlands and atmospheric CH<sub>4</sub> and CO<sub>2</sub> variations." ''Science'' 314: 285.</ref>

===Fires===
<!- Do not change the name of this section.  Other article(s) link to it directly. ->

[[Berkas:TOMS indonesia smog lrg.jpg|thumb|Smoke and ozone pollution from Indonesian fires, 1997.]]

Peat has a high carbon content and can burn under low moisture conditions. Once ignited by the presence of a heat source (e.g. a wildfire penetrating the subsurface), it [[smoulder]]s. These smouldering fires can burn undetected for very long periods of time (months, years and even centuries) propagating in a creeping fashion through the underground peat layer. Peat fires are emerging as a global threat with significant economic, social and ecological impacts.
Recent burning of peat bogs in Indonesia, with their large and deep growths containing more than 50 billion tons of carbon, has contributed to increases in world [[carbon dioxide]] levels.  Peat deposits in southeast Asia could be destroyed by 2040.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4208564.stm BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Asian peat fires add to warming<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref><ref>http://asd-www.larc.nasa.gov/biomass_burn/wildland.html</ref>

In 1997, it is estimated that [[1997 Southeast Asian haze|peat and forest fires in Indonesia]] released between 0.81 and 2.57 Gt of carbon; equivalent to 13-40 percent of the amount released by global fossil fuel burning, and greater than the carbon uptake of the world's biosphere.  These fires may be responsible for the acceleration in the increase in carbon dioxide levels since 1998.<ref>[http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/nov2002/2002-11-08-06.asp Indonesian Wildfires Accelerated Global Warming<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref><ref>[http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn6613 Massive peat burn is speeding climate change - 06 November 2004 - New Scientist<!- Bot generated title ->]</ref>

More than 100 peat fires in Kalimantan and East Sumatra continue to burn since 1997. Each year the peat fires in Kalimantan and East Sumatra ignite new forest fires above the ground.

===Tissue preservation===

Some northern European acidic anaerobic peat bogs have proved to have the capability to preserve mammalian tissue for millennia.  Examples of this conservation are [[Tollund Man]] and [[Haraldskær Woman]], both recovered from peat bogs with remarkable intact skin, internal organs and skeletons. Also preserved were their clothes and personal effects.

==Wise use and protection==

In June 2002 the United Nations Development Programme launched the Wetlands Ecosystem and Tropical Peat Swamp Forest Rehabilitation Project.  This project was targeted to last for 5 years until 2007 and brings together the efforts of various non-government organisations.

In November 2002, the International Peat Society and the International Mire Conservation Group (IMCG) published guidelines on the "Wise Use of Mires and Peatlands — Backgrounds and Principles including a framework for decision-making". The aim of this publication is to develop mechanisms that can balance the conflicting demands on the global peatland heritage, to ensure its wise use to meet the needs of humankind..
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== Itihi jua ==
* [[Alih fungsi lahan gambut]]
* [[Lahan basah]]
<!--
*[[Histosols]]
*[[Irish Peatland Conservation Council]]
*[[Unified Soil Classification System]] -->

== Jujuhutan ==
{{reflist}}

== Jujuhutan luar ==
{{Commonscat|Peat}}
* [http://www.peatsociety.org International Peat Society] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140923090120/http://www.peatsociety.org/ |date=2014-09-23 }}
* [http://www.imcg.net International Mire Conservation Group] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100110060213/http://www.imcg.net/ |date=2010-01-10 }}
* [http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ksheets/peat.html ''Gardening without peat''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040405001642/http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ksheets/peat.html |date=2004-04-05 }}, info dari [[Kebun Raya Kew]] di London
* [http://www.rspb.org.uk/gardens/whatyoucando/peat/index.asp ''Peat-free gardens''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527101630/http://www.rspb.org.uk/gardens/whatyoucando/peat/index.asp |date=2009-05-27 }}, dari [[RSPB]]
* [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6613 ''Massive peat burn is speeding climate change''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150430164628/http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6613 |date=2015-04-30 }} dari [[New Scientist]]
* [http://www.ipcc.ie/infocutbogtypesfs.html ''Cutover and Cutaway bogs''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060602010303/http://www.ipcc.ie/infocutbogtypesfs.html |date=2006-06-02 }} dari IPCC
* [http://www.kingclasstorf.com King Class Torf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080721051450/http://www.kingclasstorf.com/ |date=2008-07-21 }} di Turki

[[Kategori:Lahan basah]]
[[Kategori:Tanah]]
Gambut adalah jenis tanah nang tabantuk matan akumulasi sisa-sisa tumbuhan nang satangah marusak; karana ngitu, kandungan bahan organiknya tinggi.Anwar, J., S.J. Damanik, N. Hisyam, A.J.Whitten. 1984. Ekologi Ekosistem Sumatra. Gadjah Mada Univ. Press. Jogyakarta. Hal 245-251 Tanah nang tabantuk di lahan basah ngini disambat dalam basa Inggris sabagai peat; wan lahan basar di babagai bagian dunia dipinandui lawan bamacam ngaran kaya bog, moor, muskeg, pocosin, mire, wan lain-lain. Istilah "gambut" sorang diserap matan basa daerah Banjar.

Sabagai bahan organik, gambut kawa digunaakan sabagai sumbar energi. Volume gambut di saluruh dunia dikira-kira sabanyak 4 triliun m³, mancakup wilayah sakitar kurang labih 3 juta km2 atawa sakitar 2% dari laweh daratan di dunia, wan mangandung potensi energi sakitar 8 miliar terajoule.

 Pambantukan gambut 
jmpl|250px|Panambangan tanah gambut di Frisia Timur, Jerman 
Gambut tabantuk pas bagian-bagian tumbuhan nang gugur tahalangi panyabuhannya, biasanya di lahan-lahan nang basah, lantaran kadar kaasaman nang tinggi atawa kondisi anaerob di perairan setempat. Kada heran amun kabanyakan tanah gambut tadiri dari serpihan wan potongan-potongan sisa tumbuhan, daun, ranting-ranting, daun-daun, bahkan kayu-kayu ganal, nang balum habis-habisan marusak. Kadang-kadang ditamukan jua, karena kurangnya oksigen basifat manghambat dekomposisi, sisa-sisa bangkai binatang wan kararangga nang jua tasimpan di dalam lapisan-lapisan gambut.

Lazimnya di dunia, disambat sabagai gambut amun kandungan bahan organik di dalam tanah mancapai labih matan 30%; tagal hutan rawa gambut di Indunisia umumnya baisi kandungan mancapai labih matan 65% wan kadalamannya mancapai labih matan 50 cm. Tanah lawan kandungan bahan organik antara 35-65% jua biasa disambat muck.

Panambahan lapisan-lapisan gambut wan derajat panyusutan (humifikasi) taganal bagantung lawan komposisi gambut wan intensitas panggenangan. Gambut nang tabantuk di kondisi nang sangat basah akan kurang terdekomposisi, dan dengan demikian akumulasi nya relatif hancap, dibandingakan lawan gambut nang tabantuk di lahan-lahan nang lebih kering. Sifat-sifat ini mamungkinakan buhan ahli iklim manggunaakan gambut sabagai indikator parubahan iklim di masa lalu. Demikian jua, malalui analisis kapada komposisi gambut, tarutama tipe wan jumlah panyusun bahan organiknya, ahli arkeologi kawa mangkonstruksi gambaran ekologi di zaman purba.

Dalam kondisi nang pas, gambut jua marupakan tahap pamulaan pambentukan batu bara. Gambut bog nang hanyar, tabantuk di wilayah lintang tinggi di akhir Zaman Es tarakhir, sakitar 9.000 tahun nang lalu. Gambut ini masih tarus maningkat kandelnya lawan laju babarapa milimeter satahun. Tapi, rupa bumi diyakini tabantuk sakitar 360 juta tahun nang lalu; wan wahini mangandung sakitar 550 Gt karbon.

 Gambut sabagai sumber energi 

Gambutnya empuk dan mudah ditekan. Pas ditekan, kandungan banyu di dalam gambut kawa dipaksa kaluar. Bila dikeringakan, gambut kawa dipakai sabagai bahan bakar sumber energi. Rumput adalah bahan akar penting di nagara-nagara di mana pohon langka kaya Irlandia wan Skotlandia, sacara tradisional rumput dipakai gasan bamasak wan pamanas rumah tangga. Sacara moderen, gambut dipanen dalam skala industri wan dipakai gasan bahan bakar pembangkit listrik. Pembangkit listrik tanaga gambut pangganalnya ada di Finlandia (Toppila Power Station) nang baukuran 190 MW.

 Gambut di Indunisia 
Luas lahan gambut di Sumatera dikira-kira berkisar antara 7,3 sampai 9,7 juta hektare atawa kira-kira saparampat luas lahan gambut di saluruah wilayah tropika. Manurut kondisi wan sipatnya, gambut di sini kawa dibedakan atas gambut topogen wan gambut ombrogen.

Gambut topogen adalah lapisan tanah gambut nang tabantuk karana genangan banyu nang tahalang drainasinya di tanah-tanah cekung di balakang pantai, di pedalaman atawa di pagunungan. Gambut jenis ngini umumnya kada talalu dalam, sampai sakitar 4 m haja, kada asam wan relatif subur; lawan zat hara nang baasal matan lapisan tanah mineral di dasar cekungan, banyu sungai, sisa-sisa tumbuhan, wan banyu hujan. Gambut topogen takadang kada banyak ditamui.

Gambut ombrogen labih rancak ditamui, walaupun sabarataan gambut ombrogene dimulai sabagai gambut topogen. Gambut ombrogen labih tuha, umumnya lapisan gambutnya labih tebal, sampai ka dalam 20 m, wan permukaan tanah gambutnya lebih tinggi daripada permukaan sungai nang paraknya. Kandungan unsur hara tanah sangat terbatas, hanya berasal dari lapisan sulfur wan banyu hujan, jadi kada subur. Sungai atawa tatah nang kaluar matan wilayah gambut ombrogen mengalir banyu nang asamnya tinggi (pH 3,0-4,5), baisi banyak asam humus wan warnanya coklat itam kaya warna banyu teh nang pekat. Itulah sababnya sungai-sungai nang kaya itu disambat jua sungai banyu hirang.

Gambut ombrogen kebanyakan tabantuk kada jauh dari pantai. Tanah hudahnya baasal matan tanah nang ditanam bakau nang lalu garing; kandungan garam wan sulfida nang tinggi di tanah itu manyabapakan saikit dihuni ulih mayat-mayat nang marusak. Maka mulailah terbentuk lapisan kabut di atasnya. Panalitian di Sarawak manunjukakan bahwa gambut mulai tabantuk di atas lumpur mangrove sakitar 4.500 tahun nang lalu;Wilford, G.E. 1960. Radiocarbon age determinations of Quaternary sediments in Brunei and north east Sarawak. British North Borneo Geol. Survey Ann. Rep. pamulaan lawan laju penambangan sakitar 0.475 m/100 tahun (pada kedalaman gambut 10-12 m), tagal imbah itu dikurangi jadi sakitar 0.223 m/100 tahun pada kedalaman 0-5 mAnderson, J.A.R. 1964. The structure and development of peat-swamps of Sarawak and Brunei. J. Trop. Geog. 18:7–16. Patarnya maningkatnya umur hutan di atas tanah gambut ngini maningkat labih lambat akibat manurunnya kasadiaan hara. Salah satu contoh daerah gambut ngini adalah Kuta Palangka raya, Kalimantan Tengah, dibangun di atas lahan gambut ombrogen.

 Itihi jua 
 Alih fungsi lahan gambut
 Lahan basah

 Jujuhutan 

 Jujuhutan luar 

 International Peat Society 
 International Mire Conservation Group 
 Gardening without peat , info dari Kebun Raya Kew di London
 Peat-free gardens , dari RSPB
 Massive peat burn is speeding climate change  dari New Scientist
 Cutover and Cutaway bogs  dari IPCC
 King Class Torf  di Turki

Kategori:Lahan basah
Kategori:Tanah