Eidg. Schwing- und Älplerfest (ESAF): Sawdust as a substitute in peat cutting area
Around 300 cubic meters of sawdust are needed for the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival (ESAF). This quantity corresponds to 400 to 500 trees to produce sawdust as a by-product. It makes sense to reuse this by-product for bog regeneration according to the so-called "Zug method".
The amount of sawdust for the ESAF will only be produced in half a day, according to an official press release for the big festival, which will be held in Zug from August 23 to 25, 2019. Around 300,000 festival visitors are expected at the ESAF 2019, and more than 56,500 enthusiastic supporters will watch the wrestling competitions in the seven sawdust rings live on site in the specially built temporary arena, the largest stadium in Switzerland.
The Zug Method
For years, the Zug Wrestling Federation has purchased sawdust from Schilliger Holz, a traditional company in Haltikon, which belongs to the district municipality of Küssnacht am Rigi. Thanks to its wood pallet production, Schilliger Holz is able to supply a large quantity of sawdust (equivalent to approx. 400 to 500 trees). Schilliger Holz also supplies sawdust for the ESAF. The approximately 40 cubic meters of sawdust will be brought to the Zugerberg after the festival, so that the bog in Eigenried can be regenerated.
The canton of Zug has agreed to cover the transport costs. According to the so-called Zug method, bog regeneration with sawdust has been taking place on the Zugerberg for several years. Philipp Gieger, biologist and project manager for bog regeneration at the Office for Spatial Planning and Transport (Canton of Zug), developed the method together with Peter Staubli and Peter F.X. Hegglin. In the meantime, this method has been successfully applied internationally, for example in the large peatlands of northern Germany.
To regenerate peatlands, it is central to re-dam the drainage ditches. Various methods are used for this, depending on the type of peatland, soil properties and drainage technique. The Zug method is particularly suitable for simple ditches and peat soils without a large amount of wood and roots. Sawdust is low in nutrients, dimensionally stable and easy to install. The method is inexpensive and effective.
After a few weeks, water stands in the regenerated areas. Then the growth of peat mosses quickly resumes.
Example Eigenried
The Canton of Zug, Office for Spatial Planning and Transport, Nature and Landscape Department together with the Zug Corporation use the waste product from wood as a replacement for the former peat cutting. In Eigenried on the Zugerberg, the sawdust is used to fill in ditches, creating new habitats in the protected moorland in the long term.
The Eigenried is a typical rainwater raised bog. It lies on a compacted glacial moraine through which no water seeps. The peat body is not fed by groundwater, but exclusively by rainwater. Therefore, it is promising to close the drainage ditches. There are also enough remnants of the peat body to ensure the sponge function and the low nutrient content of the soil. Thus, 40 cubic meters of sawdust from the ESAF are completely returned to the natural cycle and form the basis for new peat generations in the long term.
The remaining sawdust from the ESAF is also used by the farmers in Zug. They used it for bedding the fields.
More about the "Zug Method":
https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=hoc-001:2015:28::1415
All details about the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival:
