Peatland of Dahner Felsenland in Germany

The Dahner Felsenland is located in the Pfälzerwald-Nordvogesen UNESCO biosphere reserve and is characterised by sandstone rock formations. Within the Dahner Felsenland is a drained wetland with moorland, which is to be rewetted as part of the ‘Waldmannswiesen’ project. We are supporting the restoration and maintenance of this original wetland as part of nature conservation measures. This original wetland area is located in the Seibertsbach Valley, around three kilometres west of the town of Dahn, and is characterised by the Seibertsbach stream.

In its current drained state, the peatland releases the previously stored carbon and thus becomes a source of carbon dioxide. We are working on rewetting this former peatland and wetland area to restore its original function as a carbon storage. Once successfully rewetted, the peatland will become a habitat for rare species and take on water storage and filtration functions.

Dahner Felsenland is a wetland, so our forestry team will not be planting on this land. The biodiversity team is responsible for the restoration.

The planned measures should make it possible to conserve the peat while initiating a transformation into a functional peat bog. Rewetting the peat means thinning out woody plants and promoting typical heathland vegetation. The project area has been precisely determined using peatland mapping to identify suitable sections for raising the riverbed and determine the water retention structures' location. The side ditches will be filled in with sections of peat. It will also be necessary to erect wooden sheet-pile dykes to ensure that the water covers the peat - to avoid CO2 emissions.