Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Peat Country Notes

China

Peatlands totalling some 10 000 km² are quite widely distributed but do not have a high overall significance in China's topography, accounting for only about 0.1% of the country's land area. The principal peat areas are located in the region of the Qingzang Plateau in the southwest, in the north-east mountains and in the lower Yangtze plain in the east.

Peat has been harvested for a variety of purposes, including fuel use, since the 1970s. Some is used in industry (e.g. brick-making), but the major part of consumption is as a household fuel. Peat has been reported to be sometimes mixed with animal dung as input to biogas plants. No information is available on the current level of peat consumption for fuel. The Chinese WEC Member Committee reported production and consumption of 600 000 tonnes in 1990 for an earlier Survey.