Land use — AQA GCSE Biology
Test yourself on Land use with AQA GCSE practice questions.
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Land use explained
Peat bogs are waterlogged, acidic, low-oxygen habitats where dead plant material accumulates over thousands of years because decomposition is very slow.
Read the full explanation
This waterlogged peat supports specialised plants such as sphagnum mosses, plus insects, birds and microorganisms adapted to the wet, acidic conditions. Peat is extracted and sold as garden compost or soil improver. Extraction drains the bog, removes the peat layer and destroys the habitat. The area of peat bog decreases, so the range of plant, animal and microorganism species living there falls. Species that cannot survive elsewhere may become locally extinct. Even after extraction stops, a bog may take a very long time to recover because peat forms slowly. The loss is therefore a reduction in biodiversity caused by destroying a specific habitat for a human product.
Your focus
- Describe peat bogs as waterlogged, acidic habitats with slow decomposition.
- Explain that extracting peat for garden compost destroys peat bog habitat.
- Link the reduced area of peat bog to a reduced variety of plant, animal and microorganism species.
Land use exam tips
Marking Points
- Peat bogs are waterlogged, acidic, low-oxygen habitats where decomposition is slow and peat accumulates.
- Peat is extracted and used to produce garden compost or soil improver.
- Extraction drains and removes the peat, destroying the bog habitat.
- The area of peat bog habitat is reduced.
- Specialised plants, animals and microorganisms lose their habitat, so the variety of species living there decreases.
- The reduction in the variety of species is a reduction in biodiversity, and recovery is very slow because peat forms over thousands of years.
Examiner Tips
- 💡State that peat bogs are a specific habitat and that peat is used in garden compost.
- 💡Use the phrase variety of different plant, animal and microorganism species when explaining the biodiversity loss.
- 💡Link destruction of the bog to reduced habitat area and then to reduced species variety, in that order.
Common Mistakes
- Saying peat is a renewable resource on a human timescale; correction: peat accumulates very slowly, so extraction is effectively non-renewable.
- Thinking only plants are affected; correction: the statement includes plants, animals and microorganisms, all of which lose habitat.
- Confusing peat destruction with pollution; correction: the primary issue is habitat destruction and loss of area, although burning or decay of peat also releases carbon dioxide.