From October 21st to 24th, the traveling exhibition “Val di Torba”, an outcome of the master thesis by Laisa Cordes, will be presented at Waltherhaus in Bolzano. The exhibition focuses on the current challenges of peat mining and explores future perspectives for the Adige Valley.
21–24.10.2024 Waltherhaus Bozen 7:00–14:00
Large parts of the Adige Valley were once covered by peatlands — wet landscapes such as swamps with reeds growing everywhere. This is evident from old maps, books, and local stories. Today, only the last fragments of alluvial forests remain, such as the Adlermösl biotope, providing a glimpse of the valley’s former landscape.
In stark contrast, the nearby peat mining site tells a different story. For decades, peat has been extracted near Leifers and Salurn, providing economic benefits to both landowners and the peat mining company. Over time, the peatlands of the past slowly formed peat soil, storing vast amounts of CO2. However, once peat is drained and extracted, all the CO2 that has been sequestered for thousands of years, is released into the atmosphere. This is why peatlands play such a key role in climate change and our future.
For years, local residents, biologists, environmental activists, farmers and politicians have been involved in a tense conflict between economic and ecological interests. With the ongoing climate crisis, peat extraction in South Tyrol is set to be banned. But what should the future of these areas look like? Now it’s about this big question, a place for dialogue and future prospects for a long-neglected ecosystem.
The first stop of the exhibition focuses on the background of peat extraction, raising awareness of the current challenges. Visitors can learn about the history of the valley in an animation, experience peat as a material and explore possible future scenarios. Presented at Waltherhaus, the exhibition aims to capture political attention before heading to Salurn, where stakeholder dialogue will become the focus.