The menace peat fires posed to farming is described in this 1946 newsreel. Peatlands, formed of slowly decomposing plant material, could burn underground if fire from farm burnoffs spread down through tree roots. Peat fires were once a regular occurrence in farmland around Hamilton.
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
Reference:
Weekly Review 237. National Film Unit, 1946
This item is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand Licence
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