Sphagnum magellanicum

Sphagnum magellanicum, commonly called Magellanic bogmoss, Magellan's sphagnum, Magellan's peatmoss or midway peat moss, is a widespread species of moss found in wet places in the far south and southwest of South America. In the 2010s Sphagnum peat in Chile has begun to be harvested at large scales for export to countries like Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States. Given Sphagnums property to absorb excess water and release it during dry months harvesting of Sphagnum, means that overexploitation may threaten the water supply in the fjords and channels of Chile. Extraction of Sphagnum in Chile is regulated by law since August 2, 2018. Since 2018 Chilean law allows only for the manual extraction of Sphagnum using only pitchforks or simmilar tools as aid. In a given area (polygon) at least 30% of Sphagnum coverage has to be left unharvested. Harvested Sphagnum fibers may not exceed 15 cm in lenght and the remaining Sphagnum after harvest may never have a lenght less than 5 cm over the water table. In the regions of Los Ríos (40°S) and Los Lagos (41–43°S) the same plots may be harvested after 12 years, while further south in Aysén (44–48°S) and Magallanes (49–56°S) 85 years have to pass before the same area is harvested again.