Peat and stumps

From the Train of the End of the World we saw meadows of peat and the stumps of all the trees the prisoners cut. The timber was used not only for building but for fuel. Then natural gas was found in the area and trees were no longer needed for heating in this rather cold climate. This area is about 55 degrees latitude South, so its climate is about like Ketchikan, Alaska in the North, with the seasons reversed, of course.