REVIEW ARTICLE On the after-use and restoration of abandoned extracted peatlands in the Baltic countries Edgar Karofeld 1,2 , Leonas Jarašius 3 , Agnese Priede 4 ,J¯ urat˙ e Sendžikait˙ e 3 In the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), mires directly affected by peat extraction cover almost 90,000 ha. Of these, over 26,200 ha have already been extracted and are abandoned. The main aim of this article is to give an overview of the extent of extracted peatlands in the Baltics, the legislative background around the land-use options, and the directions of after-use of peatlands since the middle of the 20th century. We also critically review results from restoration of abandoned extracted peatlands and assess whether they are on a trajectory toward reinitiation of paludifcation and functioning mire ecosystems. Almost all currently existing abandoned extracted peatlands in the Baltics were abandoned during and shortly after the Soviet period (1940–1991) without any restoration measures. The rest of the extracted areas were mostly afforested, converted into agricultural lands, berry plantations, or water bodies. The after-use was mostly experimental, lacking systematic, proper assessment of outcome, cost and benefts, and side effects. The data are scarce but it could be estimated that only <10% (Estonia and Lithuania) and <20% (Latvia) of the total area of abandoned extracted peatlands were used for some purposes after peat extraction. Recently, several trials aimed at restoring the mire vegetation and ecosystem functions have been started in abandoned extracted peatlands in all three countries. In the coming years, the restoration of extracted peatlands in the Baltics will start on much bigger areas within different projects and initiatives cofnanced by the European Union. Key words: afforestation, berry plantation, Phalaris arundinacea, recultivation, Sphagnum, water bodies Implications for Practice • Methods for after-use of abandoned extracted peat- lands (especially afforestation and berry plantation) applied earlier in the Baltics do not generally lead to the re-establishment of mire vegetation and functioning natural ecosystems, and often have various negative side effects. • A method to restore abandoned extracted peatlands toward revegetation by bog plant species and recovery of func- tioning bog ecosystems is available and tested in local con- ditions, but some changes in legislation and governmental support are needed to carry out restoration on larger areas. • More precise requirements for restoration of extracted peatlands after abandonment should be stated in the license prior to their extension. • When allowed by environmental conditions, priority should be given to restoration toward reinitiation of self-regulating mire ecosystems. Introduction The Baltic countries, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, are still relatively rich in peatlands, which do have great importance at the scale of the entire European Union (EU). Peatlands cover only circa 2.8% from the territory of the EU (Joosten 2008), whereas peatlands in different conditions in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia cover circa 9.9, 10.4, and 22.3% of their territories, respectively (Orru 1992; Povilaitis et al. 2011; Kr¯ umi¸ nš et al. 2013). The Baltic countries have a long history of peat cutting and use for heating, bedding, agriculture, and other purposes. Currently, most of the extracted and exported Sphagnum peat is used for horticultural substrates. Well-decomposed bog and fen peat are used for heating in Estonia, while “mud peat” is being used in balneotherapy in several health resorts, as well as in cosmetics products in all three countries. Although mechanized peat extraction in the Baltics started in the second half of the nineteenth century, until the middle of the twentieth century, peat was mostly extracted manually in bog margins without deep drainage. Because of the relatively small area of the extraction sites, the impact on the environment was insignifcant and local, and these areas have revegetated spontaneously (Triisberg et al. 2011, 2013). The situation changed drastically from the 1950s when milling and vacuum mining techniques were introduced. Then, the area of drained peat extraction sites and the negative impact on surrounding Author contributions: EK, LJ, AP, JS performed data collection; EK coordinated manuscript preparation and revision; All authors contributed in data synthesis as well as in writing and revising the manuscript 1 Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Lai St 40, Tartu 51005, Estonia 2 Address correspondence to E. Karofeld, email edgar.karofeld@ut.ee 3 Nature Research Centre, Institute of Botany, Žali ¸ uj ¸ u Ežer ¸ u St 49, Vilnius LT 08406, Lithuania 4 Nature Conservation Agency, Baznicas St 7, Sigulda, LV 2150, Latvia © 2016 Society for Ecological Restoration doi: 10.1111/rec.12436 Restoration Ecology 1