Additionally, the degradation of fens contributes considerably to the eutrophication of adjoining waters. The cultivation of bulrushes to be used as insulation material can advance the renaturation of fens. Jointly with some cooperation partners, scientists of the Technische Universität München cultivated bulrush plants on a waterlogged fen area in the Bavarian Danube Moss near Ingolstadt.

Natural purification plant and new habitat
The project shows that agricultural utilization does not inevitably involve a damage of the fens and that an extensive bulrush cultivation can serve as a gentle alternative for these areas. Bulrush has a considerable nutrient demand but simultaneously a considerable tolerance opposite high nutrient concentrations. Therefore, strongly nutrient-containing ditch water from neighbouring agricultural areas can be used for water logging entailling an improved growth of the bulrush plants and clean water as a favourable spin-off. Additionally, this close to natural form of fen utilization creates valuable new habitats for hydrophilic plants and animal communities.