Timber piling could help build hopes for homes on peatland View over the peat bogs towards Ben Griam Beag, at Forsinard, in the Flow Country of the Sutherland region of Scotland. Peat bogs used to be drained to free-up land for forestry and agriculture until their importance as a global carbon store in Global NEW environmentally friendly methods for laying housing foundations on peatland could help economic development in parts of the Highlands and Islands, it has been claimed. A research consortium led by Edinburgh Napier University and Heriot-Watt University is assessing the feasibility of a range of construction methods to minimise disturbance to peat in areas where its presence currently limits building options.