The State’s environmental watchdog is widening its net in a bid to tackle the largely unregulated commercial peat extraction industry, a tranche of records released to The Currency show. Inspection reports released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) detail how it has responded to concerns raised about suspected unlicensed extraction at 14 sites across the midlands this year.   Photos released show heavy machinery in operation, fresh mounds of milled peat awaiting removal, stacks of large peat sods drying across hectares of bog, and diggers creating drains to release water and dry out peat. Once dry, it releases large amounts of…

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