Some of these animals are listed as endangered (i.e. red-listed) or vulnerable (i.e. blue-listed) under the BC Provincial Government Species at-risk designations.

A major component of Burns Bog is sphagnum moss, which is able to hold about 30 times its weight in water.

Sphagnum moss can grow under wet and acidic conditions and it is the major building block of peat in Burns Bog.

Breakdown of organic matter in the bog progresses slowly due to low oxygen content and high acidity of the water.

High acidity and the waterlogged conditions of peatlands such as Burns Bog prevent complete decomposition of fixed carbon.

European scientists state that an area of peatland the size of a soccer field stores as much carbon as would be generated by driving a family car around the world three times.

Sand, silt, and clay were deposited on top of the ground, which prevented water drainage at this location.

6,000 years after glacial melting, the aquatic environment was capable of preserving dead plant material in the form of peat.

The surface of this wetland slowly separated from groundwater sources, and the environment switched from a fen to a bog.

Many years after the appearance of sphagnum moss in the depression, peat accumulated thickest near the centre of the bog.

A low water table in bogs can lead to irreversible drying of bogland, which can be detrimental to its ecosystem.

Cloudberries, crowberry, velvet-leaf blueberry, and bog-rosemary are some of the rare plants found in Burns Bog.

The Greater Sandhill Crane, black-tailed deer, dragonflies, and eagles make Burns Bog their home.

Other animals that can be found in Burns Bog are the redback vole, pacific water shrew, barred owl, great blue heron, snow shoe hare, great horned owl, coyote, geese, ducks, California gull, painted turtle, red-legged frog, and woodpeckers.

Labrador tea, western bog-laurel, sundew plants, and sphagnum moss were used to treat different medical conditions.

During World War II, the US Government purchased peat from Burns Bog to catalyze the formation of firebombs.

[10] The "yes" vote led to taxpayer contribution (0.3% levy included in utility taxes in 2001 for possible purchase of Burns Bog).

Smoke and ash covered the entire Lower Mainland and spread all the way to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island.

This included firebreaks being bulldozed and dikes to raise the water level in the hopes of extinguishing any of the fire burning underground.

This included four Firecats, two Convair 580s and the Martin Mars water bombers, which are the world's largest air tankers.

[19] Burns Bog is listed under the Fraser River Delta Ramsar Site as a wetland of international significance because it is a major migratory bird stopover on the Pacific Flyway.

[22] A University of British Columbia study states that construction of Highway 91 and 99 caused Burns Bog to shrink significantly in size.

[citation needed] While the logging industry and peat mining have come to a halt in Burns Bog, the damage is still being felt today.

Metro Vancouver and the City of Delta work alongside university students to monitor the health of Burns Bog.

MK Delta Lands Group is proposing to build an industrial park in Burns Bog.

Construction of an overpass leading to the site and a new water pump to drain the area of bog land is included in their plans.

The drainage, construction, and noise created from this project would be detrimental to Burns Bog's natural ecosystem.

[citation needed] Most of Burns Bog is closed off to the public due to safety and conservation concerns.

They are the transition zones between low-nutrient peat bogs and the high-nutrient, or in this case human disturbed, areas.

The Burns Bog Conservation Society has built more than 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) of boardwalk in the Delta Nature Reserve.