Here, peat –an important source of fuel –is being extracted from below the water table, a common technique in the west and north of the Netherlands. The man in the little boat dredges the peat from the water; it is then spread out on the ground. The woman in the distance stamps the peat drying in the sun into a hard mass. This is subsequently cut with a spade into easy-to-use blocks, which are then left to dry out fully.