Prompt active restoration of peatlands substantially reduces climate impact

Nugent, Kelly A.; Strachan, Ian B.; Roulet, Nigel T.; Strack, Maria; Frolking, Steve; Helbig, Manuel

doi:10.1088/1748-9326/ab56e6

Cited by 54 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…These results mirror research in Canada that found it takes one to two decades for peatlands to recover following restoration efforts 3 . The trick to restoring the natural hydrology, the way water moves through the system and is stored by the peat, is choosing locations that aren't too degraded and where there is still enough residual peat and plant vegetation, says Nigel Roulet, a peatland scientist at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.…”

Section: Towers Of Resiliencesupporting

confidence: 79%

How peat could protect the planet

Gewin¹

2020

Nature

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Section: Towers Of Resiliencesupporting

confidence: 79%

How peat could protect the planet

Gewin¹

2020

Nature

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“…Restoration of cutover and drained bogs should begin as soon as possible following disturbance, as prolonged drainage increases the bulk density of the peat and causes it to become less suitable for Sphagnum regrowth (Price, 1997). Prompt restoration also reduces climate impacts, allowing Sphagnum to restart carbon sequestration earlier (Nugent et al, 2019). Blocking and the filling of ditches are the two most common methods used to restore the water table of drained peatlands in North America (Chimner, Cooper, Wurster, & Rochefort, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plant community type is an indicator of the seasonal moisture deficit in a disturbed raised bog

2020

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Depth to water table is a simple, commonly used measure of hydrological function in raised bogs. The maximum depth of the water table or the average annual water table is often monitored over the long term to track the hydrological trajectory of the ecosystem. These measures, however, may not take into account the duration of the moisture deficit period. The annual water table moisture deficit (WTMD) at 67 sites in a single disturbed raised bog was calculated using the amount of time that the water table was at each depth below the surface during the moisture deficit season.The calculated value estimates a linearly developing deficit that dewaters the acrotelm during the moisture deficit season. At each site, plant species composition was assigned to one of eight plant community types. The approximate threshold above which bog plant communities will begin transitioning into drier types with taller shrubs and trees was a WTMD of 62 m-days. An annual climatic moisture deficit (CMD) was calculated using daily air temperature, spatially interpolated precipitation and estimated potential evapotranspiration for each site. Mixed-effects modelling of WTMD as a function CMD indicated a positive linear relation for most vegetation types, which was affected by the presence of drainage ditches, ditch blocking, fire and evapotranspiration by shrubs and trees. Tracking the WTMD and its relation to CMD may be useful for assessing ecosystem health and serve as a basis for estimating moisture deficit thresholds for bogs of conservation concern. K E Y W O R D S climate, disturbance, plant community, raised bog, seasonal moisture deficit, threshold, water table

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“…Thus, estimates of future fire emissions will need to assimilate complexities associated with peat fuel conditions and loadings. For example, restoration of peat is not a linear process, with previous results in Canada showing one to two decades needed for restoration and rewetting of degraded peatlands that have residual peat and vegetation to 'seed' the sites (Nugent et al, 2019). Until these restored peatlands have sufficient moisture and vegetation cover, they are still susceptible to fire risk.…”

Section: Peatlandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reviews & Syntheses: Arctic Fire Regimes and Emissions in the 21st Century

McCarty¹,

Aalto²,

Paunu³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Abstract. In recent years, the Pan-Arctic region has experienced increasingly extreme fire seasons. Fires in the northern high latitudes are driven by current and future climate change, lightning, fuel conditions, and human activity. In this context, conceptualizing and parameterizing current and future Arctic fire regimes will be important for fire and land management as well as understanding current and predicting future fire emissions. The objectives of this review were driven by policy questions identified by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) Working Group and posed to its Expert Group on Short-Lived Climate Forcers. This review synthesises current understanding of the changing Arctic and boreal fire regimes, particularly as fire activity and its response to future climate change in the Pan-Arctic has consequences for Arctic Council states aiming to mitigate and adapt to climate change in the north. The conclusions from our synthesis are the following: (1) Current and future Arctic fires, and the adjacent boreal region, are driven by natural (i.e., lightning) and human-caused ignition sources, including fires caused by timber and energy extraction, prescribed burning for landscape management, and tourism activities. Little is published in the scientific literature about cultural burning by Indigenous populations across the Pan-Arctic and questions remain on the source of ignitions above 70° N in Arctic Russia. (2) Climate change is expected to make Arctic fires more likely by increasing the likelihood of extreme fire weather, increased lightning activity, and drier vegetative and ground fuel conditions. (3) To some extent, shifting agricultural land use, forest-steppe to steppe, tundra-to-taiga, and coniferous-to-deciduous forest transitions in a warmer climate may increase and decrease open biomass burning. However, at the country- and landscape-scales, these relationships are not well established. (4) Current black carbon and PM2.5 emissions from wildfires above 50° N and 65° N are larger than emissions from the anthropogenic sectors of residential combustion, transportation, and flaring, respectively. Wildfire emissions have increased from 2010 to 2020, particularly above 60° N, with 56 % of black carbon emissions above 65° N in 2020 attributed to open biomass burning – indicating how extreme the 2020 wildfire season was and future Arctic wildfire seasons potential. (5) What works in the boreal zones to prevent and fight wildfires may not work in the Arctic. Fire management will need to adapt to a changing climate, economic development, the Indigenous and local communities, and fragile northern ecosystems, including permafrost and peatlands. (6) Factors contributing to the uncertainty of predicting and quantifying future Arctic fire regimes include underestimation of Arctic fires by satellite systems, lack of agreement between Earth observations and official statistics, and still needed refinements of location, conditions, and previous fire return intervals on peat and permafrost landscapes. This review highlights that much research is needed in order to understand the local and regional impacts of the changing Arctic fire regime on emissions and the global climate, ecosystems and Pan-Arctic communities.

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Prompt active restoration of peatlands substantially reduces climate impact

Cited by 54 publications

References 36 publications

How peat could protect the planet

How peat could protect the planet

Plant community type is an indicator of the seasonal moisture deficit in a disturbed raised bog

Reviews & Syntheses: Arctic Fire Regimes and Emissions in the 21st Century

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Prompt active restoration of peatlands substantially reduces climate impact

Cited by 54 publications

References 36 publications

How peat could protect the planet

How peat could protect the planet

Plant community type is an indicator of the seasonal moisture deficit in a disturbed raised bog

Reviews &amp; Syntheses: Arctic Fire Regimes and Emissions in the 21st Century

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Reviews & Syntheses: Arctic Fire Regimes and Emissions in the 21st Century