The Effect of Water Table Levels and Short-Term Ditch Restoration on Mountain Peatland Carbon Cycling in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru

Response of the peatland carbon dioxide sink function to future climate change scenarios and water level management

“…Water level management had the greatest positive impact on the sink function of mesocosms under RCP 8.5 followed by RCP 4.5 (Figure 4e) by stimulating the growth of vascular plants (sedges and dwarf shrubs) during the growing season over the 2‐year experiment (Figure 5b,c; Beyer et al, 2021). Other studies showed a lower NEE (higher CO 2 uptake) in the restored areas after rewetting compared to drained peatlands (Karki et al, 2016; Planas‐Clarke et al, 2020; Schimelpfenig et al, 2014; Swenson et al, 2019). For example, Nugent et al (2018) indicated that internal hydrological controls can strengthen the stability and strong carbon sink function of peatlands during summer drawdowns.…”

Modelling the performance of bunds and ditch dams in the hydrological restoration of tropical peatlands

“…First, the ditch dams reduce water-level variations in the areas near the ditches (Kasih et al, 2016;Putra et al, 2021;Urzainki et al, 2020). Second, the dams minimize the hydraulic gradient between ditches and the peatland, as also indicated by several comparable studies in tropical (Planas-Clarke et al, 2020;Ritzema et al, 2014; or temperate peatlands (Evans et al, 2018;Holden et al, 2017;Peacock et al, 2015). Third, in the Early Wet period, the ditch dams raised the ditch water levels, reduced flow to the margin of the peat, and accelerated water refilling in the model plot.…”