Peatland geoengineering: an alternative approach to terrestrial carbon sequestration

Abstract

Terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems contribute almost equally to the sequestration of ca 50 per cent of anthropogenic CO 2 emissions, and already play a role in minimizing our impact on Earth's climate. On land, the majority of the sequestered carbon enters soil carbon stores. Almost one-third of that soil carbon can be found in peatlands, an area covering just 2-3% of the Earth's landmass. Peatlands are thus well established as powerful agents of carbon capture and storage; the preservation of archaeological artefacts, such as ancient bog bodies, further attest to their exceptional preservative properties. Peatlands have higher carbon storage densities per unit ecosystem area than either the oceans or dry terrestrial systems. However, despite attempts over a number of years at enhancing carbon capture in the oceans or in land-based afforestation schemes, no attempt has yet been made to optimize peatland carbon storage capacity or even to harness peatlands to store externally captured carbon. Recent studies suggest that peatland carbon sequestration is due to the inhibitory effects of phenolic compounds that create an 'enzymic latch' on decomposition. Here, we propose to harness that mechanism in a series of peatland geoengineering strategies whereby molecular, biogeochemical, agronomical and afforestation approaches increase carbon capture and long-term sequestration in peat-forming terrestrial ecosystems.

Bryophyte‐cyanobacteria associations as regulators of the northern latitude carbon balance in response to global change

“…The knowledge about how bryophytes link aboveground and belowground processes is useful for developing governmental policy aimed at sequestering C. For instance, ecosystem management approaches aimed at enhancing C sequestration by increasing NPP, such as fertilization programs, are becoming more common in boreal forests. Unintended negative effects of these programs on bryophytes may inevitably result in offsetting losses of soil C that minimize the effectiveness of such programs to sequester C. Likewise, land use changes, such as afforestation programs or large herbivore management decisions may have unintended negative effects on C sequestration in these regions due to their antagonistic interactions with bryophytes (but see Freeman et al ., ). A detailed understanding of these relationships may help facilitate more accurate predictive modelling of how boreal and arctic ecosystem C dynamics will influence the global C cycle, which is highly relevant for an array of policy, globally, that is based on climate change modelling.…”

Dual controls on carbon loss during drought in peatlands

“…We anticipate our study to be a starting point for detailed carbon chemistry and comprehensive long-term studies to further explore these processes. These studies would have important potential applications for better coping with and mitigating upcoming climate changes in wetlands and other ecosystems 30 .…”

Vegetation and Microbes Interact to Preserve Organic Matter in Wooded Peatlands

“…As biotic regulators, the co-shifting microbe and plant communities that were initially triggered by climate change appear to exert dominant controls on ecosystem C cycling and soil C sequestration, thus ensuring for continuing peat accretion in the new state. Our findings may have more immediate applications in carbon-climate feedback models and geoengineering strategies(35,39). Embedding dynamic biotic factors into current abiotic-factordependent decay models could greatly advance the accuracy of the Earth System Models in projecting the fate of boreal peatlands with shifting plant/microbe communities (4, 5, 37) under climate change.…”