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HomePortfolioEnergy & Environment Peatlands worldwide are drying out, threatening to release 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year
Peatlands worldwide are drying out, threatening to release 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year
Humans have been draining global peatlands for a range of uses. (Adobe/lux)
Peatlands, such as fens, bogs, marshes and swamps, cover just 3% of the Earth’s total land surface, yet store over one-third of the planet’s soil carbon. That’s more than the carbon stored in all other vegetation combined, including the world’s forests.
But peatlands worldwide are running short of water, and the amount of greenhouse gases this could set loose would be devastating for our efforts to curb climate change.
Peatlands worldwide are drying out, threatening to release 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year theconversation.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theconversation.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
“Peatlands are dynamic and diverse and the underlying causes of their degradation are as complex as the ecosystems themselves,” said Nazir Foead, head of Indonesia’s Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG). He made these remarks at the fourth and final webinar in a series convened by BRG and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), which sought to explore and develop criteria and indicators for peatland restoration in Indonesia.
The country has pledged to restore over 2 million hectares of degraded peatlands in response to the U.N. Paris Agreement adopted as an effort to hold global warming in check. However, as Foead said in his keynote address, it is not a simple task. One possible solution to this complex endeavor is to measure progress through an appropriate, easy-to-use set of criteria and indicators that are locally relevant and internationally recognized.