Soil CO 2 CH 4 and N 2 O fluxes from an afforested lowland raised peatbog in Scotland: implications for drainage and restoration
Year: 2013
Type: article
Abstract: . The effect of tree (lodgepole pine) planting with and without intensive drainage on soil greenhouse gas fluxes was assessed after 45 yr at a raised peatbog in West Flanders Moss, central Scotland. Fluxes of CO2, CH4 and N2O from the soil were monitored over a 2-yr period every 2 to 4 weeks using the static opaque chamber method in a randomised experimental block trial with the following treatments: drained and planted (DP), undrained and planted (uDP), undrained and unplanted (uDuP), and for reference also from an adjoining near pristine area of bog at East Flanders Moss (n-pris). There was a strong seasonal pattern in both CO2 and CH4 effluxes which were significantly higher in late spring and summer months, reflecting seasonal temperature changes. Effluxes of N2O were low and no significant differences were observed between the treatments. Annual CH4 emissions increased with the proximity of the water table to the soil surface across treatments in the order: DP < uDP < uDuP < n-pris with mean annual effluxes over the 2-yr monitoring period of 1.5, 6.4, 77.0 and 226.3 kg CH4 ha−1 yr−1, respectively. For CO2, effluxes increased in the order uDP < DP< n-pris < uDuP, with mean annual effluxes of 12.3, 16.6, 18.2 and 25.5 t CO2 ha−1 yr−1, respectively. CO2 effluxes dominated the calculated global warming potential (GWP) of the net fluxes for each treatment (76–98%), and only in the n-pris site was CH4 a substantial contribution (23%). Based on soil effluxes only, the near pristine (n-pris) peatbog had 43% higher net GWP compared with the DP treatment because of high CH4 effluxes and the DP treatment had 33% higher GWP compared with the uDP because drainage increased CO2 effluxes. Restoration is likely to increase CH4 emissions, but reduce CO2 effluxes. Including estimates of CO2 uptake by vegetation from similar peatbog sites suggests that the total GWP of restored peatbog would be about half that of the peatbog covered by woodland.
Source: Biogeosciences
Authors: S. Yamulki, R. Anderson, A. Peace, J. I. L. Morison
Institution: Forest Research
Language: English
Subfield: Ecology
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDGs: Climate action, Life on land
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,628
OpenAlex ID: W2160686100