Abstract
AbstractPeatlands are lands with a peat layer at the surface, containing a large proportion of organic carbon. Such lands cover ≈1 000 000 km2 in Europe, which is almost 10% of the total surface area. In many countries, peatlands have been artificially drained over centuries, leading to not only enormous emissions of CO2 but also soil subsidence, mobilization of nutrients, higher flood risks, and loss of biodiversity. These problems can largely be solved by stopping drainage and rewetting the land. Wet peatlands do not release CO2, can potentially sequester carbon, help to improve water quality, provide habitat for rare and threatened biodiversity, and can still be used for production of biomass (“paludiculture”). Wisely adjusted land use on peatlands can substantially contribute to low‐emission goals and further benefits for farmers, the economy, society, and the environment.
Highlights
In pristine, undrained peatlands peat accumulates because the decomposition of plants is slowed due to permanentlyIn a widely accepted, globally applicable definition, a “peatland” water-logged conditions
A wider concept for Drainage allows oxygen to enter the soil, leading to microbial carbon-rich soils, including all peatlands, is “organic soil.”. This decomposition of the peat and thereby breakdown of the stored concept is used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for soils with a high content of organic matter and used in national greenhouse gas inventories for reporting carbon leading to emission of substantial amounts of CO2 and N2O.[7,8,11]
Given the high climate change mitigation potential of paludicultures, European Union (EU) institutions have expressed support for making agricultural land rewetted for paludiculture eligible for direct payments in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) period.[77,78]
Summary
In pristine, undrained peatlands peat accumulates because the decomposition of plants is slowed due to permanently. Peatlands where peat is being formed.[2] A wider concept for Drainage allows oxygen to enter the soil, leading to microbial carbon-rich soils, including all peatlands, is “organic soil.” This decomposition of the peat and thereby breakdown of the stored concept is used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for soils with a high content of organic matter and used in national greenhouse gas inventories for reporting carbon leading to emission of substantial amounts of CO2 and N2O.[7,8,11] Further negative consequences of drainage are reduction in water quality through the discharge of nutrients. The aim of this article is to make a wider audience aware of the critical role of peatlands and to point at solutions and enabling policy frameworks, in particular with regard to the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union, which will inform the European Green Deal
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