Peatland Ecosystems Research Articles

Radiocarbon Analyses Quantify Peat Carbon Losses With Increasing Temperature in a Whole Ecosystem Warming Experiment

AbstractClimate warming is expected to accelerate peatland degradation and release rates of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). Spruce and Peatlands Responses Under Changing Environments is an ecosystem‐scale climate manipulation experiment, designed to examine peatland ecosystem response to climate forcings. We examined whether heating up to +9 °C to 3 m‐deep in a peat bog over a 7‐year period led to higher C turnover and CO2 and CH4 emissions, by measuring 14C of solid peat, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), CH4, and dissolved CO2 (DIC). DOC, a major substrate for heterotrophic respiration, increased significantly with warming. There was no 7‐year trend in the DI14 C of the ambient plots which remained similar to their DO14 C. At +6.75 °C and +9 °C, the 14C of DIC, a product of microbial respiration, initially resembled ambient plots but became more depleted over 7 years of warming. We attributed the shifts in DI14 C to the increasing importance of solid phase peat as a substrate for microbial respiration and quantified this shift via the radiocarbon mass balance. The mass‐balance model revealed increases in peat‐supported respiration of the catotelm depths in heated plots over time and relative to ambient enclosures, from a baseline of 20%–25% in ambient enclosures, to 35%–40% in the heated plots. We find that warming stimulates microorganisms to respire ancient peat C, deposited under prior climate (cooler) conditions. This apparent destabilization of the large peat C reservoir has implications for peatland‐climate feedbacks especially if the balance of the peatland is tipped from net C sink to C source.

Peat water quality in Block C Pulang Pisau Regency, Central Kalimantan

The increasing need for agricultural land has led to a shift in the cultivation of vegetation on peatland especially food crops. Agricultural activities on peatland require careful planning, appropriate technology application, and proper management due to the marginal and the fragile peatland ecosystem. Research and development are needed to evaluate the carrying capacity of environmental impacts on peatland use. This study aimed to obtain information on the water quality of peat domes, primary canals, and secondary canals of Block C, Pulang Pisau Regency. The study area is now mostly used for agricultural activities. The analysis was carried out in a descriptive qualitative manner based on water parameter testing results to assess the water quality of peat domes, primary canals, and secondary canals of each type of peatland use in Buntoi, Garung, and Kanamit Barat Village. The results indicated that five chemical parameters exceeded the water quality criteria for Class II PP No. 22/2021 namely BOD, COD, free chlorine, zinc, and lead in Buntoi. Further, in Garung, six chemical parameters exceeded the water quality criteria: DO, BOD, COD, free chlorine, lead, and copper. Meanwhile, in Kanamit Barat Village, seven chemical parameters exceeded the criteria: DO, BOD, COD, free chlorine, zinc, lead, and copper. Based on this research, therefore, agricultural activities on this peatland area should consider the natural characteristics of peat water and the selection of suitable plants.

Interaction between Environment, Economy, Society and Health in the Concept of Environmental Health: Studies on Peatland Communities

BACKGROUND: The current environmental issue that concerns us all is the use of peatland for oil palm plantations. This damages the peatland ecosystem, even though peatland are very important in the hydrological system of the downstream area of a watershed. One of the impacts of the destruction of the peat ecosystem is the occurrence of flooding in the downstream watershed. In addition, if forest and peatland fires occur, it will cause CO2 emissions, thereby disrupting public health. AIM: The purpose of this research is to develop the concept of environmental health. The focus of this research is improving environmental health in communities on peatlands. METHODS: The research method used was qualitative where data collection was done through interviews, observation, and documentation. RESULTS: The findings of this study are that the research location is dominated by oil palm plantations which have a negative impact on public health. CONCLUSION: Based on these findings, the development of the concept of environmental health is the interaction between the environment, economy, society, and society to improve the quality of life.

Effects of mire disturbance by Sika deer on nitrogen fixation and denitrification in Ozegahara Mire, Japan

ABSTRACT Ozegahara Mire is the largest alpine mire in Japan, and it has been preserved as the precious peatland ecosystem under oligotrophic condition. However, after the late 20 century, the mire has been exposed to ecosystem disturbance by invaded Sika deer. Browsing and digging of the mire vegetation by Sika deer have given considerable impacts on not only vegetation but also biochemical property of the peat soil, resulting in the changes in microbiological activities and nutrient dynamics. However, little information has been provided about the effect of deer disturbance on nitrogen (N) dynamics in the mire. This study aims to provide information about the effects of deer disturbance on nitrogen dynamic including N2 fixation and denitrification in Ozegahara Mire. Soil samples were collected at 6 plots on 2 sites with and without mire disturbance by Sika deer at eastern Naka-Tashiro of Ozegahara mire in July 2018. Mineral N contents and other physicochemical properties of the soil samples were measured. N2 fixation and denitrification activities of the soil samples were also measured at different incubation temperatures (15, 20 or 25°C) under either aerobic or anaerobic conditions by acetylene reduction activity (ARA) and inhibition methods, respectively. As results, the ARA in the disturbed sites were lower than those in the undisturbed sites and also lower under aerobic condition than anaerobic condition. Negative correlation was found between ARA and ammonium N in the soil (R 2 = 0.353, p< 0.05), suggesting that mechanical disturbance of the peat soils by deer enhanced mineralization of organic N to suppress N2 fixation. ARA was increased by elevated incubation temperature in the undisturbed sites, while no change in the disturbed sites. Denitrification activities was not affected by the disturbance by Sika deer, while higher under aerobic condition than in anaerobic condition, and in higher temperature than lower temperature. Multi-regression analysis of ARA affecting factors revealed that ARA was significantly influenced by temperature, ammonium N and disturbance. These results indicate the marked influences of the mire disturbance by Sika deer on N2 fixation and denitrification activities of the peat soils and N dynamics in Ozegahara Mire.

Biophysical Impacts of Historical Disturbances, Restoration Strategies, and Vegetation Types in a Peatland Ecosystem

AbstractRewetting of disturbed peatlands is an important restoration strategy for climate change mitigation. Previous work primarily focuses on the biogeochemical processes altered by rewetting and few studies have investigated the biophysical impacts, which can diminish or amplify biogeochemical effects beyond the ecosystem scale. We used a paired flux tower approach in a restored peatland to collect year‐round eddy covariance data to assess the biophysical impacts of disturbance and management practices. The first site was actively rewetted and is characterized by Sphagnum and white beak‐rush with patches of open water. The second site represents a disturbed ecosystem, which underwent natural regeneration and is dominated by scrub pine, Sphagnum, and low shrubs. We found that the actively restored site had higher net radiation compared to the second site due to more surface water ponding; however, the higher aerodynamic conductance at the passively restored site contributed to enhanced daytime turbulent fluxes, and hence, both sites had similar aerodynamic temperatures during the daytime. The actively restored site experienced warmer nighttime and seasonal aerodynamic temperature as much of the excess radiation during the day was stored in the water column and released at night. To achieve restoration goals, higher water tables are now maintained throughout large sections of the bog. The study implies that water table manipulation has the potential to minimize greenhouse gas emissions from the bog, thereby allowing the biophysical impacts of peatland restoration to enhance the biogeochemical benefits. Therefore, it is important to consider both biophysical and biogeochemical changes in peatland restoration management.

Dissolved organic matter concentration, molecular composition, and functional groups in contrasting management practices of peatlands.

About 91,300 ha of peatlands has been rewetted in western Europe since the mid-1990s. Still, it is unknown how long-term rewetting alters the dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentration, molecular composition, and functional groups. We examined these DOM characteristics in three peatland types subjected to 47- to 231-yr drainage and 18- to 24-yr rewetting to address this knowledge gap. Cold water-extractable DOM was characterized by pyrolysis field ionization mass spectrometry (Py-FIMS) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy. The dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in the rewetted forest peatland was 2.7 times higher than in the drained forest peatland. However, rewetting decreased the DOC concentrations by 1.5 and 4 times in the coastal peatland and percolation mire, respectively, compared with their respective drained peatlands at the topsoil horizons. The Py-FIMS analysis revealed that all nine DOM compound classes' relative abundances differed between the rewetted and drained forest peatland with the lower relative abundances of the labile DOM compound classes in the rewetted forest peatlands. However, most DOM compound classes' relative abundances were similar between the rewetted and drained coastal peatlands and percolation mires. The XANES also revealed nine carbon and seven nitrogen functional groups with no apparent differences between the two contrasting management practices. The influence of drainage and rewetting on DOC concentration and molecular composition depends on peatland type, drainage period, rewetting intensity, and peat degradation status that should be considered in future research for understanding DOM transformation and transportation from degraded and restored peatland ecosystems.

The resistance and short‐term resilience of a restored extracted peatland ecosystems post‐fire: an opportunistic study after a wildfire

Bogs are known to be relatively resistant and resilient to fire, due to the dominance of wet Sphagnum mosses. Indeed, Sphagnum mosses by holding water, ensure bog resistance, and by regenerating from any fragments left post‐fire, ensure bog resilience. The return of several ecological attributes has been reported in the literature post‐restoration. However, the resistance and resilience have not yet been evaluated in restored peatlands. A fire affecting an extracted peatland restored 10 years ago provided the opportunity to (1) evaluate the losses post‐fire, in terms of phytobiomass and plant cover and (2) assess early vegetation recovery after one growing season post‐fire. The fire response of the restored peatland, in terms of resistance and short‐term resilience, differed between the main plant communities. Sphagnum Lawn communities (Sphagnum species from the Acutifolia subgenus and Eriophorum vaginatum) showed greater resistance to fire losing proportionally less phytobiomass (17%) than Wet Hollow communities (44%) (Sphagnum species from the Cuspidata subgenus and Scirpus cyperinus). Greater resistance of the Sphagnum Lawn likely comes from the Acutifolia Sphagnum species growing in dense carpets with good water retention, along with the E. vaginatum tussocks being able to retain humidity below the tussocks, whereas the looser growth habit of Cuspidata Sphagnum species do not have good capillary rise capacity and Scirpus produced litter that can produce a good fuel. This study reinforces the idea that a peatland restoration approach using reintroduction material dominated by Acutifolia Sphagnum species and tussock cottongrass provides a better resistance and short‐term resilience of restored peatlands.

Integrating ecological, social and policy aspects to develop peatland restoration strategies in Orang Kayo Hitam Forest Park, Jambi, Indonesia

Abstract. Wulandari C, Novriyanti N, Iswandaru D. 2021. Integrating ecological, social and policy aspects to develop peatland restoration strategies in Orang Kayo Hitam Forest Park, Jambi, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 4158-4168. Peatlands play an essential role in delivering various ecosystem services, yet in many areas in Indonesia, peat forests have been deforested, degraded, and threatened by repeated fires. As such, restoration efforts need to be done. But these require various considerations, including ecological aspects such as type degradation conditions, water table, species selected for planting, and climates, socio-economic aspects like community's involvement, and policy aspects such as regulations and institutions at national and local levels. This study aimed to analyze peatland restoration strategies in Orang Kayo Hitam (OKH) Forest Park, Jambi using the Strengths, Weaknesses, Threats, and Opportunities (SWOT) framework. The analysis was done by integrating multiple aspects such as policy, biodiversity conservation, and surrounding community participation. Data were collected using virtual ethnographic techniques due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Key informants (i.e., OKH Forest Park Unit area managers, NGOs, staff of national government, and university academics) and selected respondents were interviewed to identify and determine factors considered as internal (i.e., Strengths and Weaknesses) and external (i.e., Threats and Opportunities). This qualitative data was then analyzed using a SWOT approach through the IFE (Internal Factor Evaluation) and EFE (External Factor Evaluation) Matrix. The research findings showed that from 12 internal factors and 11 external factors, efforts to restore peatland ecosystems in Orang Kayo Hitam (OKH) Forest Park had obtained very strong values in the biodiversity aspect. The SWOT matrix analysis showed values of S-W = 0.43 and O-T = 0.16 positioned in quadrant I. This result suggests that the most powerful strategies can be developed aggressively from the factors of strengths and opportunities.

The intervention continuum in restoration ecology: rethinking the active–passive dichotomy

The distinction often made between active and passive restoration approaches is a false dichotomy that persists in much research, policy, and financial structures today. We explore the contradictions imposed by this terminology and the merits of replacing this dichotomy with a continuum‐based intervention framework. In practice, the main distinction between “passive” and “active” restoration lies primarily in the timing and extent of human interventions. We apply the intervention continuum framework to forest, grassland, stream, and peatland ecosystems, emphasizing that a range of restoration approaches within the scope of ecological or ecosystem restoration are typically employed in most projects, and all can contribute to the recovery of native ecosystems and prevention of further degradation. As restoration is fundamentally about the recovery of ecosystems, eliminating human sources of degradation is essential to enable ecosystem recovery processes, regardless of subsequent interventions that may be needed to assist recovery. Our review of restoration practices involving different levels of intervention highlights the benefits of recognizing a broader suite of restoration interventions in the financial and policy frameworks that currently underpin restoration activity. Effective restoration interventions emerge from an understanding of nature's intrinsic recovery potential and overcoming specific obstacles that limit this potential.

Restoration of a boreal peatland impacted by an in‐situ oil sands well‐pad 2: Greenhouse gas exchange dynamics

Across Canada's boreal forest, disturbances from in situ oil sands mining, including well‐pads, significantly impact vast areas of the landscape. The creation of well‐pads requires removal of vegetation and placement of mineral fill, which essentially stops any carbon (C) sequestration on the once peatland ecosystem. It is important that, once no longer in use, these well‐pads are restored as long‐term C (peat) accumulation is what defines peatland ecosystem. However, little is known about the recovery of greenhouse gas exchange post‐restoration of these features. We studied a decommissioned well‐pad located in a treed poor fen that was restored using three soil adjustment treatments (SATs): (1) complete mineral fill removal (Peat‐Dec); (2) partial pad removal and burial under peat layer (BUPL); and (3) mixing mineral and peat by inversion (Mixed‐P‐M). The recreated peat surface was revegetated with donor peatland species using the moss layer transfer technique (MLTT). The objectives of this paper were to (1) quantify plot‐scale seasonal carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) exchange of the SATs, 2–4 years post‐restoration compared to reference sites and (2) determine the influence of several environmental variables on CO2 and CH4 exchange. All SATs proved effective in recreating a soil surface needed to support peatland vegetation as shown by similar rates of net ecosystem exchange (NEE). Equally, both types of vegetation reintroduced led this site on a trajectory toward functioning as a net C sink.

Vegetation composition modulates the interaction of climate warming and elevated nitrogen deposition on nitrous oxide flux in a boreal peatland.

Northern peatlands with large organic nitrogen (N) storage have the potential to be N2 O hotspots under climate warming, elevated N deposition, and vegetation composition change caused by climate change. However, the interactions of these three factors and the primary controls on N2 O fluxes in peatlands are not well-known. Here, the three factors were manipulated in a boreal bog in western Newfoundland, Canada for 5years. We found that warming mitigated the positive N effect on N2 O fluxes in the mid-growing season under intact vegetation owing to the increase of available N uptake by vegetation and less N for N2 O production. In contrast, warming strengthened the N effect on N2 O fluxes in the early growing season under the absence of graminoids or shrubs, which could be attributed to the increase of available carbon and nitrogen for N2 O production. It should be noted that these effects were not observed under the condition of low carbon availability. In addition, gross primary production was found as a critical control on N2 O fluxes under N addition. Our findings emphasize that the interaction of abiotic (warming and elevated nitrogen deposition) and biotic factors (vegetation composition change) on N2 O fluxes should be taken into account in order to project N2 O fluxes in peatland ecosystems accurately.

Peatland ecological restoration based on independent community groups through revegetation in Tanjung Leban Village, Bengkalis Regency, Riau

Ecological restoration of peatlands leads to the destruction of peatland ecosystems caused by human activities, whether intentional or not. As a result of the damage caused various kinds of problems such as land fires. Tanjung Leban Village is one of the villages with a fairly high rate of fire, especially in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Many burnt lands are left unused, which in turn becomes a fire-prone area due to the lack of control over the land. In response to this, it is necessary to carry out peatland ecological restoration activities in Tanjung Leban Village through revegetation activities. Implementation of activities with the mentoring method through village facilitators stationed in Tanjung Leban Village. The implementation process begins with socialization, which continues with group formation, procurement of seeds, land clearing, and planting. The implementation of this revegetation focuses on the participation of the community who are members of the Peat Care Community Group (MPG) in Tanjung Leban Village. This activity was carried out in the community area (group members) with an area of 14.7 ha and 14,381 plants. The number of plants is divided into 2 categories, namely natural wood species and fruit plants.

Ecology of peatland testate amoebae in Svalbard and the development of transfer functions for reconstructing past water-table depth and pH

Peatlands are valuable archives of information about past environmental conditions and represent a globally-important carbon store. Robust proxy methods are required to reconstruct past ecohydrological dynamics in high-latitude peatlands to improve our understanding of change in these carbon-rich ecosystems. The High Arctic peatlands in Svalbard are at the northern limit of current peatland distribution and have experienced rapidly rising temperatures of 0.81 °C per decade since 1958. We examine the ecology of peatland testate amoebae in surface vegetation samples from permafrost peatlands on Spitsbergen, the largest island of the Svalbard archipelago, and develop new transfer functions to reconstruct water-table depth (WTD) and pH that can be applied to understand past peatland ecosystem dynamics in response to climate change. These transfer functions are the first of their kind for peatlands in Svalbard and the northernmost developed to date. Multivariate statistical analysis shows that WTD and pore water pH are the dominant controls on testate amoeba species distribution. This finding is consistent with results from peatlands in lower latitudes with regard to WTD and supports work showing that when samples are taken across a long enough trophic gradient, peatland trophic status is an important control on the distribution of testate amoebae. No differences were found between transfer functions including and excluding the taxa with weak idiosomic tests (WISTs) that are most susceptible to decay. The final models for application to fossil samples therefore excluded these taxa. The WTD transfer function demonstrates the best performance (R2LOO = 0.719, RMSEPLOO = 3.2 cm), but the pH transfer function also performs well (R2LOO = 0.690, RMSEPLOO = 0.320). The transfer functions were applied to a core from western Spitsbergen and suggest drying conditions ~1750 CE, followed by a trend of recent wetting and increasing pH from ~1920 CE. These new transfer functions allow the reconstruction of past peatland WTD and pH in Svalbard, thereby enabling a greater understanding of long-term ecohydrological dynamics in these rapidly changing ecosystems.

Optical properties of dissolved organic matter highlight peatland-like properties in a constructed wetland

Constructing novel peatland ecosystems can help to restore the long-term carbon accumulating properties of northern soil systems that have been lost through resource extraction. Although mining companies are legally required to restore landscapes following extraction, there are limited tools to evaluate the effectiveness of restoring peat accumulating landscapes. This study analyzed the spatial patterns of the first seven years (n = 575) of dissolved organic matter (DOM) optical characteristics from a pilot watershed built to restore boreal plains peatlands on a former open pit oil sands mine. A principal component analysis (PCA) indicated a very high degree of redundancy in absorption-florescence DOM properties (PARAFAC, HIX, FI, freshness index, SUVA, and peak A, B, C, T, wavelength, and intensity ratios) at this site. The leading principal component indicated a gradient of fresh protein rich inputs, which are highest near the upland region, to older highly degraded DOM, which is highest in the lowland closest to the outlet. Two functionally different reference peatlands, a poor-fen and bog system and a moderate-rich fen, had relatively similar optical DOM characteristics indicating a high level of decomposition at these sites. Over the first seven years, in some regions of the reconstructed lowland the DOM characteristics are becoming increasingly similar to the highly decomposed DOM observed at the reference sites. When combined with carbon flux measurements these findings indicate the potential for long term organic matter accumulation at this reconstructed site.

Natural selection on a carbon cycling trait drives ecosystem engineering by Sphagnum (peat moss).

Sphagnum peat mosses have an extraordinary impact on the global carbon cycle as they control long-term carbon sequestration in boreal peatland ecosystems. Sphagnum species engineer peatlands, which harbour roughly a quarter of all terrestrial carbon, through peat accumulation by constructing their own niche that allows them to outcompete other plants. Interspecific variation in peat production, largely resulting from differences in tissue decomposability, is hypothesized to drive niche differentiation along microhabitat gradients thereby alleviating competitive pressure. However, little empirical evidence exists for the role of selection in the creation and maintenance of such gradients. In order to document how niche construction and differentiation evolved in Sphagnum, we quantified decomposability for 54 species under natural conditions and used phylogenetic comparative methods to model the evolution of this carbon cycling trait. We show that decomposability tracks the phylogenetic diversification of peat mosses, that natural selection favours different levels of decomposability corresponding to optimum niche and that divergence in this trait occurred early in the evolution of the genus prior to the divergence of most extant species. Our results demonstrate the evolution of ecosystem engineering via natural selection on an extended phenotype, of a fundamental ecosystem process, and one of the Earth's largest soil carbon pools.

Kaleka Agroforest in Central Kalimantan (Indonesia): Soil Quality, Hydrological Protection of Adjacent Peatlands, and Sustainability

Increased agricultural use of tropical peatlands has negative environmental effects. Drainage leads to landscape-wide degradation and fire risks. Livelihood strategies in peatland ecosystems have traditionally focused on transitions from riverbanks to peatland forests. Riparian ‘Kaleka’ agroforests with more than 100 years of history persist in the peatlands of Central Kalimantan (Indonesia), where large-scale open-field agricultural projects have dramatically failed. Our field study in a Dayak Ngaju village on the Kahayan river in the Pulang Pisau district involved characterizing land uses, surveying vegetation, measuring soil characteristics, and monitoring groundwater during a period of 16 months. We focused on how local practices and farmer knowledge compare with standard soil fertility (physical, chemical, biological) measurements to make meaningful assessments of risks and opportunities for sustainable land use within site-specific constraints. The Kaleka agroforests around a former settlement and sacred historical meaning are species-rich agroforests dominated by local fruit trees and rubber close to the riverbank. They function well with high wet-season groundwater tables (up to −15 cm) compatible with peatland restoration targets. Existing soil quality indices rate the soils, with low soil pH and high Alexch, as having low suitability for most annual crops, but active tree regeneration in Kaleka shows sustainability.

The Prevention of Peatland Fires in Indonesia: ‘Law in Action’ to Implement the ASEAN Haze Treaty

Signed in 2002, the ASEAN Haze Treaty is expected to reduce transboundary haze pollution and improve regional environmental governance. Indonesia plays a vital role in the implementation of the Treaty's goals. It has the largest forest and peatland area in Southeast Asia. Yet, its repeated forest and land fires had often caused transboundary pollution. Since 2016 the Indonesian Government has improved its national laws and strengthened institutional aspects of peatland protection. The peatland ecosystem is essential because it is prone to burning. Unfortunately, few studies describe how these policy changes have impacted fire prevention in degraded peatland ecosystems. This article scrutinizes the political factors behind the legal and institutional changes in Indonesia's peatland governance during 2016-2020. The theory of legal culture becomes the primary reference in this regard. This article then identifies six predominant factors in peatland law improvement: strong leadership, improved coordination at the national and sub-national levels, making operational directives, establishing a specialized Government institution dealing with peatland restoration, law enforcement, and the strength of civil society in doing public oversight.

The Multiscale Monitoring of Peatland Ecosystem Carbon Cycling in the Middle Taiga Zone of Western Siberia: The Mukhrino Bog Case Study

The peatlands of the West Siberian Lowlands, comprising the largest pristine peatland area of the world, have not previously been covered by continuous measurement and monitoring programs. The response of peatlands to climate change occurs over several decades. This paper summarizes the results of peatland carbon balance studies collected over ten years at the Mukhrino field station (Mukhrino FS, MFS) operating in the Middle Taiga Zone of Western Siberia. A multiscale approach was applied for the investigations of peatland carbon cycling. Carbon dioxide fluxes at the local scale studied using the chamber method showed net accumulation with rates from 110, to 57.8 gC m−2 at the Sphagnum hollow site. Net CO2 fluxes at the pine-dwarf shrubs-Sphagnum ridge varied from negative (−32.1 gC m−2 in 2019) to positive (13.4 gC m−2 in 2017). The cumulative May-August net ecosystem exchange (NEE) from eddy-covariance (EC) measurements at the ecosystem scale was −202 gC m−2 in 2015, due to the impact of photosynthesis of pine trees which was not registered by the chamber method. The net annual accumulation of carbon in the live part of mosses was estimated at 24–190 gC m−2 depending on the Sphagnum moss species. Long-term carbon accumulation rates obtained by radiocarbon analysis ranged from 28.5 to 57.2 gC m−2 yr−1, with local extremes of up to 176.2 gC m−2 yr−1. The obtained estimates of various carbon fluxes using EC and chamber methods, the accounting for Sphagnum growth and decomposition, and long-term peat accumulation provided information about the functioning of the peatland ecosystems at different spatial and temporal scales. Multiscale carbon flux monitoring reveals useful new information for forecasting the response of northern peatland carbon cycles to climatic changes.

Holocene peatland development, carbon accumulation and its response to climate forcing and local conditions in Laolike peatland, northeast China

Peatlands are one of the most significant carbon reservoirs in the terrestrial ecosystem. Understanding past peatland carbon accumulation processes and their responses to varying external and internal forcing factors would help reveal the general development patterns of peatland ecosystems and provide useful insights into projecting the fate of carbon reservoirs into the future. In this paper, the basal ages of 17 peat cores were used to explore the lateral expansion processes of the Laolike peatland, northeast China. Two cores were selected to calculate carbon accumulation rates (CAR) and reconstruct moisture/precipitation records based on δ13C and grain size analyses. The basal ages show that the peatland was initiated at 12.1 cal kyr BP, then laterally expanded with its fastest rate occurring during the early Holocene, and reached its largest area around 6 cal kyr BP. The time-weighted mean CAR in the Laolike peatland ranged from 31.1 to 52.9 g C/m2/yr (with an average of 42 g C/m2/yr) during the Holocene. The peatland experienced a high CAR of 52.5 g C/m2/yr from 11.7 to 5 cal kyr BP, followed by a low CAR of 35.1 g C/m2/yr after 5 cal kyr BP. Both lateral expansion and vertical accretion are consistent with the summer insolation, climate seasonality, and the strength of the East Asia summer monsoon (EASM) over multi-millennium timescales, where the CAR correlated well with δ13C and grain size, implying moisture/precipitation might be the primary factors controlling carbon accumulation over millennium timescales. Local conditions, such as topography and hydrology, also played an important role in the process of peatland initiation and lateral expansion, as well as the discrepant CAR within the peatland. This study reveals the roles of climate and local conditions in peatland initiation, expansion, and CAR during the Holocene. In addition, we provide a window for a better understanding of the driving factors of peatland development in the temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere.

A Model of Religious Moral Approach for Peatland Ecosystem Restoration in Indonesia

Efforts to conserve peatlands and prevent forest fires are inseparable from human awareness and behavior. This study aims to find a model for a religious, moral approach by the clerics in supporting the implementation of peatland restoration. The study was carried out in designated Muslim locations with trained clerics. The farmers surveyed also have experienced by the Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG) programs: i.e., physical support, such as a canal dam program and demonstration plot of agriculture without burning (PLTB). The methods used combine quantitative surveys with a Likert scale to explore attitudes, subjective norms, perception, intention, and their impact on behavior. The results obtained show that the community religious leaders can be an important trigger in encouraging the movement. In the model, visible subjective norm (SN) variables contribute directly to intention by 23%. Perceived behavior control (PBC) directly has a positive and significant effect on intention 53% (p-value). This means the individual, in making a decision and intention to participate, is a factor that has a broad impact on the community and gives a positive value of 53% (good enough) on the intention. The individuals' decisions to participate in peatland conservation are prompted by perception of having a wide impact on the community.