Why should we care?

What are Peatlands?


Peatlands – also known as mires, fens and bogs - are a type of wetland found in almost every country on earth. Their year-round waterlogged condition means that dead plant material cannot fully decompose. Instead, it builds up to form peat. Over millennia the peat accumulates, becoming, in some places, meters thick. Peatland refers to both this peat soil and wetland habitat which grows on its surface that, with the correct conditions, will eventually turn into the peat soil itself. Therefore , peatlands are carbon capturing heroes. Not only do they store more carbon than any other land-based ecosystem, they also prevent floods, droughts, and help clean water. However, peatlands worldwide are under threat – and without proper restoration and protection, could become a carbon-emitting disaster for climate change.

Peatlands span all continents, and while all waterlogged, can be incredibly varied. From the forested peatlands of Europe to Scotland’s open, treeless blanket bog, Southeast Asia’s tropical swamp forests, Russia’s vast permafrost and the high mountain peatlands in the Andes and Himalayas. Peatland covers 3% of the global land surface, with new areas still being discovered.

Globally, peatlands contain at least 550 gigatons of carbon – more than twice that stored in all forests and equivalent to 75% of all carbon in the atmosphere. This makes peatlands the world’s largest land-based carbon store, despite their relatively small surface coverage. Beyond their vital role in carbon storage, peatlands also provide crucial ecosystem services. In their natural wet state, they prevent flooding and drought, and help ensure clean drinking water. Peatlands are also incredibly important for biodiversity, home to rare birds, throngs of insects, and rare plants.


Peatlands in trouble

Peatlands are one of our most valuable ecosystems, however, they are under intense threat. Globally, 25% of peatlands have been destroyed, and in Europe peatlands have been assessed as the most degraded ecosystem (European Commission). The map below gives an overview of the distribution of peat soils in North West Europe (Green). The map also shows that the countries that have the most peat soils, suffer from heavy peat degradation (Red).

Damaged peatlands are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, responsible for 5.6% of global human-caused CO2 annually, more than aviation and shipping combined. Peatland loss also means biodiversity loss, more floods and droughts, and degraded drinking water for local communities. As it is expected that clean drinking water will get scarcer in the future, and floodings more severe, the capacity for water purification, storage, and retention that peatlands provide will only become more valuable in the future.

When a peatland is drained or stripped of its peat-forming vegetation it becomes an inactive bog, emitting rather than storing or sequestering significant amounts of carbon. Damage is often caused when bogs are drained for agriculture and tree planting. Atmospheric pollution, including from sulphur and nitrogen, peat extraction for fuel, horticulture, development, fires, and overgrazing are all also responsible for peatland degradation. Drainage of peatlands, intensive agriculture, and frequent ploughing not only lead to more GHG emissions, but it also deteriorates the other ecosystem services provided by peatlands. Mire specific biodiversity is lost, habitat for birds is lost, water is polluted rather than purified, and the water storage capacity of peatlands is lost. On top of that, the health benefits provided by peatlands are largely lost after drainage. Drainage also requires constant pumping of water away from these naturally wet areas, leading to high costs and potential water surpluses elsewhere.

Rewetting and prober management of these degraded peatlands can reverse most of these negative effects, although this poses a huge challenge. If the goals set in the 2015 Paris Agreement (i.e. carbon and climate neutrality by mid-century) are to be met, almost all currently drained peatland needs to be rewetted and restored. This is not only a large area (about 50 million hectares), but it also needs to be done within limited time, requiring the rewetting and restoration of almost two million hectares per year. It is crucial to create and share sustainable ways to manage peatlands that can both protect our environment and provide a viable future for landowners and farmers. Carbon Connects presents state of the art business models and tools that enable a smooth transition towards a more sustainable use of peatlands.