Greenhouse Gas Balance of Forestry-Drained Boreal Peatlands: Sinks or Sources?

Authors:
Paavo Ojanen, Kari Minkkinen, Timo Penttilä

Book:
Proceedings of the 14th International Peat Congress

Venue:
Stockholm

Keywords:
boreal-peatland, forestry-drainage, greenhouse-gas-balance

Documentfile:
Ojanen et al 2012: Greenhouse Gas Balance of Forestry-Drained Boreal Peatlands: Sinks or Sources?

Summary:

Theme X. Peatland carbon budgets and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes

SUMMARY

We estimated the current greenhouse gas balance (in CO₂ equivalents, CDE) for 68 forestry-drained sites in Finland, ranging from hemiboreal to north boreal vegetation zones and from fertile to poor sites. We found net emissions from soil at fertile but not at poor sites. The role of CH₄ and N₂O emissions was minor. The large CO₂ sinks of the growing tree stands caused the ecosystem balances to be clearly positive (sink) even at fertile sites.