Management implications associated with consideration of carbon storage and ecosystem services in peatland and blue carbon ecosystems of national wildlife refuges (USA)

Authors:
Kurt A Johnson and John Schmerfeld

Book:
Proceedings of the 15th International Peat Congress

Venue:
Kuching

Keywords:
carbon-storage, ecosystem, national-wildlife-refuge-system, usa

Documentfile:
ipc16p669a254johnson.schmerfeld.pdf

Summary:

National wildlife refuge managers in the United States are faced with the dilemma of maximizing benefits of

habitat management with limited resources (the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) is administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Department of the Interior). Trade-offs must be made. Data on carbon storage and ecosystem services benefits of associated peatland and blue carbon ecosystems help refuge managers make better-informed decisions about the implications of habitat management, including restoration, in these ecosystem types. Scientists have been studying carbon storage in peatland and blue carbon ecosystems in refuges for more than two decades. While much of the research has focused on documenting and monitoring carbon stocks and fluxes, more recent research has focused on: 1) impacts of management actions, especially restoration, on carbon sequestration; and 2) ecosystem services associated with management of blue carbon and peatland…