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MRV approaches in the BMU Belarus peatland project
Hans Joosten
Greifswald University, Germany
Eastern Europe: famous for its vast and largely undisturbed peatlands...
Rospuda Valley, Poland
Belarus has high proportion of peatlands... fens (green), bogs (red), transitional peatlands
(purple): former extent ~15% of the area
Present area of natural peatlands: 1.5 mio ha
Present area of drained peatlands: 1.5 mio ha (agriculture 72%, forestry 25%, peat extraction 3%)
Drained peatlands are huge emittors of CO2 + N2O
CO2 emission
Central Europe is peatland emission hot spot
Does rewetting reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
How much less emissions after rewetting?
BMU funded rewetting project (2008-2011)
builds on GEF funded rewetting project (42,000 ha)
strong support of Belarusian government:
carbon credits reduction of fires
(radioactivity!)…
BMU funded rewetting project (2008-2011)
Deliverables: methodology for
GHG assessment standard for
voluntary trade 15,000 ha rewetted
and sustainably managed
local capacity
Measuring directly is complicated, time consuming,
expensive ( € 10,000 /ha/yr) proxy indicators
Mean water level is best predictor of emissions
(meta-analysis of 25 site parameters in W-Europe)
-10
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
-120 -100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0
mean water level [cm]
t C
O2-
eq∙h
a-1
∙a-1
bogs
fens
CO2 emissions clearly correlate with water levels: they become less with higher water levels
-100
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
-100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20 40 60
mean water level [cm]
kg C
H4∙
ha
-1∙a
-1
-2
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
t C
O2-
eq∙h
a-1
∙a-1
bogs
fens
other
CH4 emissions clearly correlate with water levels: they increase when higher than 20 cm - surface
-5
5
15
25
35
45
55
65
75
85
95
-100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20 40
mean water level [cm]
kg N
20∙h
a-1∙
a-1
-2
4
9
14
19
24
29
t C
O2-
eq∙h
a-1∙
a-1
bogs
fens - unfertilized
fens - fertilized
other
N2O emissions clearly correlate with water levels: they do not occur when higher than 15 cm - surface
N2O erratic, but lower with higher water levels
Leave N2O emissions out conservative estimate
-15
-10
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
-100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0
mean water level [cm]
GW
P [
t C
O2-
eq ∙
ha
-1∙a
-1]
By rewetting, greenhouse gas emissions decrease, but less between – 20 cm and 0 cm
Emissions strongly related to water level Vegetation strongly related to water level
Use vegetation as indicator for emissions!
In an environmental gradient some plant species occur together; others exclude each other.
Species groups (and their absence!) indicate site conditions much sharper than individual plant species: “vegetation forms”.
site factor gradient
species groups
site factor classes
subunits 1
1 2
2
3 4 5
1 2
Vegetation types calibrated for GHG emissions:
GESTs: Greenhouse gas Emission Site Types
Some examples: 2-, 2+, 2~ (3+/2+) 3+ 4+/3+ 4+ 5+ 6+MOD. MOIST FORBS & MEADOWS
MOIST FORBS & MEADOWS
VERY MOIST MEADOWS
VERY MOIST MEADOWS, FORBS & TALL REEDS
WET TALL SEDGE MARSHES
FLOODED TALL AND SHORT REEDS
0 1.5(1.3 – 2)
3.5(2.5 – 6)
3 7(5.0 – 9.5)
1(0.3 – 1.7)
24 15 13(8.5 – 16.5)
8 0 0
24 16.5 16.5 11 7 1
Water level
Vegetation
CH4
CO2
GWP
Vegetation type Typical/differentiating species WL class
CH4 CO2 GWP
Sphagnum-Carex limosa-marsh
Sphagnum recurvum agg., Carex limosa, Scheuchzeria
5+ 12.5<0
(±0)12.5
Sphagnum-Carex-Eriophorum-marsh
Sph. recurvum agg., Carex nigra, C. curta, Eriophorum angustifolium
Drepanocladus-Carex-marsh Drepanocladus div. spec., Carex diandra, Carex rostr., Carex limosa - Carex dominated
Scorpidium-Eleocharis-marsh Scorpidium, Eleocharis quinqueflora - Carex (shunt) dominated
Sphagnum-Juncus effusus-marsh
Juncus effusus, Sphagnum recurvum agg.
Equisetum-reeds Equisetum fluviatile
Scorpidium-Cladium-reeds Cladium, Scorpidium
Sphagnum-Phragmites-reeds Phragmites, Solanum dulcamara
5+ 10<0 / ±0
10
Solano-Phragmitetum Scorpidium, Eleocharis quinqueflora - Phragmites + Solanum without Urtica-gr.
Rorippa-Typha-Phragmites-reeds
Typha latifolia, Phragmites, Rorippa aquatica, Lemna minor
Bidens-Glyceria-reeds Glyceria maxima, Berula erecta, Bidens tripartita, B. cernua
Red or green Sphagnum lawn (optimal)
Sph. magellanicum, Sph. rubellum, Sph. fuscum, Sph. recurvum agg.
5+ 5 -2 3
Green Sphagnum hollow Sph. cuspidatum, Scheuchzeria 5+ 10 -2 8
Polytrichum-lawn Polytrichum commune 5+ 2 <0 2
GESTs with indicator species groups
Each GEST with typical species
Each GEST with typical GHG emissions
Benefits of vegetation as a GHG proxy:
• reflects long-term water levels
provides indication on GHG fluxes per yr
• is controlled by factors that control GHG emissions (water, nutrients, acidity, land use…)
• is responsible for GHG emissions via its own organic matter (root exudates!)
• may provide bypasses for increased CH4 via aerenchyma (“shunt species”)
• allows rapid and fine-scaled mapping Vegetation is a more comprehensive proxy
than water level!
Disadvantages of vegetation as a proxy:
• slow reaction on environmental changes:
~3 years before change in water level is reflected in vegetation (negative effect faster)
• needs to be calibrated for different climatic and phytogeographical conditions
Vegetation forms: developed for NE Germany test of correlations in Belarusian peatlands
BMU Belarus project:
• Calibration of NE German model for Belarus:– relation vegetation ↔ water level (CIM position)– relation water level ↔ GHG emissions (CIM position)
• Completion of model (“gap filling”)• Consistency test with international literature• Development of conservative approaches
• Selection of rewetting sites• Mapping of vegetation before rewetting
(assessment of emission baseline )• Monitor water level and vegetation development
(ex-post emission monitoring)
Major gap: abandoned peat extraction sites
Perspectives of GEST-approach:
• Ex-ante baseline assessment with ex-post evaluation
• Fine-scaled mapping
• Remote sensing monitoring
• Continuous refinement with progressing GHG research
• Addition of new modules (forest, transient dynamics)
• Simple, cheap, reliable…
Developed with
• Jürgen Augustin (ZALF)• John Couwenberg (DUENE)• Dierk Michaelis (Uni Greifswald)• Merten Minke (APB / CIM)• Annett Thiele (APB/ CIM)• And many more…
info: [email protected]
GESTs!