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| Titel |
Peatlands and the carbon cycle: from local processes to global implications – a synthesis |
| VerfasserIn |
J. Limpens, F. Berendse, C. Blodau, J. G. Canadell, C. Freeman, J. Holden, N. Roulet, H. Rydin, G. Schaepman-Strub |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
1726-4170
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: Biogeosciences ; 5, no. 5 ; Nr. 5, no. 5 (2008-10-31), S.1475-1491 |
| Datensatznummer |
250002840
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/bg-5-1475-2008.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
Peatlands cover only 3% of the Earth's land surface but boreal and
subarctic peatlands store about 15–30% of the world's soil carbon (C) as
peat. Despite their potential for large positive feedbacks to the climate
system through sequestration and emission of greenhouse gases, peatlands are
not explicitly included in global climate models and therefore in
predictions of future climate change. In April 2007 a symposium was held in
Wageningen, the Netherlands, to advance our understanding of peatland C
cycling. This paper synthesizes the main findings of the symposium, focusing
on (i) small-scale processes, (ii) C fluxes at the landscape scale, and
(iii) peatlands in the context of climate change.
The main drivers controlling C fluxes are largely scale dependent and most
are related to some aspects of hydrology. Despite high spatial and annual
variability in Net Ecosystem Exchange (NEE), the differences in cumulative
annual NEE are more a function of broad scale geographic location and
physical setting than internal factors, suggesting the existence of strong
feedbacks. In contrast, trace gas emissions seem mainly controlled by local
factors.
Key uncertainties remain concerning the existence of perturbation
thresholds, the relative strengths of the CO2 and CH4 feedback,
the links among peatland surface climate, hydrology, ecosystem structure and
function, and trace gas biogeochemistry as well as the similarity of process
rates across peatland types and climatic zones. Progress on these research
areas can only be realized by stronger co-operation between disciplines that
address different spatial and temporal scales. |
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