Peatlands, especially those in tropical regions, sequester gigantic amounts of organic carbon. Human activities are now having a considerable impact on these wetlands. For example, drainage projects, in combination with the effects of periodic droughts, can lead to large-scale fires, which release enormous amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere, and thus contribute to global warming.
Using laser-based measurements, Professor Florian Siegert and his research group at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU, Germany) in Munich have now estimated the volume of peat burned in such fires with unprecedented accuracy. The new data imply that, in 2006, peatland fires in Indonesia released up to about 900 million metric tons of CO2. This is more than the total amount of CO2 emitted in Germany in that year, and represents about 16 % of the emissions associated with deforestation worldwide. "Our work once again underlines the decisive role played by acutely endangered tropical wetland ecosystems in the context of global warming", says Siegert. "The study also provides important data for the upcoming World Climate Conference in Copenhagen. One of the goals of that meeting is to reach agreement on how financial and other incentives can be employed for the protection of tropical wetlands, and so help preserve their enormous capacity for carbon storage.
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Most studies on changes in land use and their effects on climate change have considered only total forest biomass. The new data demonstrate that, in future, one must also focus on the biomass that is stored in the soil. The carbon content of peat swamps is dependent on the thickness of the peat layer, and can be up to 20 times greater than the amount stored in forest trees. Siegert points out that "growth of the market for palm oil, stimulated by increased demand for cheap biofuels, will make the situation worse, as the incidence of fires this year has already shown. This is something that should have repercussions for European policies in the area of renewable energy sources. Also on the agenda in Copenhagen are programmes such as REDD (for Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation in developing countries'), which is designed to provide monetary incentives aimed at protecting tropical peat swamp forests and their giant carbon stores".
