Impacts of land use and climate change on carbon and greenhouse gas dynamics of Irish peatland ecosystems
APPROVED Peatlands are wetlands that are found on every continent except Antarctica, covering around 3% of the global land area and are the largest terrestrial soil organic carbon store. They are estimated to store around 550 gigatons of carbon (C) which is equivalent to twice the amount stored in a...
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| Other Authors: | , , |
| Format: | Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
| Language: | unknown |
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Trinity College Dublin. School of Natural Sciences. Discipline of Botany
2023
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/2262/103896 https://tcdlocalportal.tcd.ie/pls/EnterApex/f?p=800:71:0::::P71_USERNAME:INGLER |
| Summary: | APPROVED Peatlands are wetlands that are found on every continent except Antarctica, covering around 3% of the global land area and are the largest terrestrial soil organic carbon store. They are estimated to store around 550 gigatons of carbon (C) which is equivalent to twice the amount stored in all of the world's forests. In Ireland, peatlands cover almost one-fifth of the total land area and are recognized as a major C sink that has been depleted but still represents a key climate mitigation tool. Unfortunately, many of Ireland's peatlands have been drained and degraded for peat extraction, or converted to forestry and agriculture. The Irish government has taken steps to protect and restore these peatlands as part of the national climate mitigation strategy. However, it is vital to understand the impacts of drainage along with changing climate on carbon and methane dynamics of these ecosystems and the key drivers of the emissions for effective management. Additionally, long-term monitoring can aid in assessing vulnerability and resilience of these ecosystems to climate change. The primary aim of this PhD research was to develop an interdisciplinary approach to investigate the impact of anthropogenic activities and climate change on the carbon and methane dynamics of a raised bog ecosystem across a drainage gradient by combining innovative experimental and observational techniques. Chapter 4 outlines the carbon dynamics and the key drivers influencing the uptake and emissions at a near-natural raised bog in Ireland using the Eddy Covariance technique. The measurement period included two drought years with different hydrological conditions (2018 and 2021) followed by humid/wetter normal climatic years (2019 and 2020) which provided insight into the response of such ecosystems to climate change. The reduction in soil moisture below 80% in 2018 was caused by a combination of a lowering water table for consecutive 109 days and higher temperatures compared to the other very dry year of 2021. The differing ... |
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