Climate-related changes in peatland carbon accumulation during the last millennium

• Published in: Biogeosciences
• Main Authors: Charman, Dan J., Beilman, David W, Blaauw, Maarten, Booth, Robert K., Brewer, Simon, Chambers, Frank M., Christen, J. Andrés, Gallego-Sala, Angela, Harrison, Sandy P., Hughes, Paul D. M., Jackson, Stephen. T., Korhola, Atte, Mauquoy, Dmitri, Mitchell, Fraser. J. G., Prentice, I. Colin, van Der Linden, Marjolein, de Vleeschouwer, Francois, Yu, Zicheng C., Alm, J., Bauer, I. E., Corish, Y. M. C., Garneau, Michelle, Hohl, V., Huang, Yongsheng, Karofeld, Edgar, Le Roux, Gaël, Loisel, Julie, Moschen, Robert, Nichols, Jonathan E., Nieminen, Tiina M., Macdonald, Glen M., Phadtare, N. R., Rausch, Nicole, Sillasoo, Ülle, Swindles, Graeme T., Tuittila, Eeva-Stiina, Ukonmaanaho, Liisa, Väliranta, Minna, van Bellen, Simon, van Geel, Bas, Vitt, Dale H., Zhao, Yu
• Other Authors: University of Exeter, University of Hawai‘i Mānoa (UHM), Queen's University Belfast (QUB), Lehigh University Bethlehem, University of Utah, University of Gloucestershire, Centro de Investigación en Matemáticas (CIMAT), Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología Mexico (CONACYT), University of Bristol Bristol, Skane University Hospital Lund, Macquarie University, University of Southampton, University of Wyoming (UW), Helsingin yliopisto = Helsingfors universitet = University of Helsinki, University of Aberdeen, Trinity College Dublin, Imperial College London, BIAX Consult (NETHERLANDS), Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement (LEFE), Institut Ecologie et Environnement - CNRS Ecologie et Environnement (INEE-CNRS), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National Polytechnique (Toulouse) (Toulouse INP), Université de Toulouse (UT), University of Eastern Finland, Memorial University of Newfoundland = Université Memorial de Terre-Neuve St. John's, Canada (MUN), Université du Québec à Montréal = University of Québec in Montréal (UQAM), Brown University, University of Tartu, Institut für Kernphysik (IKP), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft = Helmholtz Association-Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft = Helmholtz Association, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Columbia University New York, Finnish Forest Research Institute (METLA), Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE), University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), University of California (UC), Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology - WIHG (INDIA), Universität Heidelberg Heidelberg = Heidelberg University, Tallinn University, University of Leeds, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics - IBED (NETHERLANDS), Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIU), Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing (CAS)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2013
• Subjects: Peat; Climate; Carbon; Little; Ice; Age; [SDV.EE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology; environment; permafrost
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-00980653; https://hal.science/hal-00980653/document; https://hal.science/hal-00980653/file/Charman_11362.pdf; https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-929-2013

International audience Peatlands are a major terrestrial carbon store and a persistent natural carbon sink during the Holocene, but there is considerable uncertainty over the fate of peatland carbon in a changing climate. It is generally assumed that higher temperatures will increase peat decay, causing a positive feedback to climate warming and contributing to the global positive carbon cycle feedback. Here we use a new extensive database of peat profiles across northern high latitudes to examine spatial and temporal patterns of carbon accumulation over the past millennium. Opposite to expectations, our results indicate a small negative carbon cycle feedback from past changes in the long-term accumulation rates of northern peatlands. Total carbon accumulated over the last 1000 yr is linearly related to contemporary growing season length and photosynthetically active radiation, suggesting that variability in net primary productivity is more important than decomposition in determining long-term carbon accumulation. Furthermore, northern peatland carbon sequestration rate declined over the climate transition from the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA) to the Little Ice Age (LIA), probably because of lower LIA temperatures combined with increased cloudiness suppressing net primary productivity. Other factors including changing moisture status, peatland distribution, fire, nitrogen deposition, permafrost thaw and methane emissions will also influence future peatland carbon cycle feedbacks, but our data suggest that the carbon sequestration rate could increase over many areas of northern peatlands in a warmer future.