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Global warming predicted to hasten carbon release from peat bogs
November 07, 2008Billions of tons of carbon sequestered in the world's peat bogs could be released into the atmosphere in the coming decades as a result of global warming, according to a new analysis of the interplay between peat bogs, water tables, and climate change.
Such an atmospheric release of even a small percentage of the carbon locked away in the world's peat bogs would dwarf emissions of manmade carbon, scientists at Harvard University, Worcester State College, and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology write in the current issue of the journal Nature Geoscience.
"Our modeling suggests that higher temperatures could cause water tables to drop substantially, causing more peat to dry and decompose," says Paul R. Moorcroft, professor of organismic and evolutionary biology in Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. "Over several centuries, some 40 percent of carbon could be lost from shallow peat bogs, while the losses could total as much as 86 percent in deep bogs."
Typically found at northerly latitudes, peat bogs are swampy areas whose cold, wet environment preserves organic matter, preventing it from decaying. This new work shows how peat bogs' stability could be upset by the warming of the earth, which has disproportionately affected the higher latitudes where the bogs are generally found.
Each square meter of a peat bog contains anywhere from a few to many hundreds of kilograms of undecomposed organic matter, for a total of 200 to 450 billion metric tons of carbon sequestered in peat bogs worldwide. This figure is equivalent to up to 65 years' worth of the world's current carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning.
"Peat bogs contain vast stores of carbon," Moorcroft says. "They will likely respond to the expected warming in this century by losing large amounts of carbon during dry periods."
Moorcroft and his colleagues simulated the responses of two peat bogs in northern Manitoba to temperature increases of 4 degrees Celsius, or 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit, a gain that is at the conservative end of estimates for the next 100 years. Their modeling looked specifically at water table dynamics, since peat bogs' stability is grounded in their cold, waterlogged nature.
"Previous modeling has assumed that decomposition in peat bogs is like that in a conventional soil," Moorcroft says. "Ours is the first simulation to take a realistic look at the interaction between the dynamics of the water table, peat temperatures, and peat accumulation."
Moorcroft plans to continue the research by expanding his group's analysis of peat bogs and water tables to global scales.
Harvard University
Typically found at northerly latitudes, peat bogs are swampy areas whose cold, wet environment preserves organic matter, preventing it from decaying. This new work shows how peat bogs' stability could be upset by the warming of the earth, which has disproportionately affected the higher latitudes where the bogs are generally found.
Each square meter of a peat bog contains anywhere from a few to many hundreds of kilograms of undecomposed organic matter, for a total of 200 to 450 billion metric tons of carbon sequestered in peat bogs worldwide. This figure is equivalent to up to 65 years' worth of the world's current carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning.
"Peat bogs contain vast stores of carbon," Moorcroft says. "They will likely respond to the expected warming in this century by losing large amounts of carbon during dry periods."
Moorcroft and his colleagues simulated the responses of two peat bogs in northern Manitoba to temperature increases of 4 degrees Celsius, or 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit, a gain that is at the conservative end of estimates for the next 100 years. Their modeling looked specifically at water table dynamics, since peat bogs' stability is grounded in their cold, waterlogged nature.
"Previous modeling has assumed that decomposition in peat bogs is like that in a conventional soil," Moorcroft says. "Ours is the first simulation to take a realistic look at the interaction between the dynamics of the water table, peat temperatures, and peat accumulation."
Moorcroft plans to continue the research by expanding his group's analysis of peat bogs and water tables to global scales.
Harvard University
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For peat's sake: Alternative growing media
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London's earliest timber structure found during Belmarsh prison dig
London's oldest timber structure has been unearthed by archaeologists from Archaeology South-East (part of the Institute of Archaeology at UCL). It was found during the excavation of a prehistoric peat bog adjacent to Belmarsh Prison in Plumstead, Greenwich, in advance of the construction of a new prison building.
Alternatives to pine bark and peatmoss identified for commercial, home gardens
Pine bark and peatmoss are the two most common substrates used for horticultural crop production in the southeastern United States, but both media can present challenges to growers. Reduced forestry production and increased use of pine bark as fuel and landscape mulch has made the medium less available, while the price of peatmoss is rising due to transportation costs and growing environmental concerns over the mining of peat bogs in Canada and Europe.
Rising energy, food prices major threats to wetlands as farmers eye new areas for crops
Critical food shortages and growing demand for bio-fuels and hydro-electricity due to high fossil fuel prices rank among the greatest threats today to the preservation of precious wetlands worldwide as farmers and developers look for new areas for agriculture, energy crop plantations and hydro dams.
Massive greenhouse gases may be released as destruction, drying of world wetlands worsens: UN
Leading world scientists convene in Brazil July 21-25 amid growing concern that evaporation and ongoing destruction of world wetlands, which hold a volume of carbon similar to that in the atmosphere today, could cause them to exhale billows of greenhouse gases.
Study of guanacos launched in Chile
The Wildlife Conservation Society has launched a study in Chile's Karukinka reserve on Tierra del Fuego to help protect the guanaco - a wild cousin of the llama that once roamed in vast herds from the Andean Plateau to the steppes of Patagonia.
Heavy metals in the Peak District -- evidence from bugs in blanket bogs
Bacteria that consume heavy metals have been found in some of the most contaminated parts of the Peak District in the Southern Pennines and may be changing the pollutants into more toxic forms that could leak out into reservoirs.
Greenhouse gas from English streams
English chalk streams are less healthy than we thought and are potentially even contributing to global warming, said Dr Mark Trimmer at a Science Media Centre press briefing today.
'Hellish' hot springs yield greenhouse gas-eating bug
A new species of bacteria discovered living in one of the most extreme environments on Earth could yield a tool in the fight against global warming.
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Timberland Pro Men's Peat Bog Lace-Up 8" Wp Workboot,Brown,10.5 M by Timberland PRO Crafted using full-grain leather with a waterproof membrane, the Timberland® Peat Bog 8 men's lace-up steel-toe boot will keep your foot cool and dry in any working conditions. The Ortholite® footbed is lightweight and supportive, and the polyurethane outsole is oil- and abrasion-resistant. |
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Songs of Free Men/ A Paul Robeson Recital Anonymous (Composer), American Anonymous (Composer), Marc Blitzstein (Composer), Harry T. (Henry) Burleigh (Composer), George H. Clutsam (Composer), Peter DeRose (Composer), Isaak Iosifovich Dunayevsky (Composer), Ivan Ivanovich Dzerzhinsky (Composer), Lehman Engel (Composer), Stephen [1] Foster (Composer), George Gershwin (Composer), Alexander Grechaninov (Composer), Jerome Kern (Composer), Lev Konstantinovich Knipper (Composer), Felix [1] Mendelssohn (Composer), Modest Mussorgsky (Composer), Avery Robinson (Composer), Earl Robinson (Composer), Oley Speaks (Composer), Lily Theresa Strickland (Composer) There was nothing like the Robeson sound, ever. To describe his deep, rich, perfectly equalized instrument is futile. Go instead to "Balm in Gilead," the opening track, and see if you can listen to the last pianissimo phrase without falling to pieces. Robeson was at his best when the music was slow and the words contained spiritual or social messages. Faster, lighter fare like Kern's "I Still Suits Me" or Gershwin's "It Ain't Necessarily So" find the serious-minded singer out of his element, lacking irony and swing. "Old Man River," though, gets a simple, dignified treatment. It's Songs of Free Men, though, that will just keep Robeson's artistry rolling along, especially in Sony's astonishing transfers. --Jed Distler |
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1880 Turner'S Liber Studiorum Peat Bog Scotland Country by old-print Old Antique Historical Victorian Prints Maps and Historic Fine Art ----------. 1880 Turner'S Liber Studiorum Peat Bog Scotland Country Page From The Illustrated London News An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper Date As Shown On Top Of Page Or In Title Genuine Clearance As Purchased From An Old Antique Print Dealer From A Quality Lot Purchased At Auction Bargain Clearance Sale Up To 90% Off Size Approx Inches 16 X 11 (410X280)All Are Genuine Antique And Not Modern Copies |
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Timberland Pro Men's Peat Bog Steel Toe Wellington Boot,Brown,11 M by Timberland PRO The Timberland Men's Peat Bog Wellington Steel Toe Workboot is designed in Full-grain leather with rugged fabric upper. A high-performance thermoplastic shell resists moisture and chemicals and maintains flexibility in cold temperatures. The Anti-microbial Cambrelle lining and Goodyear welt Cast-Bond technology provides a durable mechanical and chemical bond. Constructed on Titan Heavy Duty Wellington last for superior fit with steel shank. OrthoLite footbed with Agion anti-microbial cover and polyurethane outsole lightweight, yet rugged with exceptional cushioning, fluid channeling, oil-resistant, abrasion-resistant and Ladder Lock outsole radius. |
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