1. Peatlands and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Mark Cooper, Chris Evans, Piotr Zielinski, Tim Jones, Annette Burden, Mike Peacock, Chris Freeman, Mike Billett, Nick Ostle, Pete Levy, Kerry Dinsmore, et al.

2. Talk Structure CEH Carbon Catchment Project Effects of drainage ditch blocking Effects of atmospheric deposition Acknowledging CEH, WCCL and Bangor University

3. UK Soil C Auchencorth Moss Moor House Forsinard Upper Conwy CEH ‘Carbon Catchments’ Ecosystem carbon balance being measured at four peat catchments (land-atmosphere and dissolved C fluxes) Experimental components: –Drained/undrained (Forsinard) –Burnt/unburnt (Moor House) –High/low nitrogen deposition (Auchencorth) –High/low acid deposition (Conwy)

4. Carbon Catchments Baseline monitoring Migneint Moor House Auchencorth Forsinard

5. CARBON BALANCE CO 2 Exchange Methane Dissolved Gases Dissolved Carbon Main Peatland Carbon Fluxes

6. Site Net CO 2 exchange CH 4 DICDOCPOC Net C balance Mer Bleue, Quebec 1 -40415-22 Degerö Stormyr, N. Sweden 2 -5111413-23 Glencar, SW Ireland 7,8 -55515 Auchencorth, E. Scotland 3,4 -115<115*254-70 Moor House, N. England -207102318+38 Migneint, N. Wales 51191

7. Carbon Catchment: Nant Y Brwyn Upland Blanket bog which forms part of the Migneint Nant Y Brwyn is approx 1.68km 2 Mean annual rainfall is approximately 2200 mm yr –1 Mean annual temperature is 5.6°C Main vegetation consists of Calluna, Juncus, Sphagnum, Eriophorum Light grazing between May and October

8. Carbon Catchment: Nant Y Brwyn Flux Tower Automated Weather Station Static Gas Chamber sampling Automated River Monitoring Complete carbon budget is still a working progress

9. Methane

10. Landscape Scale Aerial Photography Field Surveys High Resolution LiDAR

11. Nant Y Brwyn Riparian Juncus flush covers 12% & contributes 87% of the overall CH 4 budget Contribution to Landscape CH 4 Budget

12. Llyn Serw, Migneint Conwy, North Wales Habitat – wet Calluna heath on Blanket Peat – NVC M19 – Calluna, Eriophorum sp., Sphagnum sp. Historical Drainage with ditches – 1920’s & 1930’s running S-SE (mostly re-vegetated) – 1970’s & 1980’s running N-S NT blocked ditches in pilot study in 2008

13. National Trust peat restoration pilot study, Llyn Serw

14. CH 4 CO 2 CH 4 CO 2

15. Transect of trace Gas Measurements A D CB EF A D CB EF Dip well Gas Measurement Transect Code Gas Measurements - between 11am – 3pm

16. Before: After: Two years after:

17. Results Summary Infilled ditches contribute a significant percentage to landscape scale methane budget despite occupying a tiny percentage of the landscape Compensating increase in CO 2 sequestration not yet quantified Vegetation in ditch is critically important for CH 4 flux Is this a transient or a long-term effect?

18. Defra project to assess the impacts of peat restoration on the GHG balance Five year field experiment to evaluate the effects of peat restoration on methane emissions and the overall C and GHG balance (with Leeds and Open Universities, National Trust) Replicated study of 12 ditches, with 2 ditch-blocking treatments, pre- and post treatment measurements (CH 4, CO 2, DOC, discharge, etc)

19. Many thanks marope@ceh.ac.uk I am expecting to finish my PhD 2011/2012.