Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada
Abstract Background Natural wetlands can mitigate ongoing increases in atmospheric carbon by storing any net balance of organic carbon (peat) between plant production (carbon uptake) and microbial decomposition (carbon release). Efforts are ongoing to quantify peat carbon stored in global wetlands,...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2018-04-01
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| Series: | Carbon Balance and Management |
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| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-018-0094-4 |
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| author | Eunji Byun Sarah A. Finkelstein Sharon A. Cowling Pascal Badiou |
| author_facet | Eunji Byun Sarah A. Finkelstein Sharon A. Cowling Pascal Badiou |
| author_sort | Eunji Byun |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Natural wetlands can mitigate ongoing increases in atmospheric carbon by storing any net balance of organic carbon (peat) between plant production (carbon uptake) and microbial decomposition (carbon release). Efforts are ongoing to quantify peat carbon stored in global wetlands, with considerable focus given to boreal/subarctic peatlands and tropical peat swamps. Many wetlands in temperate latitudes have been transformed to anthropogenic landscapes, making it difficult to investigate their natural/historic carbon balance. The remaining temperate swamps and marshes are often treated as mineral soil wetlands and assumed to not accumulate peat. Southern Ontario in the Laurentian Great Lakes drainage basin was formerly a wetland-rich region that has undergone significant land use change since European settlement. Results This study uses southern Ontario as a case study to assess the degree to which temperate regions could have stored substantial carbon if it had not been for widespread anthropogenic land cover change. Here, we reconstruct the full extent and distribution of natural wetlands using two wetland maps, one for pre-settlement conditions (prior to 1850 CE) and the other for modern-day patterns of land use (2011 CE). We found that the pre-settlement wetland cover decreased by about 56% with the loss most significant for marshes as only 11% of predicted pre-settlement marshland area remains today. We estimate that pre-settlement wetlands held up to ~ 3.3 Pg of carbon relative to ~ 1.3 Pg for present-day (total across all wetland classes). Conclusions By not considering the recent carbon loss of temperate wetlands, we may be underestimating the wetland carbon sink in the pre-industrial carbon cycle. Future work is needed to better track the conversion of natural wetlands globally and the associated carbon stock change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T05:39:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ef50e432bf3746ae8838f2a66b2be621 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1750-0680 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T05:39:59Z |
| publishDate | 2018-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Carbon Balance and Management |
| spelling | doaj.art-ef50e432bf3746ae8838f2a66b2be6212022-12-21T17:58:13ZengBMCCarbon Balance and Management1750-06802018-04-0113111210.1186/s13021-018-0094-4Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, CanadaEunji Byun0Sarah A. Finkelstein1Sharon A. Cowling2Pascal Badiou3Department of Earth Sciences, University of TorontoDepartment of Earth Sciences, University of TorontoDepartment of Earth Sciences, University of TorontoInstitute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research, Ducks Unlimited CanadaAbstract Background Natural wetlands can mitigate ongoing increases in atmospheric carbon by storing any net balance of organic carbon (peat) between plant production (carbon uptake) and microbial decomposition (carbon release). Efforts are ongoing to quantify peat carbon stored in global wetlands, with considerable focus given to boreal/subarctic peatlands and tropical peat swamps. Many wetlands in temperate latitudes have been transformed to anthropogenic landscapes, making it difficult to investigate their natural/historic carbon balance. The remaining temperate swamps and marshes are often treated as mineral soil wetlands and assumed to not accumulate peat. Southern Ontario in the Laurentian Great Lakes drainage basin was formerly a wetland-rich region that has undergone significant land use change since European settlement. Results This study uses southern Ontario as a case study to assess the degree to which temperate regions could have stored substantial carbon if it had not been for widespread anthropogenic land cover change. Here, we reconstruct the full extent and distribution of natural wetlands using two wetland maps, one for pre-settlement conditions (prior to 1850 CE) and the other for modern-day patterns of land use (2011 CE). We found that the pre-settlement wetland cover decreased by about 56% with the loss most significant for marshes as only 11% of predicted pre-settlement marshland area remains today. We estimate that pre-settlement wetlands held up to ~ 3.3 Pg of carbon relative to ~ 1.3 Pg for present-day (total across all wetland classes). Conclusions By not considering the recent carbon loss of temperate wetlands, we may be underestimating the wetland carbon sink in the pre-industrial carbon cycle. Future work is needed to better track the conversion of natural wetlands globally and the associated carbon stock change.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-018-0094-4WetlandCarbon sinkPeatHolocene carbon cycleWetland conversionLand use change |
| spellingShingle | Eunji Byun Sarah A. Finkelstein Sharon A. Cowling Pascal Badiou Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada Carbon Balance and Management Wetland Carbon sink Peat Holocene carbon cycle Wetland conversion Land use change |
| title | Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada |
| title_full | Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada |
| title_fullStr | Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada |
| title_full_unstemmed | Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada |
| title_short | Potential carbon loss associated with post-settlement wetland conversion in southern Ontario, Canada |
| title_sort | potential carbon loss associated with post settlement wetland conversion in southern ontario canada |
| topic | Wetland Carbon sink Peat Holocene carbon cycle Wetland conversion Land use change |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-018-0094-4 |
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