Emission factors for managed peat soils – An analysis of IPCC default values
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Climate mitigation and adaptation
This paper evaluates IPCC approaches to greenhouse gas emissions from managed organic (peat) soils and notices that the IPCC Guidelines 2006. This report was produced for the UNFCCC Climate Change Talks in Bonn, June 2009. Peatland drainage leads to peat oxidation, resulting in large losses of carbon and nitrogen to the atmosphere with an estimated global magnitude of 2-3 Gt/CO2-eq per year. The conservation and restoration of peatlands can provide a major contribution to the mitigation of climate change. Improving guidance and capacity for reporting of peatland emissions will prove valuable to the current negotiations towards a post-2012 climate agreement.
Author(s): John Couwenberg, Greifswald University, commissioned by Wetlands International, Ede, 2009
