Carbon content and other soil properties of near-surface peats before and after peatland restoration

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

  • Jenny Hammerich
  • Corinna Schulz
  • Robert Probst
  • Thomas Lüdicke
  • Vera Luthardt

Peatland restoration usually aims at restarting the peatlands’ function to store carbon within peat. The soil properties of the near-surface peat can give a first understanding of this process. Therefore, we sampled pH value, total organic carbon content (TOC), total nitrogen content (TN), C/N ratio as well as dry bulk density (BD), and describe the structure of near-surface peats in six restored fens in North-East Germany before (2002–2004) and after (2019–2021) restoration. Before restoration, the study sites showed peat degradation to various extents in their near-surface peats. pH values remained relatively stable over time. Comparing the degraded peat horizons, TOC increased significantly in four study sites, ranging from 35.7% to 47.8% in 2002–2004 and from 42.5% to 54.0% in 2019–2021. TN varied from 1.5% to 3.5% in 2002–2004 and from 1.8% to 3.2% in 2019–2021, but changes were only significant in one site, showing a slight decrease. In three sites, the increase in C/N ratio was significant, indicating lower nutrient availability. BD ranged from 0.08 to 0.48 g/cm3 in 2002–2004 and from 0.10 to 0.16 g/cm3 in 2019–2021, decreasing significantly in four sites. The structure of the degraded peat horizons changed after restoration to a more homogenous, sludge mass with larger re-aggregates. In three sites, new peat moss peat layers above the degraded soil horizon were present in 2019–2021, with a mean thickness of 6.8 to 36.1 cm. The structure was comparable to typical, slightly decomposed peat moss peat. Our findings suggest that within about 17 years after fen restoration, and thereby a water table rise close to surface, TOC of the near-surface peats increased to values that are typical for undisturbed peatlands. This indicates that restoration can lead to the re-establishment of peatlands as potential carbon sinks, with TOC within the near-surface peat as one key factor in this process. Further, we assume that the decrease in nutrient availability, decrease of BD, and new, undisturbed peat layers can favor the establishment of mire-specific biodiversity and support ecosystem services similar to near-natural mires.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere17113
JournalPeerJ
Volume12
Issue number4
Number of pages22
ISSN2167-8359
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 18.04.2024

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The authors thank the administration of the nature park \u201CStechlin Ruppiner Land\u201D for good collaboration over the years. We thank all who provided thoughtful reviews and comments. This work was supported by the State Environmental Agency of Brandenburg. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Publisher Copyright:
Copyright 2024 Hammerich et al.

DOI

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