"TITLE","AUTHORS","SUBJECT","SUBJECT_RELATED","DESCRIPTION","PUBLISHER","AVAILABILITY","RESEARCH_ORG","SPONSORING_ORG","PUBLICATION_COUNTRY","PUBLICATION_DATE","CONTRIBUTING_ORGS","LANGUAGE","RESOURCE_TYPE","TYPE_QUALIFIER","JOURNAL_ISSUE","JOURNAL_VOLUME","RELATION","COVERAGE","FORMAT","IDENTIFIER","REPORT_NUMBER","DOE_CONTRACT_NUMBER","OTHER_IDENTIFIER","DOI","RIGHTS","ENTRY_DATE","OSTI_IDENTIFIER","PURL_URL" "Accumulation of carbon in northern mire ecosystems","Tolonen, K; Turunen, J; Alm, J [Joensuu Univ. (Finland). Dept. of Biology]; Korhola, A [Helsinki Univ. (Finland). Lab. of Physical Geography]; Jungner, H [Helsinki Univ. (Finland). Dating Lab.]; Vasander, H [Helsinki Univ. (Finland). Dept. of Forest Ecology]","54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; WETLANDS; CLIMATIC CHANGE; ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS; CARBON CYCLE; PEAT; CARBON SINKS; ECOLOGY","","The basic feature in the functional ecology of any mire ecosystem is retardation of the effective decay of organic material resulting in a conspicuous accumulation of plant debris as peat overtime. The carbon accumulation process is slow, and climatic change may have an impact on the carbon cycle of peatlands, therefore, it has been of interest to study the rate of carbon accumulation by geological methods from dated peat strata. The approach is hampered by several facts. First, the mires vary enormously as to their vegetation and hydrology and hence their production and decay properties. It follows that a great number of study sites are needed. Second, the peat in mires expands both vertically and laterally, and this requires a spatial reconstruction of carbon accumulation within a mire basin. Third, simple geological methods cannot account for the actual rate of carbon accumulation in peat, and finally, an additional carbon sink in the mire ecosystems can be the mineral subsoil beneath peat. The proposed warming will perhaps shift northwards the existing climatic mire regimes and, thus, the northern aapa fens will change to Sphagnum bogs that are more effective in sequestering carbon, but distinctly less effective in their CH{sub 4} and N{sub 2}O emanation. The role of mire fires in more remote northern areas may then become another important factor. The answer to the important question of future total sequestration of carbon to peatlands depends on the precipitation and its seasonal distribution pattern. Most climatic scenarios predict a decrease in the evaporation surplus during the summer at northern regions. Presumably, the consequent lowering of the water table would improve growth of forest on mires and simultaneously decrease the methane fluxes from peat. The combined net effect could be a clear restraining of the radiative forcing","","OSTI as DE97724949","Academy of Finland, Helsinki (Finland)","","Finland","1997-12-31","","English","Technical Report","","","","Other Information: DN: SILMU Research Programme; PBD: 1996; Related Information: Is Part Of The Finnish research programme on climate change. Final report; Roos, J. [ed.]; PB: 507 p.","","Medium: ED; Size: pp. 375-383","ON: DE97724949; ISBN 951-37-1961-8","SA-PUB-4/96","","Other: ON: DE97724949; ISBN 951-37-1961-8; TRN: FI9703121","https://doi.org/","","2018-02-26","428498","https://www.osti.gov/etdeweb/servlets/purl/428498"