ENVIRONMENT: Making Wetlands Count

REYKJAVIK, Sep 18 (IPS/IFEJ) – Iceland wants wetland restoration to be assessed for emission reduction units at
the summit to work out a new deal on climate change in December in
Copenhagen.

Wetlands are areas where water is present on or near the surface. They are an
important habitat for birds, and help control floods.

In Iceland a number of drained wetlands have been restored, including parts
of a bird sanctuary near the South Icelandic town Eyrarbakki, where ditches
were blocked in 1997 to stop water draining away.

“Those who undertake such activity would have to put in place a
comprehensive inventory of wetlands, both undisturbed and drained ones,”
Hugi Olafsson, director of policy and international affairs at Iceland’s
Environment Ministry told IPS. “They would have to be able to present credible
information on carbon credits and debits from draining and restoration
activities.”

Olafsson, who has been researching the issue extensively, added: “Iceland, as
well as other Annex I countries (industrial nations, under the Kyoto Protocol),
has in the last decade or so developed a good inventory for activities in
forestry, and Iceland has also conducted pioneering work in accounting for
re-vegetation. There is therefore considerable experience in place to model a
wetland inventory.”

Afforestry was proposed as a means of binding carbon to the soil (through
the process of photosynthesis, whereby trees take in carbon dioxide) to offset
carbon dioxide emissions produced by industry and individuals in everyday
life. When wetlands are restored, they too bind carbon to the soil and slow
the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

More carbon dioxide is released when wetlands are disturbed or destroyed
than when forests are cut down. This is especially the case with peatlands,
which contain dead organic matter (peat) with a carbon content of over 50
percent. These form under wet conditions where lack of oxygen hinders
decomposition; wet conditions therefore limit the release of carbon dioxide.

There is a new focus on peatlands in climate change negotiations because of
their high carbon content, which is released into the atmosphere when
peatlands are damaged or drained. This is the rationale for including wetland
and peatland restoration as a means of securing credits by Annex-1
countries in the new commitment period due from 2012 following the Kyoto
Protocol.

Peatlands and wetlands account for about 3 percent and 6 percent of the
earth’s surface respectively. (All peatlands come under the category of
wetlands, but not all wetlands are peatlands.)

A ‘global assessment on peatlands, diversity and climate change’ produced
last year by the international non-governmental groups Wetlands
International and the Global Environment Centre showed that carbon dioxide
emissions from drained and damaged peatlands amount to more than 3,000
million tonnes annually, or over 11 percent of global fossil fuel emissions.

Carbon dioxide continues to be emitted from damaged or destroyed wetlands
for decades until all of the peat is used up, unless the habitat is restored.

Rewetting peatlands can lead to an increase in methane emissions, but this is
nearly always counterbalanced by a much larger decrease in carbon dioxide
and nitrous oxide (N20) emissions. Besides carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and
methane are the two other greenhouse gases known to cause global
warming.

In order to create more land for agriculture, Icelandic farmers drained a
considerable portion of wetland habitat during the latter half of the 20th
century, mostly by building drains.

It is difficult to quantify the extent of emissions from drained and damaged
wetlands, but it is estimated that carbon dioxide emissions from these
amount to almost half of those released from fossil fuels and industrial
processes in Iceland.

These emissions can be significantly reduced if draining ditches are blocked
and water levels raised. If wetlands are restored, the biodiversity of the
original wetland too can be restored to a large extent.

“Lowering the water table by means of drainage of peatlands leads to rapid
decomposition of the organic carbon of the peat,” says Susanna Tol from the
Dutch headquarters of Wetlands International. “The oxygen allows aerobic
decomposition to take place, which is 50 times faster than anaerobic (without
oxygen) decomposition.

“Carbon dioxide emissions from drained peatlands generally increase with
increasing drainage depth and warmer climates. The process of oxidation can
be halted with the restoration of the peatlands. This is done by rewetting the
drained peatlands, so restoring the hydrology.”

The proposal has been raised at climate change meetings since the idea of
wetlands restoration was first introduced as an activity akin to LULUCF at the
Accra climate change talks in August 2008. LULUCF (Land Use, Land Use
Change and Forestry) is an activity allowed under the Kyoto Protocol as a way
for countries to offset their greenhouse gas emissions. By planting trees,
changing agricultural practices or re-vegetating land, sinks or reservoirs are
produced that bind carbon and greenhouse gases to the soil. LULUCF is
therefore permitted as an accounting method for countries reporting their net
greenhouse gas emissions.

“We have received many positive comments, and feel we have good support
for the proposal,” says Olafsson. “We got many technical questions on how
the proposal would work in action, and how we can guarantee against poor
accounting, double accounting and possible later reversal of climate gains.

“Such critical questions are good and necessary in order to develop the idea
into an operational proposal. We have not heard anyone opposing the
proposal as a matter of principle, but we realise that it will be hard work to
develop it further, along with many other proposals regarding LULUCF.”

Iceland is committed to a reduction of at least 15 percent of greenhouse
gases by 2020 relative to 1990 levels. In effect it can count a reduction of 25
percent, as it is currently allowed to release an extra 10 percent of carbon
dioxide under the Kyoto Protocol because of the Iceland Provision. This was
granted to Iceland because it had so little heavy industry at the time and
because nearly all of Iceland’s energy comes from renewable energy.

The country was allowed to increase its greenhouse gas emissions by some
1.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year from new industrial projects, in
addition to its extra 10 percent under Kyoto. The Iceland Provision may
become irrelevant in January 2013 when European regulations on emissions
from heavy industry take effect.

A part of Iceland’s goal for reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 will
be achieved by binding carbon through tree planting and re-vegetation. If
wetland restoration is allowed as an LULUCF activity, Iceland expects to be
able to reduce its emissions further.

More: 
ENVIRONMENT: Making Wetlands Count

Related posts:

1. Boreal forests store carbon, need help: Canada study By David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) - The world needs...
2. Forest area bigger than Canada can be restored By Nina Chestney LONDON (Reuters) - Only one fifth...
3. Study finds vital peatlands neglected By Gerard Wynn BARCELONA, Spain (Reuters) - Draining and...
4. ENVIRONMENT: Keeping Wetlands from Becoming Wastelands %content% Read the original:  ENVIRONMENT: Keeping Wetlands from Becoming Wastelands...
5. ENVIRONMENT: Synergies in Fight Against Desertification , Climate Change BUENOS AIRES, Sep 30 (IPS) - Climate change aggravates...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.