A ground-breaking new study by RMIT has found carbon emissions from Australian alpine peatlands to be much higher in areas disturbed by feral horses.
A ground-breaking new study by RMIT has found carbon emissions from Australian alpine peatlands to be much higher in areas disturbed by feral horses.
Peatlands in the Australian Alps are a type of mossy wetland characterised by carbon-rich peat soil, formed from plants that have partially decomposed in wet, swampy conditions. These ecosystems are incredibly effective at capturing carbon in the live moss layer then storing it in the soils below, sometimes for thousands of years.
While peatlands only cover up to 3 per cent of the Earth’s land surface, they store an estimated 30 per cent of the world’s soil carbon. This is twice the amount of carbon stored in every forest on the planet.
Lead author and postdoctoral researcher, Dr Sarah Treby, said the protection of these environments is an important step towards addressing global climate change.
Read more at RMIT University
Photo Credit: Lipponen via Pixabay
