Peatlands cover upwards of 12 per cent of Canada’s landscape and store more carbon than all other ecosystems in the country combined, making them one of Canada’s most powerful natural climate allies.
Yet until now, information on these critical ecosystems has been difficult to find. To address this gap, the Can-Peat Network at the University of Waterloo launched the Canadian Peatland Data Portal in early January, the country’s first national platform dedicated to centralizing peatland carbon metadata.
By offering a single, accessible entry point for discovering where a diverse catalogue of peatland data exists and how it can be used responsibly, the portal empowers researchers, governments, industry partners and Indigenous and local communities to collaborate more effectively and advance evidence‑based action to protect one of Canada’s most essential climate resources.
To launch the portal, Dr. Maria Strack, principal investigator of Can‑Peat and professor and Canada Research Chair in Wetland Climate Solutions in the Faculty of Environment at Waterloo, hosted the national launch webinar with more than 80 attendees from across the country.
Read More at: University of Waterloo
A greenhouse gas flux chamber in Aspen, Alberta, collects measurements that enable researchers to quantify carbon exchange in various peatland types across Canada. (Photo Credit: Carissa Mackenzie)
