Dynamic of groundwater table, peat subsidence and carbon emission impacted from deforestation in tropical peatland, Riau, Indonesia

Drainage is a major means of the conversion of tropical peat forests into agriculture. Accordingly, drained peat becomes a large source of carbon. However, the amount of carbon (C) loss from drained peats is not simply measured. The current C loss estimate is usually based on a single proxy of the groundwater table, spatially and temporarily dynamic. The relation between groundwater table and C emission is commonly not linear because of the complex natures of heterotrophic carbon emission. Peatland drainage or lowering groundwater table provides plenty of oxygen into the upper layer of peat above the water table, where microbial activity becomes active. Consequently, lowering the water table escalates subsidence that causes physical changes of organic matter (OM) and carbon emission due to microbial oxidation. This paper reviews peat bulk density (BD), total organic carbon (TOC) content, and subsidence rate of tropical peat forest and drained peat. Data of BD, TOC, and subsidence were derived from published and unpublished sources. We found that BD is generally higher in the top surface layer in drained peat than in the undrained peat. TOC values in both drained and undrained are lower in the top and higher in the bottom layer. To estimate carbon emission from the top layer (0–50 cm) in drained peats, we use BD value 0.12 to 0.15 g cm−3, TOC value of 50%, and a 60% conservatively oxidative correction factor. The average peat subsidence is 3.9 cm yr−1. The range of subsidence rate per year is between 2 and 6 cm, which results in estimated emission between 30 and 90 t CO2e ha−1 yr−1. This estimate is comparable to those of other studies and Tier 1 emission factor of the 2013 IPCC GHG Inventory on Wetlands. We argue that subsidence is a practical approach to estimate carbon emission from drained tropical peat is more applicable than the use of groundwater table.

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Estimation of Indonesian Peat Forest Carbon Emissions based on Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Satellite Image

Agromet ◽

10.29244/j.agromet.33.1.1-7 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (1) ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

A Awaluddin ◽

Albertus Sulaiman

Keyword(s):

Soil Moisture ◽

Water Table ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Carbon Emission ◽

Unsolved Problem ◽

Satellite Image ◽

Empirical Relation ◽

Forest Carbon ◽

Tropical Peatland

Calculation of carbon emission in tropical peatland forest still unsolved problem. In this paper, we propose a method to calculate carbon emission by using Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite. The SMAP images on January 2018 enhanced 1.3 radiometer Global Daily 9 km, EASE grid overlayed with peat map. The water table mapping obtained by using empirical relation between soil moisture and water table in January 2018 shows a pattern according to some observation. The carbon emission map on January 2018 shows the average is about 280 gC km-2.

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Peatlands Are More Beneficial if Conserved and Restored than Drained for Monoculture Crops

Frontiers in Environmental Science ◽

10.3389/fenvs.2021.749279 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Suria Tarigan ◽

Neviaty P. Zamani ◽

Damayanti Buchori ◽

Rilus Kinseng ◽

Yuli Suharnoto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Carbon Emission ◽

Carbon Budget ◽

Net Present Value ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Short Term ◽

Tropical Peatland

Peatlands are especially important but fragile tropical landscapes. The importance of peatlands is owing to their ability to 1) sequester a considerable amount of terrestrial carbon, 2) store freshwater, and 3) regulate floods during the rainy season. Nowadays, extensive peatland degradation occurs because of peatland utilization for agriculture purposes, causing severe environmental consequences such as carbon emission, loss of biodiversity, risk of flooding, and peat fire. Meanwhile, local planners and decision makers tend to overlook the long-term strategic function of peatlands for carbon storage and hydrological regulation, preferring peatland utilization for short-term economic benefits. The objective of our study is to quantify the total ecosystem services (except biodiversity) of a tropical peatland landscape in various peat-utilization scenarios to help build awareness among local planners and decision makers on the strategic tradeoff between peatland utilization and restoration. Studies on the total ecosystem services in a tropical peatland landscape involving hydrological regulation are still rare. Based on the net present value calculation, provisioning services, carbon regulation, and hydrological regulation in our study area account for 19, 70, and 11% of the total ecosystem services, respectively. Based on uncertainty analysis, at any combination of the social cost of carbon emission (within a range of USD 52.7–USD 107.4) and discount rate (within a range of 5–10%), the enrichment of peatlands with paludiculture crops (e.g., jelutong) shows superior ecosystem services compared to other peatland-utilization scenarios. Conversely, planting peatlands with monoculture crops, which are associated with peatland drainage, shows a rapid decrease in the total ecosystem services. The fluvial carbon export in our study, which is often neglected in a peatland carbon budget, increases the estimate of the total carbon budget by 8%. Restoring undrained peatlands with paludiculture crops such as jelutong contributes positively to carbon sequestration and potentially reduces carbon emissions by 11%. These quantitative findings can help local planners and decision makers in understanding the tradeoff between the long-term benefits of peatland restoration and the short-term economic benefits of peatland utilization for monoculture crops.

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A Prediction Method of Groundwater Table Fluctuations in Landslide Area by Neural Networks.

Landslides ◽

10.3313/jls1964.31.4_9 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 31 (4) ◽

pp. 9-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hiroyuki YOSHIMATSU ◽

Akira MUKAI

Keyword(s):

Neural Networks ◽

Prediction Method ◽

Groundwater Table ◽

Landslide Area

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CREATING WALKING LED TRANSIT STATIONS FOR WOMEN IN MALAYSIA

Malaysian Journal of Sustainable Environment ◽

10.24191/myse.v7i1.8912 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 99

Author(s):

Yong Adilah Shamsul Harumain ◽

Nur Farhana Azmi ◽

Suhaini Yusoff

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Developing Countries ◽

Public Transportation ◽

Carbon Emission ◽

The Other ◽

Walking Distance ◽

The Road ◽

On The Road ◽

Female User

Transit stations are generally well known as nodes of spaces where percentage of people walking are relatively high. The issue is do more planning is actually given to create walkability. Creating walking led transit stations involves planning of walking distance, providing facilities like pathways, toilets, seating and lighting. On the other hand, creating walking led transit station for women uncover a new epitome. Walking becomes one of the most important forms of mobility for women in developing countries nowadays. Encouraging women to use public transportation is not just about another effort to promote the use of public transportation but also another great endeavour to reduce numbers of traffic on the road. This also means, creating an effort to control accidents rate, reducing carbon emission, improving health and eventually, developing the quality of life. Hence, in this paper, we sought first to find out the factors that motivate women to walk at transit stations in Malaysia. A questionnaire survey with 562 female user of Light Railway Transit (LRT) was conducted at LRT stations along Kelana Jaya Line. Both built and non-built environment characteristics, particularly distance, safety and facilities were found as factors that are consistently associated with women walkability. With these findings, the paper highlights the criteria which are needed to create and make betterment of transit stations not just for women but also for walkability in general.

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