Revaluating long-term drivers of peatland carbon sequestration to inform peatland restoration policies

Peatlands are a vital ecosystem for biodiversity, hydrology and carbon storage that have suffered huge degradation over the last 200 years. Less than 20% of UK peatlands are judged to be in ‘Good’ condition, with many affected by drainage and high nutrient input (e.g. from agricultural emissions). Many peatland restoration projects are underway to promote carbon storage as part of the UK’s Net Zero drive. The effectiveness of these schemes may be constrained by gaps in our understanding of peatland carbon cycling. In particular, how the interactions between nutrients, vegetation, microbes and climate influence carbon sequestration remains poorly understood. 

This project will directly address this research gap by integrating palaeoenvironmental data with active monitoring at several UK peatlands, potentially alongside genomic analysis of microbial communities. By establishing long-term dynamics, this project will identify how peatlands may respond to future climate and nutrient input, such as from agriculture or land-use change, and how to maximise carbon storage. The findings will be applicable to peatland restoration in the UK and internationally, and you will have the opportunity to work closely with policy organisations. The project will involve fieldwork and laboratory components as well as policy applications. The project would suit students interested in palaeoenvironmental science, biogeochemistry, microbial dynamics, peatland restoration and Net Zero initiatives.