Peat Fires Will Redefine Both Fire Ecology And GHG Outcomes Across Canadian And Siberian Arctic
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Peat, the moist, mossy substance that covers the ground in most Arctic ecosystems and Canadian boreal forests, is made up of decomposing biomass from plants, animals and microbes, and plays a key role in managing temperature. "It adds to the beauty of Canadian landscapes, but it also regulates the Earth's climate," said Merritt Turetsky, an ecosystem ecologist and director of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado Boulder.
"For thousands of years, [peat] has been a natural stockpile of carbon — removing carbon and keeping it out of the atmosphere." The carbon is preserved naturally in these areas — provided, as Turetsky said, "we can keep peat cold and wet." But as a result of climate change, peatlands are becoming hotter and drier, and thus more susceptible to the type of blazes we're witnessing in Siberia. "We now know that peatlands around the world, from the Arctic all the way to the tropics, are indeed vulnerable to wildfire," said Turetsky.
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Peat fires not only release CO2, but other, more potent greenhouse gases such as methane, as well as particulate matter, "which is the stuff that gets into our lungs, it can cause respiratory disease and asthma attacks," said Turetsky. A study published earlier this year in the journal Nature showed that peatlands in Canada are drying up and that fires will become more common in the future.
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For one thing, unlike crown fires, which take place in trees, peat fires happen largely underground. Because the heat can become trapped many feet below the forest floor, peat fires can be "very hard to extinguish," Thomas said. "The fires can creep underground and pop back up along your control lines." This means "there are a lot of times where you'll be walking through an area where the fire goes through … and you accidentally step into an ash pit that looks cool but is actually very hot underneath." Turetsky said the behaviour of peat fires can also lead to "zombie fires," a concept that originates in "stories from northerners who have detected and taken pictures of smoke diffusing right through snowpacks."
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https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whatonearth/peat-fires-like-those-raging-in-siberia-will-become-more-common-in-canada-1.5670662
