Understanding Peatlands: Hidden Climate Allies
Credit: Olga Tutubalina.
Peatland Ecosystems
Peatlands are unique and irreplaceable ecosystems formed over thousands of years through the slow accumulation of organic matter under waterlogged conditions.
They cover approximately 3% of the Earth's land surface, around 4 million square kilometers (1.5 million square miles), and are found on every continent except Antarctica, with the most extensive areas in the boreal and temperate zones of Canada, Russia, Scandinavia, and parts of Asia, South America, and Africa.
Despite their relatively small coverage, peatlands play a crucial role in global carbon storage, holding about one-third of the world's soil carbon—twice as much as all the world’s forests combined. This makes them essential for climate regulation, biodiversity conservation, and water system management. However, they are increasingly threatened by drainage for agriculture, forestry, and peat extraction, leading to significant carbon emissions and habitat loss.
Infographic by Gentian
Carbon Sequestration by Peatlands
Healthy peatlands are among the most powerful natural climate regulators, acting as carbon sinks, flood buffers, and biodiversity hotspots. Their restoration brings far-reaching benefits, from sequestering CO₂ and regulating water cycles to supporting rare species and enhancing climate resilience. However, when degraded, they shift from storing carbon to releasing it, significantly accelerating climate change.
One of the most remarkable aspects of peatlands is their unparalleled ability to capture and store carbon for millennia. Unlike forests, where carbon is continuously cycled through growth and decomposition, peatlands lock carbon away in their deep, waterlogged layers, slowing decomposition and preventing the release of CO₂.
To maximize their potential, peatland conservation must be integrated into national and global climate policies. Initiatives like the Peatland Code and carbon financing mechanisms provide frameworks for incentivizing restoration, ensuring that these landscapes contribute meaningfully to carbon neutrality goals.
Infographic by Winrock.org
In the UK, peatlands cover approximately 12% of the land area and serve as vital environmental assets by supporting biodiversity, regulating water systems, and acting as major carbon sinks. They hold an estimated 3.2 billion tonnes of carbon—more than all the carbon stored in the country’s forests, grasslands, and other vegetation combined.
However, 80% of the UK's peatlands are degraded, compromising their ability to function effectively. When peatlands are drained or disturbed, the stored carbon oxidizes and is released into the atmosphere, turning these critical carbon sinks into significant carbon sources. Degraded peatlands now account for a significant portion of the UK's land-based CO₂ emissions, exacerbating climate change. Preserving and restoring these ecosystems is therefore urgent and essential to maintaining their role in climate mitigation and environmental stability.
Peatlands as Part of a Global Wetland Network
Peatlands are just one part of a broader network of wetlands that sustain life on Earth. Found on every continent except Antarctica, wetlands—including mangroves, marshes, estuaries, and Arctic peatlands—serve as carbon storage systems, water filters, and biodiversity reserves.
Boreal and tropical peatlands, such as those in Russia, Canada, Indonesia, and the Amazon Basin, hold 30% of the world’s soil carbon, playing a crucial role in climate regulation.
Mangrove forests, like those in the Sundarbans, Indonesia, and the Florida Everglades, act as storm barriers and marine nurseries, storing up to five times more carbon per hectare than rainforests.
Marshes and swamps, including the Okavango Delta, Pantanal, Louisiana and Kushiro Wetlands, provide critical flood protection, habitat for endangered species, and water purification services. The Kushiro Shitsugen is the largest peatland in Japan, covering about 183 km², and serves as a critical habitat for endangered species like the Japanese red-crowned crane.
High-altitude and Arctic wetlands, such as those in Siberia, the Himalayas, and the Hudson Bay Lowlands, help regulate permafrost thaw and global water cycles, making them vital for climate stability.
Threats to Peatland Ecosystems
Despite their critical role in climate regulation and biodiversity conservation, peatlands face several threats:
Land-use changes – Agricultural expansion, afforestation, and development projects often lead to drainage of peatlands, increasing carbon emissions and disrupting habitats. One key challenge in the UK and other temperate peatland regions is the spread of Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis), an invasive conifer species that thrives in wet conditions but ultimately dries out peatlands over time. These trees alter the natural hydrology, lowering water tables and accelerating peat degradation, making restoration efforts even more complex.
To combat this issue, Gentian has developed an innovative AI-driven mapping solution to track the spread of Sitka Spruce across large peatland areas. By using remote sensing and advanced pattern recognition, this tool helps estate managers and conservation teams quickly identify and prioritize areas requiring intervention. This technology enables more efficient decision-making in peatland restoration efforts, ensuring that tree removal and rewetting strategies are effectively targeted to restore natural carbon sequestration functions.
Peat extraction – Harvesting peat for horticulture depletes these ecosystems, reducing their capacity to store carbon and support biodiversity.
Climate change – Rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns threaten peatland hydrology, increasing the risk of drying, erosion, and peat fires.
Pollution – Runoff from agriculture and industry can alter the nutrient balance of peatlands, affecting plant and microbial communities.
Forestry and Land Scotland forest to bog restoration in North Dalchork. Trees are cut very close to the ground and disturbance of soil and vegetation cover is minimised. Credit: Olga Tutubalina.
Restoring Peatlands: An Investment in Our Climate Future
Peatland restoration is one of the most cost-effective and immediate solutions for mitigating climate change. By raising water tables, reintroducing sphagnum mosses, and curbing unsustainable land use, restoration efforts help reestablish these ecosystems as natural carbon sinks. However, effective restoration requires precise data and monitoring to ensure long-term success. This is where AI-driven insights play a transformative role.
Addressing these threats requires a combination of policy interventions, technological innovation, and restoration initiatives to protect and enhance these landscapes for future generations.
The Eco-Patterns Approach: A New Era of Peatland Assessment
Recognizing their significance, Gentian is leading an Innovate UK-funded project, Eco-Patterns: Ecological Characterisation and Monitoring of Habitats by AI Pattern-recognition for Policy, Practice and Emerging Environmental Markets, focused on AI-driven ecological characterisation and habitat monitoring. This initiative supports global and regional strategies like the UK’s 25-Year Environment Plan, promoting nature-positive policies, carbon financing, and mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). By leveraging cutting-edge AI, Eco-Patterns aims to create a systematic classification system for assessing peatland character and condition, improving conservation efforts.
Traditionally, peatland condition assessments have relied on labour-intensive and time-consuming vegetation-based surveys. Advances in AI and remote sensing coupled with the Peatland Condition Assessment Matrix developed at the University of East London, now offer a transformative approach to peatland mapping and monitoring. By analyzing peatlands' mesoscale and microscale surface structures, which depend on terrain, drainage and vegetation features, this project will systematically map peatland health, providing an innovative solution to conservation and carbon monitoring efforts.
“As a result of this project, we hope to develop an automated tool that will fulfil the requirements of the Peatland Code and provide quick and accurate baseline mapping and monitoring of peatland condition.” - Dr Olga Tutubalina, Gentian’s Remote Sensing Senior Expert.
The project is developing a first-of-its-kind AI pattern-recognition tool for remote peatland analysis. Ground-truth testing has already shown promising results, demonstrating AI’s ability to classify peatland conditions based on surface patterns. This will contribute to a national peatland condition assessment system, streamlining monitoring for conservation, policy-making, and carbon market initiatives like the Peatland Code. We partner with IUCN UK Peatland Programme and with BSG Ecology to ensure the project outputs are providing practical solutions to current data challenges. By making peatland assessment more efficient and scalable, Eco-Patterns will support:
Carbon financing mechanisms, ensuring accurate monitoring of peatland restoration for carbon credits and offset initiatives.
Mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) assessments, providing a standardized approach for peatland evaluations in infrastructure and development projects, and to facilitate creation and monitoring of biodiversity credits.
Long-term conservation efforts, aiding government and NGO-led initiatives focused on rewetting, habitat restoration, and climate resilience.
By investing in peatland conservation, we can enhance carbon monitoring, streamline classification for conservation policies, and improve restoration efficiency. As individuals, businesses, and policymakers, we must act now to protect these landscapes. The future of our climate depends on it.