CO2 emissions from peat-draining rivers regulated by water pH

Abstract

Abstract. Southeast Asian peatlands represent a globally significant carbon store that is destabilized by deforestation and the transformation into plantations, causing high carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from peat soils and increased leaching rates of peat carbon into rivers. While global model studies assumed that CO2 emissions from peat-draining rivers would be high, estimates based on field data suggest they are only moderate. In this study we offer an explanation for this phenomenon and show that carbon decomposition is hampered by the low pH in peat-draining rivers, which limits CO2 production in and emissions from these rivers. We find an exponential pH limitation that shows good agreement with laboratory measurements from high latitude peat soils. Additionally, our results suggest that enhanced input of carbonate minerals increase CO2 emissions from peat-draining rivers by counteracting the pH limitation. As such inputs of carbonate minerals occur due to human activities like deforestation of river catchments, liming in plantations and enhanced weathering projects, our study points out an important feedback mechanism of those practices.