Âé¶¹ÒùÔº

March 20, 2025

Peatlands' carbon capture potential increases with rising temperatures

Peatlands host a wide variety of microalgae capable of absorbing carbon from the atmosphere. These microalgae are sensitive to temperature rise. This sensitivity leads to better CO2 capture by the northern peatlands. Credit: Vincent Jassey
× close
Peatlands host a wide variety of microalgae capable of absorbing carbon from the atmosphere. These microalgae are sensitive to temperature rise. This sensitivity leads to better CO2 capture by the northern peatlands. Credit: Vincent Jassey

According to a predictive model developed by a CNRS researcher and his European colleagues, the microalgae present in peat bogs could offset up to 14% of future CO2 emissions, thanks to their photosynthetic activity. This conclusion was reached by basing the work on in situ experiments and the various predictive scenarios established by the IPCC.

It is the first model to quantify the potential compensation of future CO2 emissions by peatlands on a global scale. This result lifts the veil on a currently ambiguous section of the terrestrial carbon cycle and its alterations by . The associated study is in Nature Climate Change.

Representing just 3% of the Earth's land surface, peatlands contain over 30% of the carbon retained in soils in the form of fossilized at depth. It is estimated that this stock represents between 500 and 1,000 gigatons of carbon, corresponding to 56% and 112% of the total carbon present in the Earth's atmosphere.

While some soil micro-organisms emit CO2 through respiration, microalgae assimilate it, notably through photosynthesis. Any increase in temperature will stimulate this microbial photosynthesis, enhancing the CO2 capture potential of peatlands.

Regrettably, due to a lack of data, the mechanisms by which soil microalgae capture CO2 have not been incorporated into any climate projections to date. However, far from being negligible, this photosynthetic carbon fixation could mitigate the impact of climate change in the future.

Further work is needed—on this and other carbon assimilation processes carried out by the micro-organisms in —to fully quantify the potential of these ecosystems as carbon sinks and improve accuracy. Nevertheless, preserving peatlands and reducing global CO2 emissions are still the best way of mitigating worsening climate change.

More information: Samuel Hamard et al, Microbial photosynthesis mitigates carbon loss from northern peatlands under warming, Nature Climate Change (2025).

Journal information: Nature Climate Change

Provided by CNRS

Load comments (0)

This article has been reviewed according to Science X's and . have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

fact-checked
peer-reviewed publication
trusted source
proofread

Get Instant Summarized Text (GIST)

A predictive model indicates that microalgae in peatlands could offset up to 14% of future CO2 emissions through photosynthesis, especially as temperatures rise. Peatlands, covering 3% of Earth's land, hold over 30% of soil carbon. Despite the lack of data on microalgae's CO2 capture mechanisms, their role in mitigating climate change is significant, highlighting the importance of preserving these ecosystems.

This summary was automatically generated using LLM.