Glossary

The Importance of Protecting & Restoring Peatlands

The Importance of Protecting & Restoring Peatlands

The Importance of Protecting & Restoring Peatlands


by: Jay Reese | July 26
, 2023


For generations, people have viewed peatlands and wetlands as unproductive, waterlogged areas that could be altered or drained for more productive uses, such as cropping or construction. Phrases like ‘bogged down in the details’ or ‘a mire of a situation’ reflect the historical negative connotations of these habitats. While these ecosystems may not seem productive from an anthropogenic lens, peatlands store twice as much carbon as all the forests in the world combined, [1] despite only accounting for three percent of the earth’s landmass. Preserving and protecting these essential ecosystems is crucial to managing carbon emissions and achieving sustainability goals. 

Partially degraded peatlands may have large pits dug from peat harvesting. These pits fill with water and become small ponds.

Introduction to Peatlands 

Peatlands are a type of acidic wetland ecosystem in which the soil is so waterlogged that anaerobic conditions occur. This inhibits the decomposition of dead plant matter, causing an accumulation of peat, which is made up of partially decayed plant matter and is rich in carbon. Several different types of peatlands are often categorized by their water sources, including but not limited to moors, bogs, fens, swamp forests, marshes, and even permafrost tundra.

These ecosystems can be found across the planet, from lowland coastal areas to high-elevation mountainous regions and in every climatic zone [2]. Due to its high carbon content, peat has a variety of uses, including fuel, substrates for planting, and filtration media for industrial processes. Because of its multiple benefits in human society, peat bogs are overexploited, as the peat harvests much faster than it naturally regenerates. Peatland degradation also occurs when the land is drained by artificial means to be used for grazing, agriculture, or development. Because of this, 15 percent of the world’s peatlands have been fully drained, and even more have been subject to peat harvesting and partial drainage [3].

When peatlands are drained, they can no longer fulfill their role as a carbon sink and instead become a source of CO2 emissions. For example, when drained, tropical peatlands emit an average of 55 metric tons of CO2 per hectare per year [4]. Specifically, when the organic peat material mixes with oxygen (a result of draining), its decomposition rate accelerates tremendously, releasing large quantities of CO2 and contributing to global warming. Drained peatlands also become more susceptible to wildfires, highly emissive events that can devastate the ecosystem and environment. For example, in Indonesia in 2015, over half of wildfires occurred in degraded peatlands. Peak carbon emissions from these fires exceeded the daily rate for the entire United States economy [5]. In total, emissions from degraded peatlands make up five percent of all anthropogenic CO2 emissions, a staggering amount, considering drained peatlands make up less than 0.4% of the land on Earth [5]. As these numbers suggest, peatlands are crucial in the global carbon cycle. Accordingly, plans to avoid catastrophic climate change must include better management of peatlands to maintain and restore their role as an essential carbon sink.

Peat forest fires are notoriously difficult to extinguish as they burn primarily underground. Once burned, it can take hundreds of years for peat to reaccumulate in the ecosystem.

Elements of Successful Peatland Projects 

The most essential step in rehabilitating degraded peatlands is restoring the original hydrology of the site. Often peatlands are drained artificially through the construction of drainage canals. Damming these canals can be a highly effective measure to restore the original hydrology and eliminate the risk of further drying and subsidence. However, more than restoring hydrology alone is needed to reclaim the site in highly degraded peatlands. Additional reclamation efforts may be necessary to restore the site to its original function, such as reintroducing native plant species. The work required to restore each peatland varies depending on the level of degradation experienced at the site. However, the climate benefits of peatland restoration far outweigh the costs, making peatland restoration an essential and cost-effective strategy for meeting our climate goals.

The Verra Registry has two methodologies related to peatland restoration: VM0027 and VM0036. The first methodology applies to project activities in which drained tropical peatlands are rewet by constructing permanent and/or temporary structures (e.g., dams) which hold back water in drainage waterways. There are yet to be any projects registered with Verra using this methodology. VM0036 applies to project activities implemented to rewet drained peatlands in temperate climatic regions. There is one project currently under validation on the Verra Registry utilizing this methodology in China, which anticipates the rewetting of nearly 1,300 ha of drained wetlands.  

Benefits of Peatland Restoration
 

There are many benefits associated with restoration works that target peatlands. The most obvious benefit is the reduction of CO2 emissions accompanying peatland rewetting and the maintenance of this essential carbon sink. However, the benefits of these projects go far beyond emissions alone. Rewetting peatlands greatly reduces the risk of destructive wildfires and significant flood events affecting populated areas. Wildfires on degraded peatlands can persist for long periods, leading to negative impacts on regional air quality, so mitigating this can improve the health of surrounding communities. Like other natural wetlands, Peatlands also act as a sponge, absorbing water quickly during wet periods and releasing it slowly during dry periods, so they play an important role in flood mitigation. When peatlands are dried and the peat soils compacted, they lose this ability to regulate flood waters and can increase the risk of disastrous flooding affecting local economies and livelihoods.

There are also vital community benefits associated with protecting and restoring peatlands. Indigenous communities, for example, rely heavily on peatlands for their abundant natural resources and cultural significance and are deeply affected by peatland degradation. Restoring peatlands is essential in protecting indigenous peoples’ livelihoods and cultures. In conjunction with the reduced natural disaster risk, these projects can profoundly improve the well-being of nearby communities. These projects also have many benefits associated with biodiversity because peatlands are unique ecosystems with specialized ecological communities that rely on waterlogged, carbon-heavy soils to survive. Plants that thrive in these conditions have known uses for local communities, including medicinal purposes and food sources. They also support a unique makeup of insect and animal communities and are essential ecosystems for maintaining biodiversity on our planet.

Bogs, a common name for wetlands that accumulate peat, typically can be found in cooler, Northern regions in areas where glaciers transformed the landscape.

Project Opportunities

Exploring emerging project opportunities within the nature-based solutions space means assessing both risks and rewards of potential peatland projects and reviewing the findings to make informed decisions for engaging with partners on peatland restoration.

There are many ways to preserve and restore degraded peatlands and create benefits for all stakeholders, including communities that rely on these ecosystems. The voluntary carbon market has proven valuable in securing funding for nature-based solutions projects, and peatland restoration projects are no different. There have been many successful peatland restoration projects across various carbon registries, all harnessing the free market’s power to fund these vital restoration projects.

Peatland restoration projects take work. They require meticulous planning, high-level diligence, and many resources. However, the climate benefits of these projects are undeniably extensive, and the added benefits to communities and biodiversity make these projects highly worthwhile. We are eager to see the opportunities for preserving and restoring peatlands because protecting our peatlands is protecting our future.


[1]  Peatlands store twice as much carbon as forests – here’s what we can do to save them
[2]  What are peatlands?
[3]  Peatlands store twice as much carbon as all the world’s forests
[4]  Destruction of Tropical Peatland Is an Overlooked Source of Emissions

[5]  Peatlands and climate change

About the Author

Jay Reese is a Penn State University student and Project Development Intern at ClimeCo. They are working towards a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Resource Management, with minors in Environmental Engineering and Watersheds & Water Resources. Jay’s time at ClimeCo focuses on providing essential support to the team in all phases of project development. With graduation in December, Jay is eager to continue their career in a field that helps people and the planet. As a part of their undergraduate studies, Jay studied abroad in Ireland. While abroad, they had the opportunity to visit a peat bog and learn about the substantial climate and biodiversity benefits of protecting these ecosystems.

ClimeCo Expands Project Development Leadership with the Hire of Erika Schiller

ClimeCo Expands Project Development Leadership with the Hire of Erika Schiller

NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
CONTACT
Nancy Marshall, Vice President, Marketing
484.415.7603 or nmarshall@climeco.com 

ClimeCo Expands Project Development Leadership with the Hire of Erika Schiller


BOYERTOWN, Pennsylvania (March 1, 2022) – ClimeCo announces the expansion of its leadership team with the hire of Erika Schiller as Vice President of Project Development. She will lead the team, spanning new methodology development, consulting, and project management to assist customers, create measurable environmental benefits, and generate environmental credits.

“ClimeCo represents energy-intensive industries that have unique decarbonization challenges,” says William Flederbach, President and CEO of ClimeCo. “We are building our team and leveraging a proven track record of thirteen years to meet our customer’s needs. Erika will expand and support cutting-edge decarbonization strategies by leveraging our finance, design, and build expertise. In 2022 and beyond, investing in low carbon technologies is paramount to achieving our aggressive global climate goals, and I couldn’t be more excited to have Erika leading this practice.” 

Schiller will build on ClimeCo’s strengths in industrial greenhouse gas (GHG) management, nature-based solutions, such as reforestation and composting, and plastics mitigation. Additionally, she’ll look to expand in other industrial spaces like low-carbon cement, renewable natural gas, and carbon capture use and storage (CCUS). She excels in taking customer-focused approaches to business development and growing new business lines.

“ClimeCo was compelling to me because of their market-based approach to tackle environmental challenges,” says Schiller. “I see a strong business case for measuring and delivering GHG reductions, and other benefits for a world focused on how to achieve net-zero this century. ClimeCo is poised for growth, and I’m excited to contribute my expertise to their strong foundation.”

Before joining ClimeCo, Schiller worked in the low-carbon energy industry for ten years, spanning energy storage to renewable fuels and carbon capture use & storage with Chevron. She helped Chevron launch its renewable natural gas business, forming two joint ventures in dairy RNG production. She then moved to their corporate strategy and sustainability team, where she led the commercial strategy for a new CCUS global business line and supported the start-up of their New Energies business unit. 

Schiller earned her Master of Business Administration from Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business, and her Bachelor of Science from Vanderbilt University.

About ClimeCo

ClimeCo is a respected global advisor, transaction facilitator, trader, and developer of environmental commodity market products and related services. We specialize in voluntary carbon, regulated carbon, renewable energy credits, plastics credits, and regional criteria pollutant trading programs.  Complimenting these programs is a team of professionals skilled in providing sustainability program management services, and developing and financing of GHG abatement and mitigation systems.

For more information or to discuss how ClimeCo can drive value for your organization, contact us at 484.415.0501, info@climeco.com, or through our website climeco.com. Be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter using our handle, @ClimeCo.

Creating Carbon Offsets – It Starts With A Methodology

Creating Carbon Offsets – It Starts With A Methodology

Creating Carbon Offsets – It Starts With A Methodology


by David Priddy, VP of Business Development | February 24, 2021


With the continued push by businesses in recent years to establish more stringent sustainability goals with lower GHG thresholds, there’s been a corresponding rush by corporations, project developers, technology providers, and charitable foundations to implement emission reduction solutions to help meet this growing demand.  This has led to a plethora of innovative ideas and concepts from entities seeking to utilize carbon financing to bring their ideas to life.  As a leader in the carbon emission reduction and sequestration space, ClimeCo will frequently field requests on how to implement these ideas to generate and sell carbon offsets, which incentivizes continued investment in project activities that deliver emission reductions.  But after listening to entities pitch their ideas, the question that I most often hear is:  “Can we create carbon offsets?”  Well, the answer to that question can depend on many factors, but it all starts with an appropriate methodology.


Carbon Offset Methodologies

A carbon offset methodology is a framework document that defines the quantification and parameters that are required to generate carbon offsets throughout the life of a project. It establishes the project’s baseline, identifies qualifying practice changes to reduce carbon, and defines the monitoring requirements necessary to ensure that the reductions are real, quantifiable, verifiable, and additional to what would have happened in the absence of the project.

There are seemingly as many different offset methodologies available today as there are carbon reduction project ideas, but continuous innovation in this space keeps challenging that theory.  Voluntary registries, along with those carbon compliance programs that allow for the use of offsets, generally utilize their own protocols and methodologies.  In the North American voluntary market, we primarily work with three voluntary offset registries:  The Climate Action Reserve (CAR), American Carbon Registry (ACR), and Verra; these three registries offer more than 100 established methodologies.  Most of these existing methodologies can be classified into one of several primary categories, including industrial, agricultural, energy efficiency, waste, transportation, and renewable energy; however, the requirements for a particular methodology are usually written for a specific project activity, such that there is little room for interpretation or variance.  This often results in the need to modify an existing methodology or create a new one to support a proposed project’s activities if those activities do not precisely fit the parameters of an existing methodology.


Methodology Development

To ensure the integrity of carbon offsets, credible methodologies employ best practices based on the ISO 14064 standard, providing guidelines for quantifying, monitoring, reporting, and verifying GHG emissions and reductions.  These standards require that each project conducted under a methodology is calculated in a way that is relevant, complete, consistent, accurate, and transparent, and meets the aforementioned key crediting criteria (real, quantifiable, verifiable, and additional).  Therefore, the development of a new methodology requires a significant amount of input from the scientific community and various stakeholders, including industry groups, NGOs, and the legal and environmental justice communities.  The process can be lengthy and will typically include an individual proponent or group that authors the draft methodology, the formation of a stakeholder working group that provides technical and legal review, and a public comment period.  In our experience, it is quite common for a methodology development effort to take at least 12 months and cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees to complete. 


Lessons Learned

The ClimeCo team has been involved in developing several project methodologies, either as an author/co-author or by serving on a working group.  Our experience ranges from methodologies focused on industrial gases, such as the destruction of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) and the abatement of nitrous oxide (N2O) from Nitric Acid and Adipic Acid production, to avoided methane emissions from organic waste composting and agricultural methane destruction.  We are also working with clients on the development of some new methodologies that hold significant promise.  Through all of this, we have learned that the process is best served by a collaborative and transparent effort between the project proponent and the registry that balances scientific integrity, conservativeness, and financial viability to ensure a robust, practical, and defensible methodology.


The Bottom Line

As companies continue to ratchet down on their GHG commitments, the voluntary carbon market is poised for significant growth.  Buyers in this market have become increasingly savvy; they are demanding more from the offset projects they support, including a sharper focus on those that align with their businesses and produce various co-benefits.  This opens opportunities for creative thinking and project innovation in areas that existing offset methodologies may not serve.  To maximize the potential for success, a project owner/proponent should align themselves with an experienced consultant like ClimeCo to guide them through this process.


About the Author

Dave Priddy is ClimeCo’s Vice President of Business Development.  He has more than 30 years of experience in the environmental management field and is responsible for the firm’s strategic market initiatives and the evaluation of new project opportunities.  David holds a B.S. in Engineering from the University of Louisiana, Lafayette.