Using palaeoecology to support blanket peatland management

泥炭地覆盖了世界表面的3%，但储存了高达30%的土壤碳，这比任何其他陆地储存的有机碳都多（教区等人，2008年）。在英国，覆盖泥炭地构成了最大的陆地碳储量（Cannell等人，1999年），占全球所有毯状泥炭地的10-15%。由于污染、过度放牧、人工排水和焚烧等多种原因，这些地点的退化（霍尔顿，2007年）以及随后对它们在碳储存、提供饮用水、可能的洪水管理和作为野生动物保护区方面的重要性的认识，导致了实施恢复计划的广泛尝试。恢复计划很少考虑到该地区以前的泥炭地开发历史。恢复意味着回到以前的某种更原始的状态，但如果不知道原始的原始状态，就不可能知道这样的目标是否已经实现。古生态学技术可以帮助我们了解泥炭地生态系统如何在数千年中发生变化，包括其植被和表面湿度的历史。它们提供了一种将泥炭地的现状置于背景中的方法，以便可以围绕“自然”泥炭地应该是什么样子的特定地点的证据进行修复（Chambers et al. 1999，Chambers & Daniell 2011）。然而，从业者很少要求或利用来自古生态分析的证据。通过与恢复机构密切合作，将突出古生态工作对指导恢复计划的好处。这种针对具体地点的方法可以提供更适当和更可实现的恢复目标。例如，泥炭藓种植是恢复时的标准做法，但有证据表明-尽管是重要的泥炭建造成分-英国毯状沼泽可能相对缺乏泥炭藓（Blundell和霍尔顿，2015）。据设想，该研究可以遵循两层方法，涉及i）现场分析和ii）基于实验室的显微镜工作。前者提供泥炭深度，泥炭藓和木炭的证据，将提供一个空间的角度来看，而后者通过主核心可以分析花粉，木炭，宏化石，有遗嘱的变形虫和腐殖化允许点特定的，但非常详细的重建网站的植被和水文发展和人为引起的变化。这项工作将寻求突出和对比人类对这些毯泥炭地网站在过去几个世纪的实质性影响，使目前的状态的非典型性质可以建立。通过AMS放射性碳测年法将寻求可靠的年表，但候选人可以探索其他补充技术。尽管该项目的主要目的是为泥炭地管理提供信息，但其他好处包括重建区域气候和环境变化（Blundell等人，2018年）。地层分析和泥炭深度也将允许详细的碳储存的具体地点的估计。该项目将向合作伙伴传播研究结果，并希望对修复实践产生更好的影响。

Peatlands cover 3% of the world's surface but store up to 30% of soil carbon, which is more organic carbon than any other terrestrial store (Parish et al., 2008). In the UK, blanket peatlands constitute the greatest terrestrial carbon reserves (Cannell et al., 1999) and represent up to 10-15% of all blanket peatlands worldwide. Degradation of these sites via numerous causes such as pollution, overgrazing, artificial drainage and burning (Holden, 2007) and a subsequent recognition of their importance in terms of carbon storage, provision of potable water, possible flood management and as areas for wildlife conservation have led to extensive attempts to implement restoration schemes.Although widespread in the UK, restoration schemes are rarely carried out with consideration of the location's previous history of peatland development. Restoration implies a return to some previous, more pristine state, but knowing whether such a goal has been achieved is not possible if that original, pristine state is not known. Palaeoecological techniques can help us to understand how peatland ecosystems have changed over thousands of years, including their vegetation and surface-wetness histories. They provide a means to contextualise the present state of the peatland so that restoration can be tailored around site-specific evidence of what a "natural" peatland should look like (Chambers et al. 1999, Chambers & Daniell 2011). However, evidence from palaeoecological analyses is rarely requested or utilised by practitioners. By cooperating closely with restoration agencies, the benefits of palaeoecological work to guide restoration plans will be highlighted. This site-specific approach can provide restoration goals that are more appropriate and achievable. For example, Sphagnum planting is a standard practice when restoration occurs but there is evidence that - although an important peat-building constituent - UK blanket bogs can be relatively devoid of Sphagnum (Blundell and Holden, 2015). It is envisaged that the study could follow a two-tier approach involving i) in-field analyses and ii) laboratory-based microscope work. The former providing peat depths, evidence of Sphagnum and charcoal, would supply a spatial perspective whereas the latter via master core could be analysed for pollen, charcoal, macrofossils, testate amoebae and humification allowing point specific but highly detailed reconstruction of the site's vegetation and hydrological development and human induced change. This work will seek to highlight and contrast the substantial influence of humans on these blanket peatland sites over the last few centuries so the atypical nature of the present state can be established. Robust chronologies would be sought via AMS radiocarbon dating but the candidate could explore other complementary techniques.Although a primary aim of the project will be to inform blanket peatland management, other benefits include reconstruction of regional climate and environmental change (Blundell et al., 2018). Stratigraphic analyses and peat depths would also permit detailed site-specific estimates of carbon storage. This project would disseminate findings to partners and hope to influence restoration practice for the better.