Mining atmospheric CO2: Assessing the efficacy of novel carbon sequestration strategies in smelter damaged ecosystems to achieve net zero GHG emissions

安大略萨德伯里是世界上最大的金属采矿中心之一，历史上一直是全球最大的二氧化硫和金属颗粒污染源。通过大萨德伯里市的绿化计划（其中淡水河谷加拿大有限公司是一个重要的贡献者），生态系统复垦是一个突出的目标。绿化计划有大量的证据，为行业、地方、国家和全球团体的规划和应用提供了依据。到2050年，城市和淡水河谷都有一个净零碳（C）的新目标。为了实现这一目标，需要采取一种综合的工业排放、能源系统和生态系统管理方法，这一方法已在该市的社区能源和排放计划中得到强调。虽然在区域范围内有超过30，000公顷的森林被重新造林，估计有500，000毫克的C被隔离，但在这一景观中，约有6，000公顷的泥炭地是目前和潜在的C储存。然而，这些泥炭地中的许多都被数十年的冶炼遗留工业排放污染，导致功能退化和约100年的螯合碳损失。值得注意的是，驱动碳净固存的基石泥炭藓（Sphagnum）“泥炭藓”不能忍受高水平的金属或硫。这些通常的碳螯合发电厂不再作为大气中的碳汇在这个污染的景观，有没有目前的方法来恢复受污染的泥炭地。复杂的碳存储潜力的景观是石灰的应用程序中的高地重新造林，进一步破坏功能的天然酸性泥炭地。高地石灰对固碳的影响，无论是无意中直接应用飞机或通过径流，是未知的，但可能会阻碍固碳，并降低了弹性的大残留碳库存。我们的目标是开发新的泥炭地恢复技术，以解决工业污染和石灰的影响，并确定修改高地绿化的努力，以提高景观固碳潜力。这些信息对于在该地区以及加拿大和全球受采矿影响的景观中实现净零碳至关重要。

Sudbury, Ontario is one of the world's largest metal mining centres, and historically has been the largest global point source of sulphur dioxide and metal particulate pollution. Through the City of Greater Sudbury's Regreening Program (of which Vale Canada LTD is an important contributor), ecosystem reclamation is a prominent goal. The Regreening Program has substantial evidence informed planning and application by industry, local, national, and global groups. Both the City and Vale have a new goal of net zero carbon (C) by 2050. To achieve this, an integrated industrial emission, energy systems and ecosystem management approach is needed that has been highlighted in the City's Community Energy and Emissions Plan. While regionally over 30,000 ha have been reforested, sequestering an estimated 500,000 Mg of C, there are ~6,000 ha of peatlands that are the densest current and potential C store in this landscape. Yet, many of these peatlands are contaminated with decades of legacy industrial emissions from smelting resulting in degraded functionality and a loss of ~100 years of sequestered C. Notably the keystone Sphagnum "peat mosses" that drive net C sequestration cannot tolerate high levels of metals or sulphur. These normally C-sequestering powerhouses are no longer operating as atmospheric C sinks in this contaminated landscape and there are no current methods to restore contaminated peatlands. Complicating the C storage potential of this landscape is the application of lime to the uplands during reforestation that further disrupts functioning of the naturally acidic peatlands. The impact of upland liming on C sequestration, whether as inadvertent direct application by aircraft or through runoff, is unknown but likely impedes C sequestration and reduces the resiliency of large residual C stocks. We aim to develop novel peatland restoration techniques to address the impacts of industrial contamination and liming and determine modifications to upland regreening efforts to enhance landscape C sequestration potential. This information will be critical to achieve net zero C within the region, and broadly in Canadian and global mining-impacted landscapes.