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

安大略省萨德伯里是世界上最大的金属开采中心之一，历史上一直是全球最大的二氧化硫和金属微粒污染源。通过大萨德伯里市的绿化计划(淡水河谷加拿大有限公司是其中的重要贡献者)，生态系统重建是一个突出的目标。绿化计划有充分的证据表明，行业、地方、国家和全球团体都在知情的规划和应用。伦敦金融城和淡水河谷都制定了到2050年实现净零碳(C)的新目标。为了实现这一目标，需要一种综合的工业排放、能源系统和生态系统管理方法，这在该市的社区能源和排放计划中得到了强调。虽然在区域范围内已有超过30,000公顷的土地重新造林，估计隔离了500,000毫克的碳，但大约有6,000公顷的泥炭地是这片土地上当前和潜在的碳储量最密集的地方。然而，其中许多泥炭地受到数十年冶炼遗留工业排放的污染，导致功能退化，并损失了约100年的碳封存。这些通常封存碳的发电站不再作为大气中的碳汇在这片受污染的土地上运行，目前也没有恢复受污染的泥炭地的方法。使这一景观的碳储存潜力变得复杂的是，在重新造林期间向高地应用石灰，进一步扰乱了天然酸性泥炭地的功能。旱地石灰对碳的固存的影响，无论是无意中通过飞机直接使用还是通过径流，都是未知的，但可能会阻碍碳的固存，并降低大量剩余碳储量的弹性。我们的目标是开发新的泥炭地恢复技术，以应对工业污染和石灰污染的影响，并确定对旱地绿化努力的修改，以增强景观C的固定潜力。这些信息对于在该区域内实现净零C至关重要，在加拿大和全球受采矿影响的地区也是如此。

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.