The Global Peat Creep Partnership

Context Peatlands are the most efficient terrestrial carbon store on the planet and their management is a key part of global climate change mitigation strategies. Peat accumulates slowly due to an imbalance between production and decay of plant matter. Much of peat science is based on the assumption that peat accumulates vertically and doesn’t move. Peat forms deposits several meters deep, yet is a relatively weak material. Therefore, peat should slowly deform under the force exerted by its own weight and gravity. Such a slow, permanent deformation under prolonged stress is known as “creep”. Challenge The challenge for this project is that evidence of deformation compatible with creep behaviours, such as surface patterning, does exists - but is not interpreted as such. For example, changes in surface patterning over time tend to be explained by interactions between plants and water rather than creep. The two mechanisms are not mutually exclusive, but to acknowledge creep requires a profound change of perspective and open mindedness. It requires the development of a new way of thinking about peatland processes. We believe that creep is a potential missing component of our understanding of peatlands that needs to be assessed and integrated as appropriate in long-term management strategies. Aims and objectives Our new partnership aims to answer the question: to what extent does creep influence peatland evolution? With our new partnership, we bring together a multi-disciplinary team with a wide range of expertise from UK, Canada, Norway, USA and Chile to develop conceptual models and identify field- and landscape-scale observations of surface patterns and peat properties. The extent to which creep influences peatland evolution will be tested via the following preliminary hypotheses: [H1] Creep is related to surface patterning in a range of peatland types. [H2] The rate of peat creep is influenced by peatland type (e.g. sedge-dominated peat vs Sphagnum dominated peat), landscape setting (e.g. slope angle, peat depth), climate (e.g. with or without freeze-thaw cycles) and geological processes (e.g. isostatic rebound). [H3] Peat landslide is an extreme manifestation of creep. The partnership will be developed through an in person workshop within the first 6 months and complemented by dedicated field visits to the partners regions and regular online meetings, during which we will: Develop conceptual peat-creep models alongside regional experts in a range of global peatland types. Develop further testable hypotheses and agree on potential tests of these hypotheses, including the design of methods to directly measure rates of creep (e.g. bespoke field instrumentation, remote sensing). Review regional evidence in peer-reviewed, grey literature and field sites, including potential link between creep and landslide in the context of restoration and development. Produce a multilateral review paper. Build on this evidence to develop bilateral and multilateral proposals to address the hypotheses. Propose and organise a peat creep session at a major international conference Potential applications and benefits By developing global projects that can establish the circumstance under which creep-based processes matter, we will enable definitions of realistic management outcomes according to landscape position and state of peatland evolution. Our research therefore has the potential to establish methods that will allow restoration agencies to deploy management strategies more strategically and cost-effectively. Similarly, our research could support a better assessment of risks associated with schemes based on payments for carbon credits.