Enviro News Asia, Rome — Peatlands, one of the world’s most effective natural climate solutions, are gaining renewed attention as experts call for stronger protection and restoration efforts to combat climate change, safeguard water resources, and support biodiversity.
Marking World Peatlands Day on 2 June, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations emphasized that peatlands remain among the most undervalued ecosystems despite their enormous contribution to climate regulation and environmental security.
Peatlands—including bogs, fens, mires, and swamps—cover only about three to four percent of the Earth’s land surface but store approximately 30 percent of global soil carbon. Scientists estimate that peatlands contain between 450 and 650 gigatonnes of carbon, nearly twice the amount stored in all forest biomass worldwide.
Beyond their role as carbon reservoirs, healthy peatlands provide critical ecosystem services. They absorb excess rainfall, reduce flood risks, regulate water supplies during dry periods, cool surrounding landscapes, improve water quality, and support unique plant and animal species. Layers of peat also preserve valuable records of past climate conditions and environmental changes dating back thousands of years.
Despite their importance, peatlands are disappearing at an alarming rate. An estimated 12 percent of global peatlands have already been drained, degraded, or converted for agriculture, forestry, and peat extraction. Around 500,000 hectares continue to be lost annually due to various human activities.
Environmental experts warn that degraded peatlands have become a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. Peatland degradation is estimated to contribute up to four percent of global human-induced emissions, excluding emissions from peat fires.
The impacts extend beyond climate change. Drained peatlands lose their ability to regulate water, increasing vulnerability to floods and droughts. Scientists project that land subsidence caused by peat drainage could lead to uncontrolled flooding across 10 to 20 million hectares of productive land during this century.
As a founding member of both the Global Peatlands Initiative and the Peatland Breakthrough, FAO is working with international partners to strengthen peatland conservation and restoration efforts worldwide.
In the Congo Basin, one of the world’s largest terrestrial carbon reserves, FAO supports projects that promote peatland monitoring systems and sustainable livelihood programs. In Indonesia, which contains roughly one-third of the world’s tropical peatlands, a Green Climate Fund-supported initiative is advancing a Green Peatland Economy aimed at reducing emissions while improving community resilience.
Similar efforts are underway in Uganda and Rwanda through the Peat4People initiative, which promotes sustainable peatland management and paludiculture—the productive use of wet and rewetted peatlands that maintains ecosystem functions while supporting local livelihoods.
Meanwhile, a new project under development in South America seeks to conserve and restore mountain and Patagonian peatlands that play a vital role in water security for millions of people across the region.
According to FAO, protecting and restoring peatlands represents one of the most cost-effective climate actions available to governments. Experts argue that greater investment in peatland conservation can simultaneously support climate mitigation, adaptation, biodiversity protection, and sustainable development goals.
On World Peatlands Day, policymakers, institutions, and communities were urged to recognize peatlands not only as important ecosystems but also as essential allies in building a climate-resilient future. (*)
