Cutover Peat Limits Methane Production Causing Low Emission at a Restored Peatland

Peatland degradation due to human activities is contributing to rising atmospheric CO₂ levels. Restoring the carbon (C) sink function in degraded peatlands and preventing further stored C losses is a key climate mitigation strategy, given the global scale of peatland disturbance. Active restoration involving a combination of rewetting and vegetation reestablishment at a post-extraction peatland in Canada has been shown to successfully re-establish net CO₂ uptake rates similar to undisturbed peatlands within a decade or two. However, lower than expected CH₄ emissions suggest recovery of belowground C cycling processes may lag behind the recovery of the surface net flux. Using closed chamber measurements over a warm season, we determined that restored Sphagnum, which covers two thirds of the site, was a null source of CH₄. Emissions from the restored site were primarily attributed to vascular plant substrate inputs, measured as acetate, and plant-mediated transport. The C isotopic fractionation factor for CH₄ and CO₂ in the pore water from the restored former peat field suggested reduced hydrogenotrophic CH₄ production deeper in the cutover peat profile (0.8 m depth). In contrast, isotopic fractionation in the former drainage ditches showed a balance of acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis deeper in the profile, indicative of some bulk peat C turnover. This study suggests that the legacy of substrate quality in the cutover peat can reduce the climate warming impact of newly restored peatlands through a reduction in CH₄ production and thus emission.