A SCOTS nature agency has announced the first-ever flux tower to measure greenhouse gases in the Scotland’s south has been installed.
The South of Scotland is joining a network of flux towers across the country that allows greenhouse gases to be measured at the land changes from commercial forestry crops to restored peatland.
Peatlands are recognized as vital carbon stores and are the largest terrestrial store of carbon in the UK.
The tower is 14-metres tall and is the first to be installed in the South of Scotland.
The tower sits within a commercial forestry crop planted upon peat soil 24 years ago.
The tower will measure carbon dioxide and methane from the site as the trees grow to see how emissions change as the land is restored.
Greenhouse gases have increased due to human activity since the industrial revolution, which NatureScot said is causing the climate crisis.
NatureScot Peatland ACTION along with the South of Scotland Enterprise is funding the tower and hopes the information from it will fill critical gaps in the understanding of greenhouse gas emissions from peatlands in different conditions.
Chris Boyce, from NatureScot’s Peatland ACTION Data and Evidence Team, said: “We are delighted to be funding such an important and ground-breaking addition to Scotland’s flux tower network.
“The data will help inform the Peatland ACTION Programme on the effectiveness of peatland restoration measures and how to best manage existing peatland carbon stores in the future.
“Installing the tower is a major milestone and follows years of close collaboration across organisations.
“It’s fantastic to be moving into the next phase of the project and starting to generate results.”
The nature agency is working in collaboration with the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), the Crichton Carbon Centre, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) and The James Hutton Institute.
Dr Emily Taylor, General Manager for the Crichton Carbon Centre, the lead partner of the project, said: “It’s a really exciting project and the first of its kind in the South of Scotland.
“To be part of an international network of similar monitoring stations will hugely benefit our understanding of emissions from peatlands under forestry and then subsequently restored and is a step forward in evidencing how we can reach our net zero ambitions.
“This project has been many years in the making and we’re committed to taking on the management of the project and developing this exciting research partnership.
“We hope this tower and research partnership will provide further opportunities for researchers and projects in the South of Scotland.”
NatureScot said the way in which Scotland’s land stores or releases these gases is key to reducing carbon emissions.
The tower is expected to put Scotland at the forefront of understanding peatland restoration including how forests impact deep peat.
Ed Turner, FLS Planning Manager, said: “The site is part of an extensive lowland raised bog. The trees on this site were planted a quarter of a century ago when the understanding of trees’ impact on peatland sites was not as developed as it is today.
“The location of the flux tower is significant in that it will allow greenhouse gas emissions to be measured above the canopy of a maturing second rotation Sitka spruce and lodgepole pine conifer plantation on deep peat.
“This new flux tower will help to further develop our understanding of this extremely complex area and help refine the approach to managing land to best effect.
“Once the trees on this site are felled for timber next decade, there will be no further replanting and the area will be restored to open peatland habitat.”
It is set to provide critical information for the Scottish Government towards its ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2045.
The national network of towers in Scotland (SCO2FLUX) will take data from the tower’s instrumentation and be shared with stakeholders involved in peatland restoration and forestry management.
Dr Carole Helfter, environmental physicist from UKCEH, said: “If we are to meet net zero targets, we need to be able to quantify the land’s capacity to sequester carbon and to understand the control mechanisms of greenhouse gas emissions.
“Adding this project to the flux tower network – designed to help us understand the fundamental drivers for climate change – will give us added clues to that complex puzzle.”
Dr Mhairi Coyle, greenhouse gas and carbon dynamics researcher from The James Hutton Institute, added: “What makes this project so exciting is that, while the equipment will measure carbon dioxide exchange as well as the usual meteorological data, it is also the first tower on forested deep peat measuring landscape-scale methane exchange.
“Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, and this research will provide additional insights into land management practices that minimise its emission.”
