Abstract
overall aim of this project is to describe the potential threats to organic soils in England & Wales, estimate their likely magnitude, occurrence and impact and to indicate the policy and management implications of these future threats and impacts. Work will be done using internationally-renowned staff from three universities in collaboration with staff representing The National Trust and Yorkshire Water. Additional networks of existing stakeholders and projects that have collected data from these stakeholders have been developed by the project investigators and therefore add value to the project. The project will review existing research and management practice in order to assess the state of organic soils and their potential vulnerability to future management of climate change threats. The causes and types of organic soil degradation will be identified and prioritised for England and Wales. The functions of organic soils will be reviewed (including their role as stores of archaeological remains, biodversity, water, fertility and carbon). These functions will be assessed under different land management practices and geographical location. The project will also evaluate the relative importance of different types of organic soils for carbon stores and for potential particulate, dissolved and gaseous carbon loss under particular management and climate change scenarios. This information will then be used to provide a preliminary estimate (and prioritise the work required to more accurately estimate) of the potential carbon that could be removed from the atmosphere and stored by the soil and the reduction in carbon losses that could be possible through mitigation strategies. The project will also describe and evaluate techniques for determining the economic benefits of organic soil conservation and prioritise future research needs in this area and it will provide guidance on the most promising soil protection schemes in the UK.
United Kingdom