Peatland ecosystems are globally important carbon stores. Disturbances, such as drainage and climate drying, act to lower peatland water table depths, consequently enhancing soil organic matter decomposition, mineralization and subsidence rates. Using our own annually measured fluxes of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and globally synthesized annual GHGs from peatlands, we find that the water table decline (due to anthropogenic drainage or climate drying) significantly reduces net CO₂ uptake across Tibetan peatlands to global peatlands, while substantially increases N₂O emissions. We also find that the water table decline stimulated heterotrophic, rather than autotrophic, soil respiration, which was associated with an increase in subsidence rate. This relationship held across different climate zones and land uses. We find that 81% of the total annual soil respiration for all drained peatlands was attributable to tropical peatlands drained for agriculture and forestry and temperate peatlands drained for agriculture. Globally, we estimate that, drained peatlands release 645 Mt C yr^–1 (401–1025 Mt C yr^–1) through soil respiration, equivalent to approximately 5% of global annual anthropogenic carbon emissions. Our findings highlight the importance of conserving pristine peatlands to help mitigate climate change.

Peatland,anthropogenic activity,greenhouse gas,subsidence