Irish grasslands may assist in addressing climate change
For the full report please visit the EPA website
Date released: Aug 05 2009, 10:45 AM
Irish grasslands are potentially an important sink for carbon dioxide, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) research report Celticflux published today.
Carbon dioxide is the most important greenhouse gas (GHG) considered to be causing climate change. Policy makers worldwide are working to achieve an international agreement to reduce GHG emissions under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Kyoto Protocol.
The report results are based on analysis of intensive measurements, carried out by University College Cork and Teagasc over a five-year period, at sites in the south-east and south-west of the country. The report indicates that grasslands can take up between 11 tonnes and 18 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the air, per hectare per year.
The work was largely carried out at grassland sites in County Cork and County Wexford. The study also included a natural peatland site in Co Kerry, which was shown to be a small sink for carbon dioxide(CO2). The EPA has also funded studies on croplands, which will be published shortly.
Most of the carbon dioxide is recycled as animal feed but it is estimated that 10 to 15 per cent of the carbon is sequestered into the soil, where it can reside for much longer time periods, with a positive environmental benefit.
Commenting on the report, EPA Director Laura Burke said:
“These are important results from research which the EPA has funded. Grassland is the dominant land use in Ireland and these results show that management of Irish grassland can have an important role in addressing climate change”
Laura Burke continued:
“The outcome of this research is an important step-up in our understanding. Ireland has more than three million hectares of managed grassland. If this result were replicated across this area it would amount to a considerable sink. However, some other land uses are likely to be a source of carbon dioxide so a simple scaling up of these data can be misleading. Overall, the main message is positive and we need to use these results to inform decisions on the future use of grassland and other land.”
The EPA is working with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government; the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and others on assessment of how best to account for these results in the context of future development of national actions on climate change.
Frank McGovern, Senior Scientific Officer, EPA said:
“These are complex issues and we need to insure that their full scope is understood when decisions are being made on land use and management and particularly in accounting for these under future actions on climate change. These issues are being considered at EU and UN levels.”
These results need to be cross-checked and other land and soil types explored, along with land management regimes. A better understanding of the dynamics of soil carbon as well as future climate conditions that will impact on soil is also a requirement. This work is a key part of the current EPA research programme.
Addressing climate change is the key challenge of this century. There is no one solution, but the EPA considers that land management is one of the tools that could be used. This work helps to inform our thinking in the context of the various, and sometimes competing, demands. A holistic assessment is required to identify the best pathway to achieve climate objectives as well as economic and sustainability goals.