In Noyabrsk scientists discussed significance of mires in climate change

The fifth international symposium “West Siberian Peatlands and Carbon Cycle: past and present” and the international conference “Carbon Balance of Western Siberian Mires in the Context of Climate Change” took place in Noyabrsk. Its delegates completed their work on the 28th of June.
Basically the forum takes place in Yugra, once – in Novosibirsk, but after study of swamps and water bodies in Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug the delegates moved to Yamal.
The program of the conference includes field excursions to Konda Lakes Nature Park and palsa mires near Noyabrsk. Mires take about a half of the area of the West Siberian plain. These ecological systems play a great role in support of biological diversity and in climate change.
According to the information given to a correspondent of the news agency “Sever-Press” in Yugra State University, on the symposium within the intergovernmental group of experts on climate change a laureate of the Nobel Prize, a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, professor of Sheffield University (Great Britain) Terry Callagan read the lecture on challenges that scientists face in understanding of climate change influence on northern ecosystems. As he notes, mires are precious resource for the whole planet.
Mires are an important source of greenhouse gas that causes the global warming. For example, peatlands contain 500 gigatons of carbon: it is two times more than the whole biomass of forests on the planet accumulates. Scientists discussed issues of protection and restoration of mires and wetlands, introduction of modern technologies of careful nature management and modeling of processes of peat accumulation in the context of global climate change.