Soil CO2 flux from tropical peatland under different land clearing techniques

M. Zulkefli, L.K.C. Liza Nuriati and A.B. Ismail

Abstract

Measurement of CO₂ flux was carried out at five sites at MARDI Peat Research Station in Sessang, Sarawak. The sites represented four different types of land clearing technique namely felling and burning (FB), felling and stacking-outside the plot (FSO), felling, stacking and chipping (FSC), and selective clearing (SC). The CO₂ flux was measured using static chamber method connected to a portable CO₂ infrared gas analyser. Soil CO₂–C flux exhibited diurnal pattern with peak rates as high as 950 mg m-2 h-1 occurred during the mid afternoon (1100–1300). Emission of CO₂ was highly correlated with soil temperature (r2 = 0.86) and water table (r2 = 0.63). Annual CO₂ flux from the peat soil surface varies significantly among land clearing techniques. The highest estimated annual carbon loss as CO₂ emission was 48.3 t/ha/year under FB area. The FSO and FSC land clearing methods significantly reduced the emission of CO₂ with the estimated C loss around 33 t/ha/year. Annual emissions of CO₂ from SC are lower compared to other land clearing techniques. There were no significant differences between the annual CO₂ flux from SC and undisturbed forest.

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