Christian Fritz

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Radboud University

Maintaining appropriate peatland hydration, particularly through the regulation of the depth to the water table (DWT), is crucial for peatland conservation, restoration, and the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. In this study, we assess the long-term ecological impact of hydrological changes, primarily induced by drainage, on ombrotrophic pea...

Large-scale drainage and cultivation of peat soils over the last centuries, occurring worldwide, have resulted in substantial CO2 emission and land subsidence caused by peat decomposition by microbial activity, shrinkage, and soil compaction. In addition, seasonal reversible vertical soil movement is caused by shrink and swell in the unsaturated zo...

Sphagnum-dominated peatlands play a vital role in carbon storage worldwide. However, large areas are strongly degraded due to land-use change. Success of Sphagnum introduction for bog restoration or paludiculture in former agricultural areas largely depends on local surface water for irrigation and to obtain stable water levels, especially during d...

Wastewater treatment plants significantly contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, including nitrous oxide (N2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and methane (CH4). Current methods to measure these emissions typically target specific molecular compounds, providing limited scope and potentially incomplete emissions profiles. Here, we show an innovative ultra-b...

Sphagnum mosses are vital to bog ecosystems and are, therefore, target species for peatland restoration and paludiculture. Their establishment relies on consistent wet conditions and adequate nutrient supply. However, extreme climatic events, such as prolonged droughts, threaten Sphagnum establishment. To better understand the effects of water tabl...

Wetscapes as sustainable future perspective for peatlands Peatlands are among the world’s most carbon-dense ecosystems and hotspots of carbon storage. Although peatland drainage causes strong greenhouse gas emissions, land subsidence and biodiversity loss, drainage-based agriculture and forestry on peatland are common. To maintain and restore thei...

Spaghnum paludiculture: a springboard to sustainable peatlands? Drained peatlands emit large amounts of greenhouse gases and cause downstream nutrient pollution. Rewetting aids in restoring carbon storage and sustaining the unique biodiversity of peatlands. However, rewetting for nature restoration is not always socio-economically feasible. As an a...

Rewetting peatlands is required to limit carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, however, raising the groundwater level (GWL) will strongly increase the chance of methane (CH4) emissions which has a higher radiative forcing than CO2. Data sets of CH4 from different rewetting strategies and natural systems are scarce, and quantification and an understanding...

Introduction Drainage for agricultural purposes is one of the main drivers of peatland degradation, leading to significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, biodiversity loss, and soil eutrophication. Rewetting is a potential solution to restore peatlands, but it generally requires a land-use shift to paludiculture or nature areas. Methods This stud...

Effecten van natuurherstel op de broeikasgasbalans van natuurgebieden-Een eerste stap richting kengetallen samen werken aan natuurherstel

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from drained peatlands in the European Union (EU) significantly contribute to the total EU anthropogenic GHG emissions (6%). The lack of high-resolution spatial data in national monitoring systems hampers effective mitigation planning. We present detailed maps of land use, GHG emissions, and emission hotspots for EU p...

The national effort on climate adaptation and mitigation is demanding more and more from water and nature management. In recent decades research has increasingly focused on this topic on a national and international scale, but the issues remain complex. Knowledge about water quantity, water quality and water management is essential to understand ef...

Large-scale drainage and cultivation of peat soils over the last centuries, occurring worldwide, has resulted in substantial CO2 emission and land subsidence caused by peat decomposition by microbial activity, shrinkage and soil compaction. In addition, seasonal reversible vertical soil movement is caused by shrink and swell in the unsaturated zone...

The EU Nature Restoration Law (NRL) is critical for the restoration of degraded ecosystems and active afforestation of degraded peatlands has been suggested as a restoration measure under the NRL. Here, we discuss the current state of scientific evidence on the climate mitigation effects of peatlands under forestry. Afforestation of drained peatlan...

Peatlands are increasingly prone to climate extremes, such as drought, with long-lasting effects on plant and soil communities and, thus, on C cycling. Unveiling past tipping points is a prerequisite for understanding how individual plant species and entire ecosystems respond to future climate changes. Across Europe, however, vast areas of peatland...

Peatlands store vast amounts of carbon (C). However, land-use-driven drainage causes peat oxidation, resulting in CO2 emission. There is a growing need for ground-truthing CO2 emission and its potential drivers to better quantify long-term emission trends in peatlands. This will help improve National Inventory Reporting and ultimately aid the desig...

Restoration of drained peatlands through rewetting has recently emerged as a prevailing strategy to mitigate excessive greenhouse gas emissions and re-establish the vital carbon sequestration capacity of peatlands. Rewetting can help to restore vegetation communities and biodiversity, while still allowing for extensive agricultural management such...

Peat is interesting; it is verywet andmade fromold plants and animals breaking down very slowly. Even though peatlands are just 3% of the land, they lock away 30% of Earth’s carbon. But sometimes people mess things up by draining the peatlands and digging up the peat, which releases carbon into the atmosphere and contributes to the warming of our p...

Vernatting vormt de basis voor ‘nature-based solutions’ in het veenweidegebied. In dit artikel worden koppelkansen en dilemma’s besproken tussen gewasproductie op natte veenbodems en andere ecosysteemdiensten, zoals klimaatmitigatie, klimaatadaptatie, biodiversiteit en zuivering van water en bodem.

Rewetting drained agricultural peatlands aids in restoring their original ecosystem functions, including carbon storage and sustaining unique biodiversity. 30–60 cm of topsoil removal (TSR) before rewetting for Sphagnum establishment is a common practice to reduce nutrient concentrations and greenhouse gas emissions, and increase water conductivity...

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from drained peatlands have been studied extensively. Considerably less attention has been paid to the emissions from the ditches used to drain peatlands. High within‐ditch GHG production and lateral inflow of GHGs may lead to ditches emitting considerable amounts of GHGs on the landscape scale. We quantified annual e...

Drained peatlands emit large amounts of greenhouse gases and cause downstream nutrient pollution. Rewetting aids in restoring carbon storage and sustaining unique biodiversity. However, rewetting for nature restoration is socio-economically not always feasible. Cultivation of Sphagnum biomass after rewetting allows agricultural production. In the s...

Peatlands are among the world's most carbon-dense ecosystems and hotspots of carbon storage. Although peatland drainage causes strong carbon emissions, land subsidence, fires and biodiversity loss, drainage-based agriculture and forestry on peatland is still expanding on a global scale. To maintain and restore their vital carbon sequestration and s...

• Peatland degradation through drainage and peat extraction have detrimental environmental and societal consequences. Rewetting is an option to restore lost ecosystem functions, such as carbon storage, biodiversity and nutrient sequestration. Peat mosses (Sphagnum) are the most important peat-forming species in bogs. Most Sphagnum species occur in...

Majority of Dutch peatlands are drained and used intensively as grasslands for dairy farming. This delivers high productivity but causes severe damage to ecosystem services supply. Peatland rewetting is the best way to reverse the damage, but high water levels do not fit with intensive dairy production. Paludiculture, defined as crop production und...

Topsoil removal (TSR) is a management option performed before rewetting drained agricultural peatlands to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and remove nutrients. Currently, its common practice to remove 30 to 60 cm of topsoil, which is labor-intensive, costly, and highly disruptive. However, optimal TSR depth for mitigating carbon emissions fro...

Growing productive wetland species on rewetted peatland (paludiculture) is a promising solution to offset carbon loss from drained peatlands. The inlet of nitrogen (N) rich surface water, a proposed method to improve productivity of vegetation, may affect methane (CH4) emissions. This study aims to compare initial CH4 emissions from newly rewetted...

Background Cereal cultivars vary in root traits, and it can be proposed that wild forms and old cultivars are more adapted to using organic nitrogen (N) sources. Aims Investigating N uptake from cover crop (CC) rhizodeposits by wheat and barley of different domestication level and their wild relatives, we expected a more efficient N uptake by wild...

The majority of Dutch peatlands are drained and used intensively as grasslands for dairy farming. This delivers high productivity but causes severe damage to the provisioning of ecosystem services. Peatland rewetting is the best way to reverse the damage, but high water levels do not fit with intensive dairy production. Paludiculture, defined as cr...

The aim of this document is to outline the preliminary requirements and steps needed to fully establish frameworks for certification systems across Europe, specifically to support and incentivize the restoration of peatlands and to provide a framework for reducing GHG emissions from degraded and mismanaged peatlands on a large scale. This will ensu...

Biogeomorphic wetlands cover 1% of Earth’s surface but store 20% of ecosystem organic carbon. This disproportional share is fueled by high carbon sequestration rates and effective storage in peatlands, mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrass meadows, which greatly exceed those of oceanic and forest ecosystems. Here, we review how feedbacks between ge...

Estimating annual CO2 budgets on drained peatlands is important in understanding the significance of CO2 emissions from peatland degradation and evaluating the effectiveness of mitigation techniques. The closed-chamber technique is widely used in combination with gap-filling of CO2 fluxes by parameter fitting empirical models of ecosystem respirati...

Purpose Paludiculture (crop cultivation in wet peatlands) can prevent carbon and nutrient losses while enabling biomass production. As vegetation in rewetted peatlands is often nitrogen (N) limited, input of N-rich water may promote biomass production and nutrient removal. However, it is unclear how N loading and soil characteristics affect biomass...

Growth and functioning of Sphagnum mosses are closely linked to water level and chemistry. Sphagnum mosses occur in wet, generally acidic conditions, and when buffered, alkaline water is known to negatively impact Sphagnum . The effects of time, dose and species‐specific responses of buffered, alkaline water on Sphagnum are largely unknown. We inve...

Veenbodems vormen de bakermat van Nederland. Met name wateronttrekking heeft sinds de middeleeuwen gezorgd voor een enorme bodemdaling. Tegenwoordig leidt dit tot een kostenpost van vele honderden miljoenen per jaar en een enorme uitstoot van CO2 en andere broeikasgassen. Water speelt nu een rol van betekenis in het stoppen en omkeren van de desast...

Effects of restoration management on peatlands formerly used for intensive agriculture are rarely evaluated or discussed over larger spatial and temporal scales. Here, restoration of the Drentsche Aa brook valley was evaluated at the landscape-level. Detailed vegetation maps were used with 1982 serving as the baseline, 1994 representing vegetation...

Purpose Paludiculture (crop cultivation in wet peatlands) can prevent carbon and nutrient losses while enabling biomass production. As vegetation in rewetted peatlands is often nitrogen (N) limited, input of N rich water may promote biomass production and nutrient removal. However, it is unclear how N loading and soil characteristics affect biomass...

The focus of current water management in drained peatlands is to facilitate optimal drainage, which has led to soil subsidence and a strong increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Dutch land and water authorities proposed the application of subsoil irrigation (SSI) system on a large scale to potentially reduce GHG emissions, while maintaini...

Concentration of microcystin variants (dmRR, RR, YR, dmLR, LR, LY, LW, LF), nodularin (NOD) and total microcystin concentrations (µg L-1) at various locations in the Prespa Lakes in Greece during 2012-2014.

The Prespa Lakes area in Greece—comprised partly of lake Great and lake Lesser Prespa and the Vromolimni pond—has a global importance for biodiversity. Although the waters show regular cyanobacteria blooms, assessments of water quality threats are limited. Samples collected in 2012 revealed scattered and low microcystin (MC) concentrations in Great...

Current water management in drained peatlands to facilitate agricultural use, leads to soil subsidence and strongly increases greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. High-density, sub-soil irrigation/drainage systems have been proposed as a potential climate mitigation measure, while maintaining high biomass production. In summer, sub-soil irrigation can po...

Paludiculture, sustainable and climate-smart land use of formerly drained, rewetted organic soils, can produce significant biomass in peatlands whilst potentially restoring several additional wetland services. However, the site conditions that allow maximum biomass production and nutrient removal by paludiculture crops have rarely been studied. We...

The agricultural use of drained peatlands leads to huge emissions of greenhouse gases and nutrients. A land-use alternative that allows rewetting of drained peatland while maintaining agricultural production is the cultivation of Sphagnum biomass as a renewable substitute for fossil peat in horticultural growing media (Sphagnum farming). We studied...

_______________________________________________________________________________________ SUMMARY Rewetting can effectively reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from drained peatlands. Reliable emissions estimation approaches are needed for accounting of such reductions and for evaluating the potential in terms of carbon credits. Annual mean water l...

Biological nitrogen (N) fixation is an important process supporting primary production in ecosystems, especially in those where N availability is limiting growth, such as peatlands and boreal forests. In many peatlands, peat mosses (genus Sphagnum) are the prime ecosystem engineers, and like feather mosses in boreal forests, they are associated wit...

https://www.b-ware.eu/sites/default/files/publicaties/LBF-69-01-2_PP_Geurts_et_al_121220.pdf

The percolation and sloping mires near Brunssum (Southern Limburg), which are the remnants of a former extended mire complex, are characterized by the discharge and through flow of relatively base-poor groundwater. They are characterized by a high abundance of rheophilous species, comparable to lagg zones of intact raised bog landscapes. Despite th...

Sphagnum mosses are poikilohydric bryophytes, i.e. dependent on nearly-constant wet conditions. Exposure to mineral-enriched water has long been recognised as a threat to Sphagnum mosses and a driver of niche formation. Atrophy of Sphagnum is currently attributed to high pH in combination with high calcium concentration. Because the natural occurre...

Mires and peatlands in general are heavily influenced by anthropogenic stressors like acidification, eutrophication, desiccation and fragmentation. Groundwater-fed mires are, in contrast to rainwater-fed mires, often well protected against desiccation due to constant groundwater discharge. Groundwater-fed mires can however be influenced by groundwa...

The use of drained peatlands as dairy grasslands leads to long-term organic matter losses, CO2 emissions and soil subsidence. It also yields grass with increased N and P contents compared to grass grown on mineral soils due to peat mineralisation, which often leads to greater farm surpluses of these elements. Growing Typha latifolia as a forage cro...

Paludiculture, the cultivation of crops on wet or rewetted agricultural peatlands, sustainably integrates productive land use with the provision of multiple ecosystem services. Paludiculture crops thrive under waterlogged conditions that stimulate nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) removal from soil and water and convert serious drainage-induced carbo...

With the current risks caused by sea level rise and increased extreme weather events, the study of natural coastal systems has never been more important. Erosion and anthropogenic forcing led to disappeared of the majority of coastal bogs in Europe. Here, we report on case study of a unique bog remnant still under influence by seawater which floats...

_______________________________________________________________________________________ SUMMARY Sphagnum farming-the production of Sphagnum biomass on rewetted bogs-helps towards achieving global climate goals by halting greenhouse gas emissions from drained peat and by replacing peat with a renewable biomass alternative. Large-scale implementation...

As a result of altered land use, water shortage and eutrophication, aquatic and semi-aquatic biodiversity in minerotrophic peatlands has severely declined in The Netherlands. After the improvement of surface water quality following hydrological and other measures, biodiversity is now increasing again in many reserves including former peat extractio...

In this report, an overview of existing and future paludiculture pilots is given, with the main focus on Dutch pilots with Typha and Phragmites. The most important experiences and results from these pilots are presented and information is given about the experimental setting, species and plant parts used, planting density and method, soil type, soi...

Deterioration and restoration of minerotrophic waters in the Dutch peat landscape As a result of altered land use, water shortage and eu- trophication, aquatic and semi-aquatic biodiversi- ty in minerotrophic peatlands has severely declined in The Netherlands. After the improvement of surface water quality following hydrological and other meas- ur...

Background and aims Catch crops (CC) reduce nitrate leaching, and may resolve a major concern in nitrogen (N) intensive agriculture. CC efficiency depends on N uptake ability, which is related to root development, biomass partitioning, and competition with soil microbes. We investigated the effect of N addition on this with three CC species. Metho...

As a result of altered land use, water shortage and eutrophication, aquatic and semi-aquatic biodiversity in minerotrophic peatlands has severely declined in The Netherlands. After the improvement of surface water quality following hydrological and other measures, biodiversity is now increasing again in many reserves including former peat extractio...

Door natte teelten (paludicultuur) in veenweidepolders kan een productief landschap gekoppeld worden aan groenblauwe diensten. Paludicultuur met lisdodde of riet kan op verschillende manieren bijdragen aan de verbetering van de kwaliteit van het oppervlaktewater, vooral door snelle opname van nutriënten en de daaropvolgende afvoer van biomassa. Doo...

Pristine bogs, peatlands in which vegetation is exclusively fed by rainwater (ombrotrophic), typically have a low atmospheric deposition of reactive nitrogen (N) (<0.5kgha(-1)y(-1)). An important additional N source is N2 fixation by symbiotic microorganisms (diazotrophs) in peat and mosses. Although the effects of increased total airborne N by ant...

Background and aimsOne means of reducing nitrate leaching in temperate farming is to include catch crops in crop rotations, which immobilize residual nitrogen (N) in their biomass. For an accurate quantification of the N stored in catch crops and subsequently released from residues, their total biomass, including roots and rhizodeposits has to be a...

Research rationale: Groundwater-fed fens are known sources of methane (CH4 ) emissions to the atmosphere, but these are known to be mediated by vegetation. In a fen located in the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia, we assessed the effects of a cushion plant (Eriocaulon schimperi) and a sedge species (Carex monostachya) on rhizosphere biogeochemistry. Cent...

Bodemdaling in veenweidegebieden en aangrenzende moerige gron- den stelt ons voor een grote geofysische en milieutechnische uitda- ging. Op Europese schaal wordt bodemdaling in veengebieden voor- komen door peilverhoging, waar maatschappelijke kosten door CO2-emissies, verlies aan waterveiligheid en stikstofverliezen de baten niet meer kunnen compe...

In pristine Sphagnum-dominated peatlands, (di)nitrogen (N2) fixing (diazotrophic) microbial communities associated with Sphagnum mosses contribute substantially to the total nitrogen input, increasing carbon sequestration. The rates of symbiotic nitrogen fixation reported for Sphagnum peatlands, are, however, highly variable, and experimental work...

AimsPhosphorus (P) is frequently limiting crop production in agroecosystems. Large progress was achieved in understanding root traits associated with P acquisition efficiency (PAE, i.e. P uptake achieved under low P conditions). Most former studies were performed in controlled environments, and avoided the complexity of soil-root interactions. This...

Large areas of peatlands have worldwide been drained to facilitate agriculture, which has adverse effects on the environment and the global climate. Agriculture on rewetted peatlands (paludiculture) provides a sustainable alternative to drainage-based agriculture. One form of paludiculture is the cultivation of Sphagnum moss, which can be used as a...

In pristine Sphagnum dominated peatlands, (di)nitrogen (N2) fixing (diazotrophic) microbial communities associated with Sphagnum mosses contribute substantially to the total nitrogen input, increasing carbon sequestration. The rates of symbiotic nitrogen fixation reported for Sphagnum peatlands, are, however, highly variable and experimental work o...

Background and aims In pristine ombrotrophic Sphagnum-dominated peatland ecosystems nitrogen (N) is often a limiting nutrient, which is replenished by biological N2 fixation and atmospheric N deposition. It is, however, unclear which impact long-term N deposition has on microbial N2 fixing activity and diazotrophic diversity, and whether phosphorus...

Calcareous mires are peat forming systems fed by calcareous groundwater that regularly deposit travertine (CaCO3) on the soil surface or in small pools that are present in such mires. At present almost all calcareous mires in Poland are degraded, most often by land use, which has led to disturbances in local hydrological systems. An experiment was...

In March 2013 we investigated two small peatlands in the Bale Mountains in central Ethiopia. The mires are located on the Sanetti Plateau at an altitude of approximately 4000 metres above mean sea level (a.m.s.l.). Their vegetation is dominated by tussocky Carex species and locally also by a cushion plant Eriocaulon schimperi, which occurs elsewher...

_______________________________________________________________________________________ SUMMARY In 2007, a field visit by members of the International Mire Conservation Group (IMCG) to the Atlantic coast of Peninsula Mitre (the easternmost part of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, Argentina) gathered information on mire diversity in this remote wild...

Southern Hemisphere peatlands store substantial amounts of soil carbon. Despite their importance in the global carbon cycle, little is known about decomposition processes and the associated fungal diversity. The present study describes the composition of fungal assemblage in two depths from a cushion peatland of predominating Astelia (Asteliaceae)...

Peat forming Sphagnum mosses are able to prevent the dominance of vascular plants under ombrotrophic conditions by efficiently scavenging atmospherically deposited nitrogen (N). N-uptake kinetics of these mosses are therefore expected to play a key role in differential N availability, plant competition, and carbon sequestration in Sphagnum peatland...