Uncertainty in Estimates of the Apparent Temperature Sensitivity of Peatland Dissolved Organic Carbon Fluxes under Changing Hydrologic Conditions

Peatlands cover ca. 3% of the land surface yet account for ca. 30% of the global soil carbon sink. As climate conditions are known to control carbon accumulation in peatlands, future projections of increased temperatures and decreased summer precipitation could alter peatland carbon fluxes by influencing the water table dynamics in these saturated soils. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is a small but significant peatland carbon flux that can alter the balance between net carbon sink or source. In spite of this importance, DOC fluxes are often overlooked in both measured and modelled estimates of peatland carbon budgets. Integration of DOC fluxes into peatland carbon models is hindered because limited data are available to quantify production rates and their sensitivity to changes in temperature and water table, particularly in comparison to carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes. The few data that exist are largely based on laboratory incubation experiments; and it is unclear whether these laboratory derived values are comparable with the apparent temperature sensitivities observed in the field. Here, we present new analysis of long-term monitoring data from a British peatland site (Moor House), where we estimate the apparent temperature sensitivity of net DOC production using observed DOC concentrations and soil temperatures and estimates of soil water content from a hydrological model. Our estimates take into account uncertainties from both the observational data and the hydrological model. Our aim is to determine whether our laboratory derived Q10 values of net DOC production of 1.84 under saturated and 3.53 under unsaturated conditions for this site are comparable with values derived from the field monitoring data. If correct, these Q10 values suggest that DOC fluxes could increase under warmer and drier conditions.