Northern peatlands have accumulated a carbon pool of approximately 455 to 547 GtC, and they can make significant contributions to national carbon fluxes. Ireland is an example of a northern latitude country where peatlands are of significance for carbon management. Peatlands in Ireland cover ~20% of the Country and contain between 53 % and 62 % of the national soil carbon (C) stock. Many peatlands throughout the country have been and are currently disturbed. Peatland disturbance impacts on the resource?s ability to sequester C. It is essential that disturbance of peatlands be examined and quantified in order to manage this critical C resource. In this project high and medium resolution satellite imagery along with ground data was used to develop a method to determine the extent of disturbance on the peatland C stock. A definition of peatland disturbance was created and a framework for the classification of disturbance was developed.
The extent of Irish peatlands, in the satellite data, was delineated using the Derived Irish Peat Map version 2. An object-oriented approach was the used with the medium- (IRS) and high-resolution (Geoeye-1 and Ikonos) satellite imagery. This method resulted in maps that depict the spatial extent of peatland disturbance. Several disturbance types identified including ?peatland converted to pasture?, ?afforestation?, ?drainage?, ?cutover and cutaway peatlands?. Ideally, high spatial resolution (>4m) satellite data would be used however, it was not available countrywide. Medium resolution imagery (IRS) was thus used to examine peatland disturbance over large areas. However, where high resolution data was available the accuracy of the disturbance maps improved. The overall accuracy assessment for the disturbance maps was between 62% and 90%. This method allows for the extent and severity of disturbance to be identified, which is a critical issue for quantification and security of the peatland carbon stock. This research will enable policymakers to identify the extent of peatland and thus carbon stock disturbance in Ireland and aid selection of peatlands that may require management intervention.

There are two publications associated with this project:
Connolly, J. and Holden, N. M. (2011). Classification of peatland disturbance. Land degradation and development. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.1149

Connolly, J. and Holden, N. M. (2011). Object oriented classification of disturbance on raised bogs in the Irish Midlands using medium- and high-resolution satellite imagery. Irish Geography, 44:1, 111-135.

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An example of this citation in proper usage:

Connolly, J.   "Identification, Mapping, Assessment and Quantification of the Effects of Disturbance on the Peat Soil Carbon Stock in Ireland". Associated datasets and digitial information objects connected to this resource are available at: Secure Archive For Environmental Research Data (SAFER) managed by Environmental Protection Agency Ireland https://eparesearch.epa.ie/safer/resource?id=33e1cf9f-478b-102e-a0a4-f81fb11d7d1c (Last Accessed: 2024-09-17)

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SAFER-Data Display URL	https://eparesearch.epa.ie/safer/iso19115/display?isoID=190
Resource Keywords	Peat, Peatland, Disturbance, Soil Organic Carbon, Peat condition,
EPA/ERTDI/STRIVE Project Code	2008-FS-S-6-S5
EPA/ERTDI/STRIVE Project Theme	Land-use, Soils, and Transport
Resource Availability:	Public-Open
Limitations on the use of this Resource	Any attached datasets, data files, or information objects can be downloaded for further use in scientific applications under the condition that the source is properly quoted and cited in published papers, journals, websites, presentations, books, etc. Before downloading, users must agree to the "Conditions of Download and Access" from SAFER-Data. These appear before download. Users of the data should also communicate with the original authors/owners of this resource if they are uncertain about any aspect of the data or information provided before further usage. There are two publications associated with this project. Examples of proper citation of this project: Connolly, J. and Holden, N. M. (2011). Classification of peatland disturbance. Land degradation and development. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.1149 Connolly, J. and Holden, N. M. (2011). Object oriented classification of disturbance on raised bogs in the Irish Midlands using medium- and high-resolution satellite imagery. Irish Geography, 44:1, 111-135. There are also two reports associated with the project. Please see above.
Number of Attached Files (Publicly and Openly Available for Download):	3
Project Start Date	Monday 15th September 2008 (15-09-2008)
Earliest Recorded Date within any attached datasets or digital objects	Monday 15th September 2008 (15-09-2008)
Most Recent Recorded Date within any attached datasets or digital objects	Friday 12th March 2010 (12-03-2010)
Published on SAFER	Monday 22nd November 2010 (22-11-2010)
Date of Last Edit	Thursday 1st September 2016 at 12:28:01 (01-09-2016)
Datasets or Files Updated On	Friday 26th April 2013 at 11:25:34 (26-04-2013)

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Description of Geographical Characteristics of This Project or Dataset
Description of Geographical Characteristics of This Resource This research covers peatlands and peat soils as identified by the Derived Irish Peat Map version 2 (DIPMv2) (Connolly and Holden, 2009). This map identifies the spatial extent of peatlands in Ireland. It was used to identify peat soil areas on medium and high resolution satellite data. Object oriented software was used to extract area of disturbance from these satellite data. Disturbance data was extracted for most of the country (cloudy areas in the west were excluded) using medium resolution satellite data. High resolution data was acquired for several sites and high resolution disturbance maps were created for these areas; Clara bog and surrounds and Tullaghanrock bog in Co. Roscommon.

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In this section some supplementary information about this resource is outlined. Lineage information helps us to understand why this project was carried out, what policy or research requirements did it fulfil, etc. Lineage is important in understanding the rationale behind the carrying out of a project or the collection of a specific dataset etc. Links to web sites, applications, papers, etc are outlined to provide you with additional information or supplementary reading about the project or dataset

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The following is a list of projects, datasets, and resources on SAFER-Data from which users downloaded attachments from soon after downloading attachments from this resource Identification, Mapping, Assessment and Quantification of the Effects of Disturbance on the Peat Soil Carbon Stock in Ireland. You can view the full description for projects, datasets, and resources by using the links supplied.

• Derived Irish Peat Map version 2 View Full Metadata Description

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