Mapping soil organic carbon content of organosols in Tasmania
It is estimated that up to a third of the world’s carbon is stored in peatlands. Tasmanian peatland ecosystems cover approximately 40% of the State. They are regarded locally as blanket bogs and are dominated by buttongrass, a pyrogenic vegetation type. They are not topographically confined and range from valley bottoms to steep slopes and subalpine environments. Tasmanian blanket bogs are at the climatic limit for blanket bog formation. The shallow, well humified, peat profiles are often dry for much of the summer, therefore it is highly likely that these peat deposits are carbon sources rather than sinks, especially during the summer months. The depth of the peat profile is related to topography and geomorphology. In this study, relationships are developed between peat depth and; slope, position on slope, aspect and some geomorphological characteristics. Using a DEM and previously mapped buttongrass moorland extent, these relationships are used to model peat depths and to derive an estimate of the distribution of Carbon held in peatlands in Tasmania.