Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kreyling and Hanna Martens were able to close some gaps in global peatland research with the results of two weeks of field research in our protected areas in July 2025. For the first time, they investigated how high the CO₂ storage potential of western Canadian peatlands really is. Initial projections show that the peatlands store up to five times as much carbon as the coastal rainforests there. This makes them a sensitive powerhouse in climate protection. 

Few ecosystems are as mysterious, pathologically underestimated and at the same time as crucial for climate protection as peatlands. Although they only cover 3% of the earth's surface, they store over 30% of all soil carbon, more than all the world's forests combined. If they are destroyed, they release huge amounts of CO₂. This would have catastrophic consequences for the development of our climate. This makes it all the more important to understand the function of peatlands even better and to protect them. This was precisely the aim of the research expedition by Wilderness International and the Greifswald Mire Center in the summer of 2025 in our protected areas on the north coast of British Columbia (Canada).

Canada is home to some of the largest peatlands in the world, but until now almost nothing was known about the peatlands in the protected areas of Wilderness International. With the support of Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kreyling and Hanna Martens, these gaps in knowledge are now to be closed.

Daily marches across beaches with heavy drilling equipment, filtering drinking water from the moor, changeable coastal weather and endless bites from sand flies, horse flies and midges (because insects love moors!). What sounds like a challenge to many is only a marginal condition for Jürgen and Hanna. Our expedition gave them the unique opportunity to study an almost unexplored ecosystem at close quarters. "Every step over the springy Sphagnum moss cushions reminded us how alive and intact this ecosystem is and how little we actually know about it," reports Hanna Martens. She is Canadian herself and researches the rewetting of moors in particular. In her home country, she has seen many moors that have been degraded and destroyed by oil and gas extraction. 

Even before the expedition, the researchers from the Greifswald Mire Center had selected over 100 sampling points in the protected areas with the help of satellite images and existing maps. The selected points covered three characteristic mire landscapes: extensive open raised bogs, forested bogs and mosaics of mire areas called "muskeg" with interspersed small areas of water, open rock and tree islands. The aim was to record the total carbon content of the bogs in the protected areas of the Pacific coast of British Columbia by taking soil samples and determining the above-ground biomass.

Drill cores were taken at each of these locations. These cores made it possible to determine the thickness and quality of the peat body. At the same time, the vegetation of trees and shrubs above ground was recorded in order to quantify the biomass stored above ground. Taken together, the data can be extrapolated to the total area, giving a more accurate picture of how much carbon is actually bound in the peatlands above and below ground.

The results confirm what the researchers had already suspected: The peatlands on Porcher Island are among the most powerful carbon reservoirs in the region. A peat layer of over 4 meters in some places means that enormous amounts of CO₂ have been sequestered here over 4000 years. 

The comparison with the primeval forests of British Columbia is particularly exciting. While these have so far been known primarily for their gigantic carbon storage in the above-ground biomass, i.e. in the giant trees, initial analyses indicate that up to five times as much carbon is stored in the underground biomass of the bogs. This puts the peatlands in the spotlight alongside the rainforests as Canada's central "climate reservoirs".

If you touch the preserved moss, pieces of wood or pine needles from the lower end of the drill core, you touch small, inconspicuous record holders. However small, the wood is 10 times as old as any living giant tree found on the entire island. 

These results are an important step towards systematically recording the climate protection value of peatlands. They not only provide the scientific basis for international publications, but also close some of the blank spots on the map. At the same time, they provide concrete recommendations for action, which are extremely important, especially in Canada, because in contrast to Germany, where awareness of the relevance of peatlands is growing, peatlands in Canada continue to be destroyed on a large scale.

The bogs on Porcher Island are also extremely valuable habitats: they are home to specialized plants such as sundew, Labrador tea and cloudberry, as well as a variety of amphibians and insects that can only survive in these damp, nutrient-poor habitats. These in turn are the basis for many birds that depend on this space as a breeding or resting place. Bats also need the intact moors, as they feed on the countless insects that can only be found there.

While the moors on Porcher Island are still largely untouched, the situation is very different in other parts of Canada. Oil sand extraction in the neighboring province of Alberta in particular has irretrievably destroyed huge swamp landscapes. When the peat is removed, the "plug is literally pulled out" of the moors: Millennia-old carbon reservoirs dry out, the water runs off and within a very short space of time, gigantic quantities of CO₂ that were previously safely bound in the moor escape.

This is not only an ecological disaster, but also a climate risk of global proportions. Intact peatlands are therefore doubly valuable: they prevent emissions and at the same time safeguard biodiversity. Destroyed peatlands, on the other hand, reverse their role: from a protective shield for the climate to hotspots of greenhouse gases.

This expedition was just the beginning of a long-term collaboration. Annual research missions are planned to document changes over time. Modern technologies such as drones and eDNA analyses are to be further developed. Cooperation with local partners is also particularly important: large parts of the moors on Porcher Island are located in the Gitxaala Nii Luutiksm Kitkatla Conservancy, whose custodians themselves have a great interest in the results and in the joint protection of the moors. 

The peatland research on Porcher Island shows: These inconspicuous, often underestimated ecosystems are climate protectors of global importance. Not only do they store huge amounts of carbon, they also safeguard biodiversity in Canada's coastal forests. For Wilderness International, the expedition is a milestone that makes it clear: every square meter of protected moorland contributes to making our future more climate-stable and livable. Hanna would now say: "It's actually not that difficult. Just leave the moors wet, please!"