PEATIMPROVE has deepened scientific and practical understanding of how Norway’s cultivated peatlands can be farmed more sustainably while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. The project examined a range of drainage strategies, with peat inversion as a central focus, to see how they influence crop yields, soil moisture, carbon loss and emissions across contrasting climates in Fræna, Pasvik, Sortland and Våler. Results showed that while average grass yields were similar across drainage methods, peat inversion was more vulnerable in dry years due to its limited water holding capacity, though drought tolerant seed mixtures and higher fertilisation improved performance, especially on nutrient poor inverted soils. Measurements confirmed that nitrous oxide emissions mainly stem from fertiliser use, methane emissions are highest in wet, conventionally drained peat, and inverted soils emit very little methane because the mineral layer promotes oxidation. A carbon balance model to compare long term carbon loss between traditional drainage and inversion is under development. Farmers reported better field conditions, fewer machinery problems and often higher yields after adopting peat inversion, and the project developed a national scale mapping approach to identify where this method is most suitable.
The project’s results are expected to generate both immediate and long term impacts by equipping farmers, advisors, and authorities with science based knowledge that supports reduced greenhouse gas emissions and more stable forage yields on cultivated peat soils. In the short term, improved understanding of drainage practices, hydrology, and emission dynamics will guide farmers toward management strategies that enhance yield stability—an increasingly critical factor for food security, farm profitability, and national value creation under a changing climate. Close collaboration with advisory services ensures rapid dissemination and practical uptake of these findings. Over the longer term, the project strengthens the scientific basis for national emission reporting, advances land use planning through new methodological tools such as geostatistical identification of suitable peatlands for peat inversion, and informs policy development aimed at climate smart agriculture. Collectively, these outcomes contribute to more resilient agricultural systems, more targeted mitigation strategies, and enhanced national capacity to balance emission reductions with sustainable food production.
Improving conditions for agricultural management of drained peatlands while reducing GHG emissions (PEATIMPROVE) is a 4 year interdisciplinary project. Peatlands used for agriculture emit greenhouse gases (GHG), are poorly drained and easily waterlogged leading to poor trafficability and lost yield and yield quality. Novel management approaches for existing shallow peatlands in Norway are urgently needed to limit GHG emission and to sustain forage based agricultural activity in rural Norway, where peatlands are important for farming. PEATIMPROVE will study different drainage options and “peat inversion” in particular as a promising management option for protecting peat from degradation while allowing for effective forage production. The focus will be on alternatives for already drained peat soil in need for renewal, but the research will also aim to answer more general challenges with agriculture on peat soil. We will set up a series of sites to study soil properties, soil physics, hydrology, forage production potential, GHG emissions and carbon balances. The selected sites are representative for the regions where forage production on peat soil is common representing climatically different conditions. The studies outline controlling factors and links between plants, soil hydrology and GHG emissions. PEATIMPROVE seeks to estimate the suitable area for peat inversion in Norway by synthesizing different public available data from soil mapping. We will integrate the results using spatial data, modelling, databases and stakeholder surveys for upscaling and generalization to assess drainage potential, climate change effects, costs and benefits of “peat inversion” and the potential for GHG mitigation. The results are communicated professionally throughout the project. The project is a collaboration between NIBIO (lead), NMBU, NORSØK, NLR and TINE SA (all NO), Univ. of Oulu and Luke (FI), and National Univ. of Ireland (IE). A PhD student will be employed in the project.
