Peatlands cover only 3% of Earth’s surface yet store nearly one-third of the world’s carbon—twice the amount sequestered by all forests combined. This makes them crucial ecosystems in the fight against climate change, but only 17% currently receive protection, leaving them vulnerable to degradation that worsens our climate crisis.
These unique wetland ecosystems form in waterlogged environments where plant decomposition slows dramatically, creating carbon-rich soil layers that accumulate over thousands of years. Peatlands exist in over 180 countries, with the largest concentrations in Asia and North America, appearing in various forms from Scotland’s open Flow Country bogs to Africa’s Cuvette Centrale, the world’s largest tropical peatland located beneath the Congo Basin’s forests.
With 550 billion tonnes of carbon stored, peatlands serve as Earth’s largest natural carbon sink on land. They also function as biodiversity hotspots that harbor numerous rare and endangered species while regulating water flows that prevent floods and droughts. Their destruction creates a two-pronged threat—releasing massive carbon stores while eliminating natural buffers against extreme weather. This devastating combination explains why biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse rank second among global risks for the coming decade in the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2025.
Human activities have threatened peatlands for centuries through drainage for agriculture and forestry, extraction for fuel, and climate change impacts that cause drying. When dried, peatlands become highly susceptible to fires—which are extraordinarily difficult to extinguish and release up to 100 times more carbon than burning trees. Currently, almost a quarter of the world’s peatlands face threats, primarily from farming, resulting in annual greenhouse gas emissions between 1.5-2.5 billion tonnes.
Global conservation efforts are gaining momentum. Indonesia is working to restore or rewet 1,000,000 hectares of peatland, Sweden is implementing restoration projects, and the UK has established a Peatland Strategy to recover the 80% of its peatlands that have been heavily degraded. According to UNEP, conserving and restoring tropical peatlands alone could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 800 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent annually—about 2% of global emissions.
UNEP’s Global Peatlands Assessment monitors degradation while guiding countries on utilizing these ecosystems as nature-based solutions for multiple environmental crises. However, substantial investment is required—over $8 trillion between now and 2050—for nature-based solutions including peatland restoration to address the interconnected challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and land degradation.
Natural climate solutions, including peatland conservation, could provide approximately 30% of the emissions reductions needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C. As researcher Kemen Austin notes, “Peatlands offer a huge opportunity for helping to solve the climate crisis. If we act now to conserve peatlands, then we can reap some enormous benefits—at a relatively low cost.” Their protection represents one of our most efficient and effective strategies for combating climate change while preserving vital ecosystems.
https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/02/peatlands-store-carbon-climate-change