Who is Wageningen University Department of Environmental Sciences (WU-DES)?

Wageningen University Department of Environmental Sciences (WU-DES) focuses specifically on the themes of healthy food and living environment and contributes to food security with bachelor's and master's degree programmes. The Water Systems and Global Change Group is one of the chair groups in WU-DES. This group will work on the Peat Pals project and has experience in management of previous Horizon projects. ES is the European Land Conservation Network, and brings together non-governmental as well as governmental organisations, and individuals with a common goal: creating a Europe where nature is cared for, protected, restored and valued by all.

Wageningen Universities role in the Peat Pals for LIFE project

WU-DES collaborates in this project in monitoring the GHG balance and contributing to the knowledge of the climate mitigation aspects and socio-economic effects on peatland restoration.

Eddy covariance method (EC) is based upon direct measurements of the GHG uptake and release rates, by very fast and accurate sensors, in the air above the land surface, from the top of a pole (tower) of several meters. It is an automated method and requires little maintenance. It records the integrated GHG exchange of an area of order 1 ha. The flux tower is used in Polder Camphuis, where NM cooperates with WU-DES. The use of the flux tower carries additional benefit in the Netherlands due to the presence of cranes and other breeding birds in Fochteloërveen in the spring and summer period. During which periods the site cannot be visited. The EC technique has been extensively used for over 20 years by participant WU-DES and for the last 3 years has bene employed at multiple sites on peat soils and wetlands, one of them in collaboration with partner NM. Also staff at WU has in-depth experience with measuring GHG fluxes using EC in Irish raised bogs.