Leeds researchers secure vital funding to investigate peatland fires in Indonesia
The PEAK-Fire research project is working to help better understand what controls peat fire emissions to improve air quality forecasts and support public health responses to the crisis in Indonesia.
Indonesia’s peatlands store around half of the world’s tropical peat carbon, making them important for global climate regulation. However, deforestation and drainage for agriculture have left many peatlands degraded and highly vulnerable to fire. During drought conditions, particularly those associated with El Niño events, peat soils dry out and become highly flammable.
A BBC News broadcast on the fires currently blazing in Central Kalimantan, in the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo, features Professor of Atmospheric Science, Jim McQuaid, who speaks to the BBC about the long-term health effects on the local population:
‘A critical knowledge gap’
Current estimates of peat fire emissions remain highly uncertain because they rely on limited measurements of how deeply fires burn into peat soils. Burn depth is the primary factor controlling carbon losses and pollutant emissions, yet it varies according to drainage intensity, drought severity, land use and fire history.
To address this critical knowledge gap of the burn depth in the peatlands, researchers on the PEAK-Fire project are working on the ground in Indonesia, as well as using drones and satellite technology, to improve regional burn depth mapping, enhance emissions estimates and evaluate air quality forecasts. The team from the University of Leeds, Liverpool John Moores University and London School of Economics is working alongside colleagues from CIMTROP at the Universitas Palangka Raya (UPR).
School of Earth, Environment and Sustainability’s Dr Ailish Graham leads this research project along with Professor of Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions, Dominick Spracklen. Together they secured funding of over £99,000 to investigate peat emissions and fire impacts of the peatland wildfires that continue to rage across Indonesia. This LinkedIn post by Ailish provides a glimpse into the disastrous levels of air pollution in Central Kalimantan.
Photograph of burnt peatland and smoke taken by the PEAK-Fire team on location in Indonesia.
‘A rare opportunity’
The project will also be providing accessible air quality information and helping to develop an early-warning system for peat fire smoke, supporting local communities, decision-makers and emergency responders.
PEAK-Fire will strengthen public health assessments, inform peatland management and disaster preparedness, and provide critical evidence for future climate and environmental research.
