Gunawan Djajakirana, Aninda Puspasari, Marissa Permatasari, Meiyu Soesanto, Sri Maria
Proceedings of the 14th International Peat Congress
biological-activity, carbon-emission, peatlands, plantation-forest
Theme IX. Tropical peatlands
Research on carbon emission that emphasizes on roles of soil biological activity is still lacking. We conducted a research to determine pattern of biological activity under various conditions of natural and planted Acacia crassicarpa on peatlands in relation to water level and carbon emissions. Results show that rate of soil respiration, microbe and soil fauna populations decrease with peat depth. The downward decrease is attributed to decrease of oxygen and substrate supplies. Biological activity was found to be limited at depth of about 50 cm and more regardless of water table level. Low biological activity resulted in reduced decomposition of organic matter and lower carbon (CO2) emission.