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Science correspondent, BBC News
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The UK’s saltmarshes are vital “sinks” that lock away climate-warming greenhouse gases in layers of mud, according to a new report from WWF.
Much of the UK’s saltmarshes have been lost to agriculture but the charity says they are unsung heroes in nature’s fight against climate change.
It is now calling for these muddy, tidal habitats to be added to the official UK inventory of how much carbon is emitted and how much is removed from our atmosphere every year.
This formal recognition could, it hopes, provide more of an incentive to restore and protect more of these sites.
Working with researchers from the UK’s Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, a WWF team installed solar-powered greenhouse gas monitoring stations on Hesketh Out Marsh, a saltmarsh in North-West England that has been restored and is managed by the RSPB.
Analysing gases in the air flowing around the marsh – over the course of a year – revealed how plants there “breathe in” more carbon dioxide in the summer than they release in winter.
These new findings build on previous studies that have measured the amount of carbon in the marshland’s mud.
To carry it out, the team fixed analytical equipment to a sturdy 2.5m tall tower made of scaffolding poles. The site is regularly flooded by the tide, so the tower has kept their kit safe from salt water and debris.
With WWF’s ocean conservation specialist, Tom Brook as our guide, we waded through the thigh-high grass
