Scientists release research collection to protect Congo Basin peatlands

Researchers published a major collection of studies on African tropical peatlands in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B to provide scientific backing for conservation efforts in the Congo Basin.

The collection focuses on the Cuvette Centrale, a vast peat swamp that spans the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The research builds on a 2017 discovery where scientists mapped a wetland larger than England hidden within the Congo Basin’s swamp forests.

Scientists estimate this area stores roughly 30 billion metric tons of carbon, which is comparable to about three years of global fossil fuel emissions. Because drainage or drought can release this carbon into the atmosphere, the research emphasizes that keeping the peat wet is essential for climate stability. The UN Environment Programme and the Congo Basin Landscapes Initiative are using this data to guide regional conservation. A project in the Lac Télé.

Lac Tumba landscape, supported by Germany’s International Climate Initiative, uses modeling tools to show how different land-use scenarios affect water levels and carbon storage. While the peatlands remain mostly intact today, researchers warn that road building and logging continue to threaten the edges of the ecosystem.