WEHIS Wetland History Switzerland

Wetlands are an important pool for soil organic carbon (SOC) and consequently, the change in extent and quality of wetlands leaves deep imprints on the carbon (C) budget. Information on the long-term history of wetlands is therefore highly relevant for assessing long-term changes in (e.g. national) C pools. Further, information on the historical distribution and extent of wetlands are crucial element for evaluating the potential for wetland restoration. Restoring wetlands is gaining increasing attention in the search for additional C sinks, as restored and growing wetlands sequester C for very long times. In this project, we reconstruct the history of wetlands in Switzerland since 1700. The approach encompasses spatially explicit analysis of the development of wetlands (incl. modeling the potential maximal extent), the analyses of the major processes affecting wetlands, and a synthesis in which the first two parts are combined to asses the development of the C pool in wetlands. Our main data sources are secondary literature, historical statistical data, and historical maps.

Contact: Urs Gimmi, Matthias Bürgi

Fig. 1 Spatially explicit analyses of wetland history (1) will be combined with information about the major processes affecting wetlands (2) to assess the development of C pool in wetlands in Switzerland from 1700 to 2000 (3)