PEATLAND ECOSYSTEMS UNDER ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES AND HUMAN IMPACTS

Peatlands are one of the most widespread ecosystems in Russia. They occupy more than 8 % of the Russian territory, and together with shallow peat lands, they comprise more than one fifth of the country. Russia presents a wide range of peatland types. They form a specific environment and play a significant part in the regulation of climate due to role in carbon cycle and greenhouse gases fluxes. They are characterized by a wide range of biodiversity; spatial heterogeneity; and a particular functional integrity, which is determined by the interrelations between excessive moisture, peatland vegetation, and peat. Peatland’s value is important both in terms of their dominant landscape forming position in taiga zone and in cases where they are the only wet habitats, as in the steppe zone. The water regime is crucial for peatlands. Anthropogenic transformation reduces natural resistance of peatlands to climate change. Most significant are the changes in water regime, increasing probability of fires, and other extreme phenomena. Significant attention should be devoted to the most sensitive types of peatlands. An important adaptation measure is to eliminate the human factor that increases the impact of climate change: excluding of peatlands from economic use for their conservation, and restoration of damaged peatlands