Variation in Soil and Hydrochemical Characteristics in a Historically Mined Ohio Peat Bog

Carbon sequestration in peat bogs has an important potential to assist in mitigating climate change. Peat bogs act as a strong carbon sink, meaning they are able to keep large amounts of carbon out of the atmosphere and stored underground. Since peat bogs can store so much carbon, the release of these stocks can have a large impact. Degradation of peat bogs has been shown to release these carbon stocks, both harming the ecosystem and creating a negative global impact. In order to fully understand the impacts that degradation has on peat bogs, there is a need to evaluate changes in hydrochemistry as well as carbon content within the degraded bog. By using hydrochemistry, it leads to an ability to determine how a peat bog is physically and chemically altered by degradation, and this can be used to determine how these hydrochemical properties relate to an ability to properly sequester carbon. This study focused on Utzinger Bog, located in Columbus, Ohio. This site has experienced heavy mining, and the impacts of this mining on the hydrochemistry of the site has not yet been studied. Hydrochemistry was studied through the observation of pH, electrical conductivity, and water table at different locations across the site over three months. Soil samples were also taken across the site to evaluate carbon content, pH, electrical conductivity, and both total and organic bulk density. This data can be used to see how hydrochemistry and soil characteristics of a disturbed peat bog compare to undisturbed peat bogs observed in other areas of the midwestern United States. The outcome of this study is expected to show that areas of the bog that have been degraded or destroyed by human activity will have significantly different hydrochemical properties compared to bogs that are relatively undisturbed, meaning that degraded has affected the ability of the peat bog to properly function and store carbon. It was found that the basin expected to have experienced the highest level of mining had significant hydrochemical and soil property differences as compared to the basins that did not experience as much mining. When compared to other peat bogs, it was found that Utzinger Bog differs in hydrochemistry and soil characteristics, supporting the hypothesis that degradation causes an effect on peat bog hydrochemistry and soil characteristics.No embargoAcademic Major: Environmental Scienc