Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · 6d

🌍 PERG is shining at #SER2025 in Denver!
Line Rochefort delivered two inspiring talks on peatland #restoration — from private sector roles to the magic of moss & biocrusts🌱
Plus, Tomotsugu Yazaki shared innovative research on straw mulch alternatives 👏

#ecologicalrestoration #peatlands #science

3

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · 6d

🌿 New PERG publication in #RestorationEcology

We tracked 147 restored #peatland sectors over 20 years to assess the Moss Layer Transfer Technique #MLTT.

➡️ Up to 80% success in under 10 years in the St. Lawrence Lowlands region

🔗 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

#PeatSky #PeatECR

1 4

Reposted by Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG)

Mélina Guêné-Nanchen @melinaguene.bsky.social · Aug 20

🎓 Tons of grad school options… but this one stands out!

Why do your master’s with me?

🌱 Help restore disturbed #peatlands
🌿 Join PERG, global leader in peatland science
🤝 Vibrant team (20+), weekly meetups, great vibes

➡️ shorturl.at/BgIPE

#PeatSky #PeatECR

3 4

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Aug 18

🛠️ Cool tool alert!

Past PhD student Sebastián Gutierrez Pacheco built a method to estimate daily water table levels from sparse data — using PERG data 🌿

💸 Super handy when you can’t afford fancy loggers in every well!

github.com/segupa03/gro...

#hydrology #peatlands #opensource #python

GitHub - segupa03/groundwater-daily-estimation-tsd: A Python package for estimating daily groundwater levels using TSD methodology

A Python package for estimating daily groundwater levels using TSD methodology - segupa03/groundwater-daily-estimation-tsd

github.com

2 3

Reposted by Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG)

Dr. Merritt Rae Turetsky @queenofpeat.bsky.social · Jul 19

Sphagnum mosses are fascinating from physiology, ecology, and climate perspectives. I'm especially proud of this @newphyt.bsky.social paper meant to inspire new research on ecoevolution and biodiversity. Check out the incredible cover art by Blanka Aguero! nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Image of the cover of the New Phytologist journal showing a close up image of brown and orange Sphagnum plants.

21 83

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jul 22

🔥 Big weekend for #peatland news!

Great coverage of the Carbonique project led by Michelle Garneau at UQAM.

🌿 So glad peatlands are finally getting the recognition they deserve — not just as smelly, mosquito-filled swamps! 😄

💚 These ecosystems are key to carbon storage and climate action.

Dr Scott J. Davidson @wetlandresilienceresearchgroup.com · Jul 19

Really nice article focused on the importance of Quebec #peatlands and the Carbonique project

(And a mini shout out of the #PeatColours project)

ici.radio-canada.ca/recit-numeri...

Les tourbières, des alliées contre la crise climatique

Des spécialistes de ces puits de carbone veulent aider le gouvernement du Québec à faire des choix éclairés.

ici.radio-canada.ca

1

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jul 22

🔥 Canada is burning — and so are its peatlands!
Yet carbon emissions from peat fires aren’t counted in current government stats. 😶‍🌫️

🌍 #Peatlands matter for climate action.
📖 Read this great piece on why they’re key to conservation and restoration

Hanna Rae Martens @hanna-martens.bsky.social · Jul 20

www.cbc.ca/news/science...
Glad to see this topic at the top of CBC News - watching fires burn up the boreal year after year sucks, and it's the peatlands burning that I worry about most

Wildfires send Canada's carbon emissions soaring. And our peatlands emit even more | CBC News

A new government model to estimate peatland emissions and their impact on climate change could provide a new perspective on the problem — and spark new discussions about solutions.

www.cbc.ca

1

Reposted by Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG)

Mike Waddington 🇨🇦 @peatofmind.bsky.social · Jul 22

Check out our new paper "Ecohydrological drivers of Boreal Shield peatland fire refugia" in Ecohydrology.

Authors: Alex Tekatch, Chantel Markle, Sophie Wilkinson, Paul Moore, @mercury-ecohydro.bsky.social, @peatofmind.bsky.social

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

14 32

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jun 20

🌍 Big news in peatland science!

5 current & former PERG researchers are in the global top 10 for peatland restoration! 🌿

🏆 Shoutout to Line Rochefort #1 worldwide!
💥 @ulaval.ca also ranks #1 globally!

📖 Read: shorturl.at/uJl6A

#Peatlands #PeatSky
@wetland-ghg.bsky.social @peatofmind.bsky.social

A global development and dynamics of peatland restoration: a bibliometric analysis

Peatland ecosystems play a critical role in conservation of biodiversity and climate regulation, but face ongoing degradation from land-use change, mi…

www.sciencedirect.com

3 6

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jun 18

🎙️ A must-listen! 🌿🔥

@peatofmind.bsky.social was recently interviewed on CBC’s Québec AM to discuss the importance of peatland restoration as a nature-based solution to reduce the impact of wildfires.

shorturl.at/nEbt5

#PeatlandMatter #PeatSky #Wildfires #ClimateChange #EcologicalRestoration

www.cbc.ca

3 4

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jun 3

🎉 Today we celebrate 25 yrs since the restoration of the Bois-des-Bel peatland — the first large-scale peatland restoration project in North America.

🌱 A milestone that shaped the future of peatland science.

#Peatlands #Restoration #PeatlandsMatter

5 15

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jun 2

🌍 Today is World Peatlands Day!
For over 30 years, peatlands have been at the heart of our research — from understanding their ecology to restoring them.

Let’s raise awareness and fall in love with peatlands — because we protect what we love. 💚

📷 Iris Duvivier

#PeatlandsMatter #WorldPeatlandsDay

3 12

Reposted by Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG)

Mike Waddington 🇨🇦 @peatofmind.bsky.social · Jun 2

Happy #WorldPeatlandsDay!

This week @gret-perg.bsky.social celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Bois-des-Bel #peatland #restoration project!

Throwback to 2000 and our first eddy covariance measurements on a restored peatland.

#BDB25

2 14

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · May 2

We've long supported active #restoration of #peatlands post-extraction, using enhanced #rewetting and #moss transfer

The Can-Peat project, synthesizing historical and recent data on C exchanges from restored areas in Canada, backs this approach!

📖 tinyurl.com/4cwvbs88

@wetland-ghg.bsky.social

When do restored and reclaimed peatlands regain their typical carbon sink function? | Can-Peat | University of Waterloo

News article by Melanie Bird

tinyurl.com

2 3

Reposted by Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG)

CRIV @ ULaval @ulcriv.bsky.social · Apr 25

Félicitations à Aamir Shehzad Khan, étudiant au doctorat sous la direction de Line Rochefort @gret-perg.bsky.social qui a récemment reçu la bourse Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (Canada) lors du Cocktail de reconnaissance des bourses 2024-2025 de la FSAA @ulaval.ca
#ulcriv

2 3

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Apr 17

📢 Reminder: Time to Register! 📢

🎉 #BDB25: 25 Years of Research at Bois-des-Bel #Peatland 🎉

📅 June 3, 2025 📍 Auberge de la Pointe, Rivière-du-Loup & Bois-des-Bel Peatland, QC (Register by April 29 for a discount!)

🔗 tinyurl.com/yam87n3c

#PeatlandsMatter #research #scicomm

BDB25 : 25 ans de recherche en partenariat à la station expérimentale de la tourbière de Bois-des-Bel

Le 3 juin 2025, à Rivière-du-Loup (QC)

tinyurl.com

1 1

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Apr 17

Roxane Andersen, a peatland scientist and Trustee of the Flow Country Partnership, is taking on her longest run yet to raise awareness and funds for the world's first UNESCO World Heritage Site #peatland 🌍

Support her: tinyurl.com/y488rbj7

#PeatlandsMatter #FlowCountry

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Apr 4

Daniel Campbell is an independant researcher from Birchbank Environmental Research, and Line Rochefort is a professor at Université Laval (Quebec), both experts in peatland ecology and restoration

1

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Apr 3

🌿 New Report Alert! 🌿

D. Campbell and L. Rochefort have published an annotated bibliography covering major stressors and mitigation strategies for #peatlands in the Hudson Bay Lowland and Boreal Shield.

📄 Report rb.gy/qd5au7
📚 Bibliography (Zotero) rb.gy/3lq0fj
🔍 How to use rb.gy/e7492w

#PeatSky

1 2

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Mar 6

We are looking for a MSc or PhD candidate for a project aiming at developping of innovative #revegetation methods for mineral substrates in the Low Arctic tundra

More info: www.gret-perg.ulaval.ca/en/join-our-...

#Nunavik #restoration #biocrust #Rough&Loose

1 4

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Jan 13

PhD student Aamir Shehzad Khan leads our first large-scale research on restoring cyperaceae-brown moss #peatlands (rich fens) in Quebec's Lower St. Lawrence. 📚✨

Post-restoration, vascular plants thrived more than bryophytes. Low helophyte presence and no flooding were key for effective #rewetting 🌱

Mélina Guêné-Nanchen @melinaguene.bsky.social · Jan 13

🎉 Co-directed PhD student Aamir Shehzad Khan has published his first PhD paper! 📚✨

This is the first Canadian ecosystem-scale #fen #peatland ecological #restoration project, 13 years post-restoration. 🌿

#PeatSky #PeatECR

2 10

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Dec 18

Reflecting on 2024

We:
🌍 Conducted fieldwork across Canada
🌱 Launched the Chair in Ecosystem Restoration
🎓 Celebrated Line Rochefort's honorary doctorate
🧪 Hosted the first Peatland Science Symposium
🌏 Had students participate in internships abroad and defend their theses

Excited for 2025! 🎉

3 8

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Dec 17

We want also to thank the evaluation committee formed by @wetland-ghg.bsky.social and Patrick Brassard, under the presidency of François-P Chalifour.

1

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Dec 17

His thesis was entitled:

Peatland Geoengineering: Testing an Approach to Strengthen Enzymic Latch Mechanism and Impede Carbon Emissions in Post-Extracted Unrestored and Sphagnum Farming Systems 🌿🌍

Peatland Ecology Research Group (PERG) @gret-perg.bsky.social · Dec 17

Yesterday, Talal Asif successfully defended his thesis under the supervision of Line Rochefort and Chris Freeman.

We wish him much success in his future projects and hope he will continue to contribute significantly to the research and restoration of peatland ecosystems 🎓✨

📸: Iris Duvivier

2 9