Global importance of methane emissions from drainage ditches and canals
Open accessAbstract
Globally, there are millions of kilometres of drainage ditches which have the potential to emit the powerful greenhouse gas methane (CH 4), but these emissions are not reported in budgets of inland waters or drained lands. Here, we synthesise data to show that ditches spanning a global latitudinal gradient and across different land uses emit large quantities of CH 4 to the atmosphere. Area-specific emissions are comparable to those from lakes, streams, reservoirs, and wetlands. While it is generally assumed that drainage negates terrestrial CH 4 emissions, we find that CH 4 emissions from ditches can, on average, offset ∼10% of this reduction. Using global areas of drained land we show that ditches contribute 3.5 Tg CH 4 yr−1 (0.6–10.5 Tg CH 4 yr−1); equivalent to 0.2%–3% of global anthropogenic CH 4 emissions. A positive relationship between CH 4 emissions and temperature was found, and emissions were highest from eutrophic ditches. We advocate the inclusion of ditch emissions in national GHG inventories, as neglecting them can lead to incorrect conclusions concerning the impact of drainage-based land management on CH 4 budgets.
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The extent of ditch networks at the national scale can be extremely large (e.g., 300,000 km in the Netherlands; 800,000 km in Sweden) and a rough estimate of the global surface area of drainage ditches alone is 1.4-10.7 Mha.
“The extent of ditch networks at the national scale can be extremely large (e.g., 300,000 km in the Netherlands 7 ; 800,000 km in Sweden 8 ) and a rough estimate of the global surface area of drainage ditches alone is 1.4-10.7 Mha 9 .”
From Lines in the landscape (2025) · cites this paper as [9]
Ditches often mimic natural waterways, whether by design or inadvertently, and sometimes behave differently from natural waterways.
“Ditches often mimic natural waterways, whether by design or inadvertently, and yet sometimes surprise scientists by behaving differently 9 .”
From Lines in the landscape (2025) · cites this paper as [9]
Ditches contribute significantly to global CH4 emissions, contributing 3.5 Tg CH4 yr-1; equivalent to 1% of global anthropogenic CH4 emissions.
“Ditches contribute significantly to global CH 4 emissions, contributing 3.5 Tg CH 4 yr -1 ; equivalent to 1% of global anthropogenic CH 4 emissions 9 .”
From Lines in the landscape (2025) · cites this paper as [9]
Channel width is essential to calculate ditch surface area, and is key for some global upscalings of processes and cycles as well as for IPCC reporting, yet it is frequently unknown.
“Channel width is essential to calculate ditch surface area, and is key for some global upscalings of processes and cycles as well as for IPCC reporting 168 , yet it is frequently unknown 9 .”
From Lines in the landscape (2025) · cites this paper as [9]
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References 52 · Cited by 120
Research works printed but not linked: 4
- Ciais P et al 2013 Carbon and other biogeochemical cycles Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ed T F Stocker, D Qin, G-K Plattner, M Tignor, S K Allen, J Boschung, A Nauels, Y Xia, V Bex and P M Midgley (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)465-570
- Myhre G et al 2013 Anthropogenic and natural radiative forcing Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ed T Stocker, D Qin, G-K Plattner, M Tignor, S Allen, J Boschung, A Nauels, Y Xia, V Bex and P Midgley (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)659-740
- Fang J, Yingjie M and Zili F 2002 A study on salt pollution cycle of cultivated land between drainage and irrigation in the main stream of Tarim River, Xinjiang, China Prospects for Saline Agriculture (Tasks for Vegetation Science vol 37) ed R Ahmad and K A Malik (Berlin: Springer) 37-42 (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-017- 0067-2_5) · DOI
- Paavilainen E and Päivänen J 1995 Peatland Forestry: Ecology and Principles. Ecological Studies vol 111 (Berlin: Springer)
- Authors
- Peacock, M., Audet, J., Bastviken, D., Futter, M. N., Gauci, V, Grinham, A., Harrison, J. A., Kent, M. S., Kosten, S., Lovelock, C. E., Veraart, A. J., & Evans, C. D.
- Affiliations
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SE)
- Aarhus University (DK)
- Linköping University (SE)
- University of Birmingham (GB)
- The University of Queensland (AU)
- Washington State University Vancouver (US)
- University of Nottingham (GB)
- Radboud University Nijmegen (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Peacock, M
- ORCID
- Venue
- Environmental Research Letters
- Publisher
- IOP Publishing
- Published
- 2021-03-15
- Volume
- 16
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 044010
- ISSN
- 1748-9326 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W3133668039
- Cited by
- 120
- References
- 52
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 23 · 2024: 33 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 1 · 2016: 2
- FWCI
- 8.20
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Environmental Research Letters (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- NERC Open Research Archive (Natural Environment Research Council) (acceptedVersion)
- Epsilon Open Archive (Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet biblioteket (Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences)) (acceptedVersion)
- DiVA (Linkoping University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
- University of Birmingham Research Portal (University of Birmingham) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- European Commission (725546, HORIZON2020)
- Svenska Forskningsrådet Formas (2020-00950)
- AXA Research Fund
- Natural Environment Research Council (NE/N015606/1, NE/V01627X/1)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Atmospheric and Environmental Gas Dynamics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
- Keywords
- methane emissions, drainage ditches, canals, drained land, greenhouse gas inventory, anthropogenic methane, temperature-dependent emission, land management, inland waters, global methane budget
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