Radiocarbon ages of smoke particles from fires in Indonesia during 2015 indicate that peat burning was the primary source of smoke, according to a study. During the Indonesian fires of 2015, which followed an El Niño-linked drought, smoke from the Indonesian archipelago traveled across Southeast Asia, reducing air quality in many cities. Researchers had previously identified peat as a possible fuel source for the fires and smoke, although burning forest and agricultural waste remained potential alternative fuel sources. Elizabeth B. Wiggins, James Randerson, and colleagues collected weekly samples of particulate matter in the air in Singapore during the 2014 and 2015 fire seasons and analyzed the samples for radiocarbon ages. The results revealed that the source organic matter originated from trees and plants with a mean age of around 800 years. Such a result was far too old to reflect the burning of contemporary living forests, which would exhibit ages on the scale of decades, or of surface agricultural waste, which would exhibit ages on the scale of a few years. The authors report that around 85% of the smoke that reached Singapore was likely from burning peat. According to the authors, the method for determining smoke origin from radiocarbon dating can help assess efforts aimed at protecting peat from wildfire.
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Article #18-06003: "Smoke radiocarbon measurements from Indonesian fires provide evidence for burning of millenniaaged peat," by Elizabeth B. Wiggins et al.
MEDIA CONTACTS: Elizabeth B. Wiggins, University of California, Irvine, CA; tel: 229-402-0339; e-mail: elizabeth.b.wiggins@nasa.gov; James Randerson, University of California, Irvine, CA; tel: 949-824-9030; e-mail: jranders@uci.edu
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences