Peatlands are the most potent carbon sink on land. High water levels indicate a healthy state in wetland, and boost CO 2 uptake and storage in the soil. Low water levels, however, impair the health of wetland and promote the release of GHGs like methane and CO 2. For these reasons, monitoring water levels in those peatlands is crucial to maximize their carbon uptake and mitigate climate change.
Unfortunately, existing water-level monitoring wells in the region are still measured manually. On top of that, the monitoring sites are often hard to reach, sometimes requiring a day of journeying through a dense jungle.
In that spirit, Plant-e is currently setting up a plant-powered wireless water-level sensing pilot in a peatland nature reserve in Sumatra, Indonesia, in collaboration with wetlands- and rainforest-restoration company Forest Carbon. We are installing 8 fully autonomous wireless water-level sensors powered by our Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell technology at different remote locations. Our sensors automatically collect and send the measurements wirelessly to a satellite, without having to rely on a land-based network or human intervention for data collection.
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