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Complex carbon picture clearer
December 12, 2007Study shows that more plant litter resulting from higher CO2 could boost the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere
A new study looks at a poorly understood process with potentially critical consequences for climate change. Emma Sayer, postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Jennifer Powers, an assistant professor in the University of Minnesota's Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, and Edmund Tanner, researcher at Cambridge University, published the findings of their long-term study on the effects of increased plant litter on soil carbon and nutrient cycling in the December 12 edition of PLoS ONE.
As CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere continue to rise, increases in plant productivity - and litterfall - are likely. The study considers the impact of an increase in organic matter on the ground on processes belowground. Results suggest that the balance of carbon stored in the soils (thought to be a long-term sink for carbon) can be changed with the addition of fresh leaf litter. The capacity of soils to store carbon might then diminish if global environmental changes such as CO2 increases and nitrogen deposition boost plant productivity.
Over the course of the 5-year experiment, the fluxes of carbon dioxide from the soil surface to the atmosphere in a tropical forest in Panama were measured. These CO2 fluxes (also called soil respiration) come from two main sources: the respiration of roots and the decomposition of litter and soil organic matter by fungi, bacteria, and other microorganisms.
"To our surprise, the litter addition plots showed substantially higher amounts of soil respiration than would be predicted by the increase in leaf litter," said Powers. "We suspect that this extra CO2 in the litter addition plots was coming from the decomposition of 'old soil organic matter', which was stimulated by adding large quantities of fresh leaf litter." This effect, the stimulation of the decomposition of old, 'stored' organic carbon by the addition of fresh organic matter is known as the 'priming effect.' "There are important links between above-and belowground processes and we need to understand these links in order to assess the impact of global change and human disturbance on natural ecosystems" said Sayer.
The study has implications for policy makers considering new approaches to capping carbon emissions such as carbon sequestration. "Our results suggest unanticipated feedbacks to the carbon cycle that must be taken into account when estimating the potential for carbon sequestration in the soil," Powers said.
Public Library of Science
Over the course of the 5-year experiment, the fluxes of carbon dioxide from the soil surface to the atmosphere in a tropical forest in Panama were measured. These CO2 fluxes (also called soil respiration) come from two main sources: the respiration of roots and the decomposition of litter and soil organic matter by fungi, bacteria, and other microorganisms.
"To our surprise, the litter addition plots showed substantially higher amounts of soil respiration than would be predicted by the increase in leaf litter," said Powers. "We suspect that this extra CO2 in the litter addition plots was coming from the decomposition of 'old soil organic matter', which was stimulated by adding large quantities of fresh leaf litter." This effect, the stimulation of the decomposition of old, 'stored' organic carbon by the addition of fresh organic matter is known as the 'priming effect.' "There are important links between above-and belowground processes and we need to understand these links in order to assess the impact of global change and human disturbance on natural ecosystems" said Sayer.
The study has implications for policy makers considering new approaches to capping carbon emissions such as carbon sequestration. "Our results suggest unanticipated feedbacks to the carbon cycle that must be taken into account when estimating the potential for carbon sequestration in the soil," Powers said.
Public Library of Science
Decomposition Current Events and Decomposition News RSSORNL, Los Alamos pioneer new approach to assist scientists, farmers
Sustainable farming, initially adopted to preserve soil quality for future generations, may also play a role in maintaining a healthy climate, according to researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge and Los Alamos national laboratories.
Do 3 meals a day keep fungi away?
The fact that they eat a lot - and often - may explain why most people and other mammals are protected from the majority of fungal pathogens, according to research from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.
Arctic land and seas account for up to 25 percent of world's carbon sink
In a new study in the journal Ecological Monographs, ecologists estimate that Arctic lands and oceans are responsible for up to 25 percent of the global net sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Key new ingredient in climate model refines global predictions
For the first time, climate scientists from across the country have successfully incorporated the nitrogen cycle into global simulations for climate change, questioning previous assumptions regarding carbon feedback and potentially helping to refine model forecasts about global warming.
New insights into the 'smell of death' could help recover bodies in disasters and solve crimes
In an advance toward the first portable device for detecting human bodies buried in disasters and at crime scenes, scientists today report early results from a project to establish the chemical fingerprint of death.
'Green' energy from algae
In view of the shortage of petrochemical resources and climate change, development of CO2-neutral sustainable fuels is one of the most urgent challenges of our times.
Earth's biogeochemical cycles, once in concert, falling out of sync
What do the Gulf of Mexico's "dead zone," global climate change, and acid rain have in common? They're all a result of human impacts to Earth's biology, chemistry and geology, and the natural cycles that involve all three.
Iron isotopes as a tool in oceanography
New research involving scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS) highlights the potential utility of iron isotopes for addressing important questions in ocean science.
Bacteria with a built-in thermometer
Researchers in the "Molecular Infection Biology group" at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig and the Braunschweig Technical University could now demonstrate for the first time that bacteria of the Yersinia genus possess a unique protein thermometer - the protein RovA - which assists them in the infection process.
MIT replaces chrome coatings with safer metal alloys
Ever since the 1940s, chrome has been used to add a protective coating and shiny luster to a wide range of metal products, from bathroom fixtures to car bumpers.
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