Carbon Sequestration in Two Alpine Soils on the Tibetan Plateau

Soil carbon sequestration was estimated in a conifer forest and an alpine meadow on the Tibetan Plateau using a carbon-14 radioactive label provided by thermonuclear weapon tests (known as bomb-¹⁴C). Soil organic matter was physically separated into light and heavy fractions. The concentration spike of bomb-¹⁴C occurred at a soil depth of 4 cm in both the forest soil and the alpine meadow soil. Based on the depth of the bomb-¹⁴C spike, the carbon sequestration rate was determined to be 38.5 g C/m² per year for the forest soil and 27.1 g C/m² per year for the alpine meadow soil. Considering that more than 60% of soil organic carbon (SOC) is stored in the heavy fraction and the large area of alpine forests and meadows on the Tibetan Plateau, these alpine ecosystems might partially contribute to "the missing carbon sink".