Terrestrial carbon‐cycle feedback to climate warming: experimental evidence on plant regulation and impacts of biofuel feedstock harvest

Feedback between global carbon (C) cycles and climate change is one of the major uncertainties in projecting future global warming. Coupled carbon–climate models all demonstrated a positive feedback between terrestrial C cycle and climate warming. The positive feedback results from decreased net primary production (NPP) in most models and increased respiratory C release by all the models under climate warming. Those modeling results present interesting hypotheses of future states of ecosystems and climate, which are yet to be tested against experimental results. In this study, we examined ecosystem C balance and its major components in a warming and clipping experiment in a North America tallgrass prairie. Infrared heaters have been used to elevate soil temperature by approximately 2 °C continuously since November 1999. Clipping once a year was to mimic hay or biofuel feedstock harvest. On average of data over 6 years from 2000 to 2005, estimated NPP under warming increased by 14% without clipping (P<0.05) and 26% with clipping (P<0.05) in comparison with that under control. Warming did not result in instantaneous increases in soil respiration in 1999 and 2000 but significantly increased it by approximately 8% without clipping (P<0.05) from 2001 to 2005. Soil respiration under warming increased by 15% with clipping (P<0.05) from 2000 to 2005. Warming‐stimulated plant biomass production, due to enhanced C₄ dominance, extended growing seasons, and increased nitrogen uptake and use efficiency, offset increased soil respiration, leading to no change in soil C storage at our site. However, biofuel feedstock harvest by biomass removal resulted in significant soil C loss in the clipping and control plots but was carbon negative in the clipping and warming plots largely because of positive interactions of warming and clipping in stimulating root growth. Our results demonstrate that plant production processes play a critical role in regulation of ecosystem carbon‐cycle feedback to climate change in both the current ambient and future warmed world.     

On carbon sequestration in desert ecosystems

Recent reports of net ecosysytem production >100 gCm⁻² yr⁻¹ in deserts are incompatible with existing measurements of net primary production and carbon pools in deserts. The comparisions suggest that gas exchange measurements should be used with caution and better validation if they are expected to indicate the magnitude of carbon sink in these ecosysytems.     

Is soil carbon disappearing? The dynamics of soil organic carbon in Java

Research in the soil of the tropics mostly has demonstrated the decline of soil organic carbon (SOC) after conversion of primary forest to plantation and cultivated lands. This paper illustrates the dynamics of SOC on the island of Java, Indonesia, from 1930 to 2010. We used 2002 soil profile observations containing organic carbon (C) analysis in the topsoil, which were collected by the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Land Resources Research & Development from 1923 to 2007. Results show the obvious decline of SOC values from around 2% in 1930–1940 to 0.8% in 1960–1970. However, there has been an increase of SOC content since 1970, with a median level of 1.1% in the year 2000. Our analysis suggests that the human influence and agricultural practices on SOC in Java have been a stronger influence than the environmental factors. SOC for the top 10 cm has shown a net accumulation rate of 0.2–0.3 Mg C ha^?1 yr^?1 during the period 1990–2000. These findings give rise to optimism for increased soil C sequestration in the tropics.     

长白山原始针叶林沼泽湿地生态系统碳储量

采用年轮分析及相对生长方程法与碳/氮分析仪测定法,测定温带长白山沿湿地过渡带环境梯度依次分布的5种典型原始沼泽类型(草丛沼泽-C、灌丛沼泽-G、落叶松泥炭藓沼泽-LN、落叶松藓类沼泽-LX和落叶松苔草沼泽-LT)生态系统碳储量(植被和土壤)、植被净初级生产力与年净固碳量,定量评价温带森林湿地固碳能力及其长期碳汇作用,并揭示其沿过渡带水分环境梯度的空间分异规律。结果表明:①5种天然沼泽类型的植被碳储量(3.18±1.70)—(112.2±18.3) tC/hm~2沿过渡带环境梯度总体上呈递增趋势,针叶林沼泽显著高于C和G 12.2—34.3倍,G高于C 0.6倍,且LX和LT显著高于LN 0.3—0.6倍;②土壤碳储量(296.3±42.2)—(824.50±50.79) tC/hm~2沿过渡带环境梯度总体上呈递减趋势,C显著高于G和针叶林沼泽30.8%—178.3%(P0.05),G显著高于针叶林沼泽38.7%—112.8%,且LN和LT显著高于LX 32.8%—53.4%;③生态系统碳储量(408.42±57.53)—(827.52±50.96) tC/hm~2沿过渡带环境梯度总体上也呈递减趋势,C显著高于G和针叶林沼泽30.2%—102.7%,G显著高于针叶林沼泽21.5%—55.6%,且LN和LT显著高于LX 18.8%—28.0%;④5种沼泽类型的植被净初级生产力与年净固碳量分布在(5.74±0.08)—(10.98±1.67) t hm~(-2) a~(-1)和(2.44±0.03)—(5.17±0.83)tC hm~(-2) a~(-1),其中,LX和LT的植被净初级生产力显著高于C、G和LN 61.2%—91.3%和34.5%—59.6%;而在植被年净固碳量方面,3种针叶林沼泽类型均显著高于C和G 28.7%—111.9%和19.4%—96.6%。故长白山5种天然沼泽类型的植被净初级生产力与年净固碳量沿湿地过渡带环境梯度总体上呈现出阶梯式递增趋势,且仅有LX和LT达到了中国陆地植被及全球陆地植被平均固碳水平。因此,温带长白山沼草丛沼泽和灌丛沼泽长期碳汇作用强于森林沼泽,湿地碳汇管理实践中应重视草丛沼泽和灌丛沼泽的保护与恢复。     

中国陆地生态系统碳源/汇整合分析

国家尺度陆地生态系统碳收支及其循环过程的研究对于提升地球系统科学与全球变化科学的科技创新能力、提高我国参与应对全球气候变化国际行动和维护国家利益的话语权、保障国家生态安全和改进生态系统管理都具有重要意义。近年来,我国已经在气候变化与陆地生态系统碳循环领域开展了大量的研究工作,主要包括国家清查、生态系统模型模拟、大气反演等手段。然而,由于大尺度陆地生态系统碳源/汇的估算存在很大的不确定性,目前尚未形成国家尺度的陆地生态系统碳源/汇的整合分析。通过搜集已发表的关于中国陆地生态系统及其组分碳源/汇的59篇文献,整合国家清查、生态系统模型模拟、大气反演3种研究手段,分析中国陆地生态系统碳源/汇大小以及时间尺度上的动态变化。结果表明,在1960s-2010s期间中国陆地生态系统碳汇整体呈上升趋势,平均为（0.213±0.030）Pg C/a,其中森林、草地、农田和灌木生态系统碳汇分别为（0.101±0.023）Pg C/a、（0.032±0.007）Pg C/a、（0.043±0.010）Pg C/a和（0.028±0.010）Pg C/a。森林生态系统中的植被碳汇远大于土壤碳汇,然而这种格局在草地和农田生态系统却相反,而且1960s-2010s期间中国主要植被类型的生态系统碳汇总体上随时间呈增加趋势。融合多源数据（地面观测、激光雷达、卫星遥感等）、多尺度数据（样地尺度、站点尺度、区域尺度）以及多手段数据（联网观测、森林清查、模型模拟）,有助于全面准确地评估中国陆地生态系统碳源/汇及其对气候变化的响应。     

Modeled interactive effects of precipitation, temperature, and [CO2] on ecosystem carbon and water dynamics in different climatic zones

Interactive effects of multiple global change factors on ecosystem processes are complex. It is relatively expensive to explore those interactions in manipulative experiments. We conducted a modeling analysis to identify potentially important interactions and to stimulate hypothesis formulation for experimental research. Four models were used to quantify interactive effects of climate warming (T), altered precipitation amounts [doubled (DP) and halved (HP)] and seasonality (SP, moving precipitation in July and August to January and February to create summer drought), and elevated [CO₂] (C) on net primary production (NPP), heterotrophic respiration (R_h), net ecosystem production (NEP), transpiration, and runoff. We examined those responses in seven ecosystems, including forests, grasslands, and heathlands in different climate zones. The modeling analysis showed that none of the three‐way interactions among T, C, and altered precipitation was substantial for either carbon or water processes, nor consistent among the seven ecosystems. However, two‐way interactive effects on NPP, R_h, and NEP were generally positive (i.e. amplification of one factor's effect by the other factor) between T and C or between T and DP. A negative interaction (i.e. depression of one factor's effect by the other factor) occurred for simulated NPP between T and HP. The interactive effects on runoff were positive between T and HP. Four pairs of two‐way interactive effects on plant transpiration were positive and two pairs negative. In addition, wet sites generally had smaller relative changes in NPP, R_h, runoff, and transpiration but larger absolute changes in NEP than dry sites in response to the treatments. The modeling results suggest new hypotheses to be tested in multifactor global change experiments. Likewise, more experimental evidence is needed for the further improvement of ecosystem models in order to adequately simulate complex interactive processes.     

陆地生态系统碳汇能力估算及空间分布特征:以嘉兴西南三县为例

全球气候变化问题日益严重;绿色低碳转型势在必行。定量估算陆地生态系统碳汇能力有助于掌握碳汇资源本底、识别碳汇重要空间、制定固碳增汇策略。本文以浙江嘉兴西南三县为例;综合碳储量和净生态系统生产力双要素进行碳汇能力评价;并探讨不同用地布局模式下的碳汇能力差异。结果表明;嘉兴西南三县陆地生态系统的碳储量总量为1.54 Tg;平均碳密度为35.06 t·hm^-2;高值区对应南部山林区以及北部的园地集聚片区;距离城市中心越近其碳储量和碳密度越低;净生态系统生产力平均值为463.34 g·m^-2·a^-1;碳源区域主要集中于城市建成区附近以及南侧钱塘江沿岸;碳汇高值区域主要位于南部山林区以及海盐县部分零散林地。整体上;碳汇能力表现为林地>园地>绿地与开敞空间用地;且细碎化、分散化、边缘化程度越高的生态系统碳汇能力越低。基于研究结果针对不同用地类型提出了差异化的碳汇能力提升策略。