Terrestrial fluxes of carbon in GCP carbon budgets

The Global Carbon Project (GCP) has published global carbon budgets annually since 2007 (Canadell et al. [2007], Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 104, 18866–18870; Raupach et al. [2007], Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 104, 10288–10293). There are many scientists involved, but the terrestrial fluxes that appear in the budgets are not well understood by ecologists and biogeochemists outside of that community. The purpose of this paper is to make the terrestrial fluxes of carbon in those budgets more accessible to a broader community. The GCP budget is composed of annual perturbations from pre‐industrial conditions, driven by addition of carbon to the system from combustion of fossil fuels and by transfers of carbon from land to the atmosphere as a result of land use. The budget includes a term for each of the major fluxes of carbon (fossil fuels, oceans, land) as well as the rate of carbon accumulation in the atmosphere. Land is represented by two terms: one resulting from direct anthropogenic effects (Land Use, Land‐Use Change, and Forestry or land management) and one resulting from indirect anthropogenic (e.g., CO₂, climate change) and natural effects. Each of these two net terrestrial fluxes of carbon, in turn, is composed of opposing gross emissions and removals (e.g., deforestation and forest regrowth). Although the GCP budgets have focused on the two net terrestrial fluxes, they have paid little attention to the gross components, which are important for a number of reasons, including understanding the potential for land management to remove CO₂ from the atmosphere and understanding the processes responsible for the sink for carbon on land. In contrast to the net fluxes of carbon, which are constrained by the global carbon budget, the gross fluxes are largely unconstrained, suggesting that there is more uncertainty than commonly believed about how terrestrial carbon emissions will respond to future fossil fuel emissions and a changing climate.     

Differences in pH influence the fate of CO2 in plants

Soils represent the largest and most stable carbon pools on Earth, exceeding even the carbon aggregate found in the atmosphere and global phytomass. However, our understanding of how CO₂ travels from the soil to the atmosphere, and the role of plants in this journey, is not fully understood. An article in this issue of Physiologia Plantarum (Shimono et al. 2019) sheds light on this process and unearths the dramatic effect pH can have on the fate of CO₂ in plants.     

内蒙古东部天然白桦林的凋落物性质和储量及其随温度和降水梯度的变化格局

作为碳素和养分循环的重要组分, 地表凋落物如何响应全球气候变化日益受到重视。中国北方半干旱地区森林草原过渡带斑块状分布的森林对气候变化引起的水热变化的响应较为敏感, 但是对这些森林地表处于不同分解阶段的凋落物的化学性质和储量的格局及其如何响应温度、降水变化的报道较少。该研究分析了内蒙古东部地区处于年平均气温和年降水量梯度上的12个天然白桦(Betula platyphylla)林不同凋落物层次(最上层的初步分解层L1, 中间的半分解层L2, 最下层的腐殖质层L3)的化学性质及现存量后发现: 1)随着分解的进行(即从L1到L3层), 氮、磷浓度显著增加, 可提取物浓度基本不变, 酸溶性组分(acid soluble fraction, AS)浓度下降, 酸不溶性组分(acid insoluble fraction, AIF)浓度增加。2)各元素现存量均在L3层最高, 表明凋落物分解缓慢, 养分积累。3)年平均气温和年降水量对凋落物有机组分(AS组分和AIF组分)的性质无显著影响, 但L3层元素储量随年平均气温升高而增加, 可能由于年平均气温较高的地点森林生产力更高, 从而导致叶凋落物量增加, 但由于受水分限制(尤其是在夏天), 这些地点的凋落物分解速率不变或更低, 使凋落物积累更为明显。上述结果表明: 腐殖质层是这些白桦林的一个重要的碳及养分库, 未来在降水没有明显变化的情况下, 这一区域的升温可能会增加白桦林地表凋落物储量。     

铁施肥促进海洋浮游植物和生物碳泵的不确定性

铁作为浮游植物所必需的微量元素,限制了全球超过三分之一海域的初级生产力,尤其是在高营养盐、低叶绿素海域(high nutrient low chlorophyll,HNLC)。长期以来海洋铁施肥被认为是一项可以降低大气二氧化碳含量的地球工程策略。然而通过13次海洋人工铁施肥(artificial ocean iron fertilization,aOIF)实验发现,铁的额外添加对海洋深层碳输出量的促进作用要显著低于预期。本文简要地总结了碳在海洋和大气中的循环过程,回顾了人工铁施肥实验对生物碳泵和碳通量等的影响,分析了从海洋铁施肥到海洋碳汇关键生物地球化学过程的影响因素。综上分析发现,科学界对生物碳泵过程及其调控机制的认识仍十分浅薄,考虑到海洋铁施肥还会对海洋生态系统带来一定的负面作用,铁施肥能否作为降低大气中CO₂的有效手段,以达到碳中和并缓解温室效应仍需进一步研究。     

不同利用方式对红壤CO2排放的影响

采用静态箱法研究了我国亚热带红壤区农田利用方式 (旱地或水田 )对土壤 CO2 排放及其相关因子的影响 ,并估算了旱地和水田 CO2 的年排放通量。结果表明 ,水田在淹水植稻期 (夏季 ) ,其排放通量明显低于旱地 ,而在非淹水期 (排水落干或休闲期 ) ,其排放通量则显著高于旱地。 CO2 排放通量呈现明显的季节性变异 ,旱地以夏季最高、春秋季次之、冬季最低 ;而水田则以秋季最高、其次是春冬季、夏季最低。土壤温度和湿度分别是影响旱地和水田 CO2 排放的主导因子 ,可将二者与通量的指数关系作为模型 ,分别进行旱地和水田 CO2 排放的估算。经模型估算 ,我国中亚热带旱地和水田红壤 CO2 的年排放通量分别为 1.37和 2 .73kg CO2 / (m2 · a) )。     

Multiple functions of inducible plant volatiles

A considerable amount of the carbon fixed by plants is emitted back into the atmosphere as volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Novel inducible VOCs released from plants after biotic or abiotic stresses temporarily increase total emissions of carbon substantially. As well as having a role in attracting the natural enemies of herbivores, inducible VOCs are also involved in plant-to-plant signalling, pathogen defence and ozone quenching, as well as tropospheric ozone and fine-particle aerosol formation. To relate these diverse observations to active plant defence, a conceptual framework of four functional levels (plant cellular interspace, leaf boundary layer, ecosystem and atmosphere) of inducible VOCs is proposed to aid understanding of the evolutionary role of inducible plant volatiles.     

Modelling the role of urban forest in the regulation of carbon balance in an industrial area of India

The increase in greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, in the atmosphere contributes to climate change. People and policy makers are becoming more interested in the role of urban trees in regulating the global carbon cycle. Carbon dioxide emissions from anthropogenic sources are mainly caused by the burning of fossil fuels, which are major contributors to the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Therefore, a better understanding of the carbon sequestration process by urban forests and its exchange between air and soil is the first step to offsetting the impacts of climate change in urban areas.Here, a dynamic model was constructed including the carbon stock of forest, litter carbon and soil organic carbon pool. The study emphasized the relationship between the three carbon pools. The monthly dynamics of the pools were studied. A sensitivity analysis was performed followed by calibration and validation. The results showed that the mean growth rate of forest biomass was the most sensitive factor, followed by the decomposition rate and the uptake rate of organic carbon by detritivores.If the biomass of the existing forest is maintained sustainably, more carbon dioxide could be sequestered. In addition, the model showed that afforestation in the Asansol-Durgapur Planning Area would increase the carbon stocks of the forest and to some extent offset the problem of carbon dioxide release from the nearby coal mines and other factories. In the near future, the model will benefit forest managers in carrying out urban management in the Earth's tropical belt.     

北方森林土壤呼吸和木质残体分解释放出的CO2通量

北方森林因其面积大、土壤碳储量高以及对全球暖化响应敏感而在全球碳平衡和气候系统中起着至关重要的作用。土壤呼吸和木质残体分解释放出的 CO2 通量是北方森林生态系统输入大气圈的最主要的碳源。量化这个通量并深刻理解其中的机理过程 ,是评价和预测北方森林在全球变化中的作用必不可少的内容。综述了北方森林生态系统土壤呼吸和木质残体分解释放出的 CO2 通量随生态系统类型及环境条件而变化的一般格局以及自养呼吸和异氧呼吸在土壤表面 CO2 通量中的相对贡献 ;分析了影响北方森林土壤呼吸的主要生物物理因子 ;讨论了该领域研究存在的问题和今后的研究方向 ;并强调木质残体分解释放出的 CO2 通量虽然在以往的森林生态系统碳平衡研究中常被忽略 ,但在火灾频繁的北方森林中不容忽视     

Terrestrial and marine perspectives on modeling organic matter degradation pathways

Organic matter (OM) plays a major role in both terrestrial and oceanic biogeochemical cycles. The amount of carbon stored in these systems is far greater than that of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere, and annual fluxes of CO₂ from these pools to the atmosphere exceed those from fossil fuel combustion. Understanding the processes that determine the fate of detrital material is important for predicting the effects that climate change will have on feedbacks to the global carbon cycle. However, Earth System Models (ESMs) typically utilize very simple formulations of processes affecting the mineralization and storage of detrital OM. Recent changes in our view of the nature of this material and the factors controlling its transformation have yet to find their way into models. In this review, we highlight the current understanding of the role and cycling of detrital OM in terrestrial and marine systems and examine how this pool of material is represented in ESMs. We include a discussion of the different mineralization pathways available as organic matter moves from soils, through inland waters to coastal systems and ultimately into open ocean environments. We argue that there is strong commonality between aspects of OM transformation in both terrestrial and marine systems and that our respective scientific communities would benefit from closer collaboration.     

Physiological and ecological controls on carbon sequestering in terrestrial ecosystems

Carbon cycling processes in ecosystems are generally believed to be well understood. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and other essential elements are chemically converted from inorganic to organic compounds primarily in the process of photosynthesis. Secondary metabolic processes cycle carbon in and among organisms and carbon is ultimately released back to the environment as CO₂ by respiratory processes. Unfortunately, our understanding of this cycle was determined under the assumption that the primary inorganic form of C (CO₂ in the atmosphere) was relatively constant. With the emerging concensus that atmospheric carbon concentration is increasing, we must now reassess our understanding of the carbon cycle. How will plants, animals and decomposers respond to a doubling of carbon supply? Will biological productivity be accelerated? If plant productivity increases will a predictable percentage of the increase be accumulated as increased standing crop? Or, is it possible that doubling the availability of CO₂ will increase metabolic activity at all trophic levels resulting in no net increase in system standing crop? The purpose of this paper is to review evidence for physiological and growth responses of plants to carbon dioxide enhancement. Essentially no research has been completed on the ecological aspects of these questions. From this review, I conclude that accurate predictions of future ecosystem responses to increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration are not possible without additional understanding of physiological and ecological mechanisms.     

Significance of ocean carbonate budgets for the global carbon cycle

Changes in the trace gas composition of the atmosphere over glacial–interglacial cycles are linked to changes in the oceanic carbon cycle. This paper examines the role of biologically driven fluxes of organic and inorganic carbon in modifying the carbon dioxide chemistry of the oceans, and the corresponding implications for the partitioning of CO₂ between the atmosphere and ocean. Relevant details of the marine carbon system are presented together with an assessment of the significance of remineralization and dissolution processes. Recent estimates of the marine carbonate fluxes show significant uncertainties and inconsistencies which must be resolved in order to assess fully the role of the oceans' biota in the marine carbon system. Various types of ocean carbon cycle models have been developed in order to interpret the changes in past atmospheric carbon dioxide. Some take account of the role of the oceans' biota, focussing in the main on the cycling of organic matter. Relatively few have considered the role of the carbonate pump and the subtle interactions between organic and inorganic carbon cycling. The significance of carbonate formation and dissolution, and of the effects of global change on the marine carbonate system, for air–sea fluxes of CO₂ are discussed. Finally some recommendations for future research are made in order to improve our understanding of how spatial and temporal variation in marine carbonate fluxes, in conjunction with processes determining the oxidation and burial of organic matter in the oceans, affect levels of CO₂ in the atmosphere.     

土壤有机碳动态:风蚀效应

土壤风蚀是引起土壤退化最广泛的形式和原因之一。土壤风蚀对土壤碳动态的影响机制一方面是土壤风蚀引起土壤退化使土壤生产力下降,输入土壤的碳数量减少;另一方面是富含有机碳的细粒物质直接移出系统。风蚀土壤碳的去向包括:(1)就近沉积,(2)沉积于水渠和河流,输入水体;(3)以粉尘形式运移,在远离风蚀区的地域沉积;(4)氧化释放至大气。风蚀引起土壤碳的迁移和沉积不仅导致土壤有机碳在地域间的再分布,使土壤性状的空间异质性增加,也显著改变了土壤系统中碳矿化的生物学过程。土壤有机碳的保持可以促进团聚体的形成,使土壤物理稳定性增加,减缓风蚀。对易风蚀土地进行退耕还林还草、实行保护性耕作等措施可以有效增加土壤碳的固存。     

单细胞原生生物在海洋碳汇研究中的重要性和展望

海洋是地球上最大的碳库,通过对CO~2的固定以及与大气物质和能量的交换,海洋对全球气候的变化起到关键的调控作用。随着全球气候变化的加剧,增加海洋碳汇已经成为应对全球气候变化的热门研究课题和主要途径之一。海洋微型生物在海洋的固碳过程及碳循环中起到关键的作用,对海洋碳汇意义重大。本文综述了一类重要的海洋微型生物——单细胞原生生物在海洋碳汇研究中的重要性,分析了其中的代表——网粘菌门(Labyrintholomycota)原生生物在海洋碳循环和次级生产中的意义,并从清楚地认识海洋碳汇的过程和机制方面,提出未来该领域急需解决的科学问题和可能的研究方案,为丰富海洋碳汇研究的生物学基础提供理论依据。     

Large-scale sequestration of atmospheric carbon via plant roots in natural and agricultural ecosystems: why and how

The soil holds twice as much carbon as does the atmosphere, and most soil carbon is derived from recent photosynthesis that takes carbon into root structures and further into below-ground storage via exudates therefrom. Nonetheless, many natural and most agricultural crops have roots that extend only to about 1 m below ground. What determines the lifetime of below-ground C in various forms is not well understood, and understanding these processes is therefore key to optimising them for enhanced C sequestration. Most soils (and especially subsoils) are very far from being saturated with organic carbon, and calculations show that the amounts of C that might further be sequestered (http://dbkgroup.org/carbonsequestration/rootsystem.html) are actually very great. Breeding crops with desirable below-ground C sequestration traits, and exploiting attendant agronomic practices optimised for individual species in their relevant environments, are therefore important goals. These bring additional benefits related to improvements in soil structure and in the usage of other nutrients and water.     

碳同位素技术在森林生态系统碳循环研究中的应用

碳同位素技术对碳素在生态系统中的迁移动态具有很好的示踪作用,在生态学各领域研究中应用广泛。土壤、大气、植物是森林生态系统的重要碳库,植物是大气和土壤交换碳元素的重要介质。本文简要总结了碳同位素技术在研究碳元素在植物体内以及植物、土壤、大气碳库之间的迁移规律和生态学过程中的应用,展望了该技术在森林界面学中的应用前景。     

The role of the terrestrial biosphere in Holocene carbon cycle dynamics

Measurements of atmospheric CO₂ concentration, and its stable carbon isotope composition, from gas samples trapped in ice at Taylor Dome, Antarctica, indicate that the global carbon cycle has not been in steady state during the Holocene epoch. Inverse carbon cycle modelling has led to the hypothesized cumulative release from the terrestrial biosphere of 195 Gt C between 7 and 1 kyr before present (bp ). Here, three independent lines of evidence testing this hypothesis are critically examined: global reconstructions of terrestrial carbon reservoirs, vegetation–climate modelling, and high latitude subfossil plant stable carbon isotope records. Despite inherent uncertainties associated with each approach, it emerges that none strongly upholds the suggestion that terrestrial ecosystems released large amounts of carbon between 7 and 1 kyr bp . Consequently, our understanding of the processes involved in the exchange of CO₂ between the atmosphere, oceans and land biota continues to remain incomplete and to require further investigation.     

珊瑚共生体碳代谢特征研究进展

珊瑚礁作为一种典型的海洋生态系统,具有巨大的固碳和储碳潜力。然而,目前对于珊瑚礁的净碳能力(碳释放与碳吸收)仍存在争议,主要归因于珊瑚共生体碳代谢的多样性和复杂性。珊瑚礁在生物钙化、呼吸过程中向大气释放二氧化碳(CO₂);但在生物合成和沉积过程中却可以将碳进行固定与埋藏;为此,珊瑚礁的碳源碳汇身份还有待明确。现有部分研究表明,共生体通过碳代谢可以促进珊瑚礁吸收大气中的CO₂。此外,珊瑚礁和海岸带蓝碳生态系统通常表现出很强的连通性,珊瑚共生体碳代谢能有效提高海岸带盐沼植被、海草床、海洋浮游植物等生物的碳汇功能。为了加深对珊瑚礁碳源-碳汇功能的理解,综述了珊瑚共生体的碳代谢特征,梳理了共生体中碳的关键生态过程(有机碳的迁移、无机碳的转化、两者的赋存状态),总结了细菌-虫黄藻-病毒在共生体碳代谢中的作用,评述了珊瑚礁碳源-碳汇特征及影响因子。旨在阐明珊瑚共生体碳代谢的关键过程,并基于此寻求有效的珊瑚礁碳增汇技术,形成以碳增量为主的珊瑚保护与修复技术,提升珊瑚礁在蓝碳生态系统中的贡献。     

Stable Isotopes and Carbon Cycle Processes in Forests and Grasslands

Abstract: Scaling and partitioning are frequently two difficult challenges facing ecology today. With regard to ecosystem carbon balance studies, ecologists and atmospheric scientists are often interested in asking how fluxes of carbon dioxide scale across the landscape, region and continent. Yet at the same time, physiological ecologists and ecosystem ecologists are interested in dissecting the net ecosystem CO₂ exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere to achieve a better understanding of the balance between photosynthesis and respiration within a forest. In both of these multiple-scale ecological questions, stable isotope analyses of carbon dioxide can play a central role in influencing our understanding of the extent to which terrestrial ecosystems are carbon sinks. In this synthesis, we review the theory and present field evidence to address isotopic scaling of CO₂ fluxes. We first show that the ¹³C isotopic signal which ecosystems impart to the atmosphere does not remain constant over time at either temporal or spatial scales. The relative balances of different biological activities and plant responses to stress result in dynamic changes in the ¹³C isotopic exchange between the biosphere and atmosphere, with both seasonal and stand-age factors playing major roles influencing the ¹³C biosphere-atmosphere exchange. We then examine how stable isotopes are used to partition net ecosystem exchange fluxes in order to calculate shifts in the balance of photosynthesis and respiration. Lastly, we explore how fundamental differences in the ¹⁸O isotopic gas exchange of forest and grassland ecosystems can be used to further partition terrestrial fluxes.     

The influence of terrestrial ecosystems on climate

Terrestrial ecosystems influence climate by affecting how much solar energy is absorbed by the land surface and by exchanging climatically important gases with the atmosphere. Recent model analyses show widespread qualitative agreement that terrestrial ecological processes will have a net positive feedback effect on 21st-century global warming, and, therefore, cannot be ignored in climate-change projections. However, the quantitative uncertainty in the net feedback is large. The uncertainty in 21st-century carbon dioxide emissions resulting from terrestrial carbon cycle-climate feedbacks is second in magnitude only to the uncertainty in anthropogenic emissions. We estimate that this translates into an uncertainty in global warming owing to the land surface of 1.5 degrees C by 2100. We also emphasise the need to improve our understanding of terrestrial ecological processes that influence land-atmosphere interactions at relatively long timescales (decadal-century) as well as at shorter intervals (e.g. hourly).     

全球碳循环中的失汇及其形成原因

近 2 0多年来 ,大气碳收支不平衡 ,即碳失汇 ( Missing carbon sink) ,一直是全球碳循环研究的核心问题之一。在总结全球碳失汇的主要研究成果基础上 ,分析了碳失汇数量和可能分布地点 ,并对形成的主要原因 :CO2 施肥作用、氮沉降的变化、变暖促进氮矿化和早期破坏后的森林再生等 ,进行了综述和分析 ,指出了该问题的复杂性。