Carbon emissions and sinks in agro-ecosystems of China

Besides ruminant animals and their wastes, soil is an important regulating medium in carbon cycling. The soil can be both a contributor to climate change and a recipient of impacts. In the past, land cultivation has generally resulted in considerable depletion of soil organic matter and the release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere. The observation in the North-South Transect of Eastern China showed that climate change and land use strongly impact all soil proc- esses and GHG exchanges between the soil and the atmosphere. Soil management can restore organic carbon by enhancing soil structure and fertility and by doing so mitigating the negative im- pacts of atmospheric greenhouses on climate. A wide estimation carried out in China shows that carbon sequestration potential is about 77.2 MMt C/a (ranging from 26.1-128.3 MMt C/a) using proposed IPCC activities during the next fifty years.