Fuente: News releases - University of Sheffield
Expuesto el: lunes, 18 de junio de 2012 8:40
Autor: All news - University of Sheffield
Asunto: Expansion of forests in the European Arctic could result in the release of carbon dioxide
| 18 June 2012 Carbon stored in the Arctic tundra could be released into the atmosphere by new trees growing in the warmer region which is exacerbating climate change, scientists at the University of Sheffield have revealed.
Greater plant growth means more carbon is stored in the increasing biomass. Previously it was thought the greening would result in more carbon dioxide being taken up from the atmosphere, thus helping to reduce the rate of global warming, however the new research refutes this. Dr Gareth Phoenix, of the University of Sheffield’s Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, who collaborated on the research, said: “The encroachment of trees onto the Arctic tundra caused by the warming may cause a large release of carbon to the atmosphere, which would be bad for global warming. “This is because tundra soil contains a lot of stored organic matter, due to slow decomposition, but the trees stimulate the decomposition of this material. So, where before we thought trees moving onto tundra would increase carbon storage it seems the opposite may be true. This is more bad news for climate change.” However, research published in Nature Climate Change, shows that, by stimulating decomposition rates in soils, the expansion of forest into tundra in Arctic Sweden could result in the release of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. By measuring carbon stocks in vegetation and soils between tundra and neighbouring birch forest, it was shown that compared to tundra, the two-fold greater carbon storage in plant biomass in the forest was more than outweighed by the smaller carbon stocks in forest soils. Furthermore, using a novel methodology based on measuring the radiocarbon content of the carbon dioxide being released, the researchers found that the birch trees appeared to be stimulating the decomposition of soil organic matter. Thus, the research was able to identify a mechanism by which the birch trees can contribute directly to reducing carbon storage in soils. Lead author Dr Iain Hartley of the University of Exeter said: “Determining directly how carbon storage is changing in high-latitude ecosystems is very difficult because the majority of the carbon present is stored below ground in the soils. Our work indicates that greater plant biomass may not always translate into greater carbon storage at the ecosystem level. “We need to better understand how the anticipated changes in the distribution of different plant communities in the Arctic affects the decomposition of the large carbon stocks in tundra soils if we are to be able to predict how Arctic greening will affect carbon dioxide uptake or release in the future.” The results of the study are in sharp contrast to the predictions of models which expect total carbon storage to increase with the greater plant growth. Rather, this research suggests that colonisation by productive, high-biomass, plant communities in the Arctic may not always result in greater capture of carbon dioxide, but instead net losses of carbon are possible if the decomposition of the large carbon stocks in Arctic soils are stimulated. This is important as Arctic soils currently store more carbon than is present in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide and thus have considerable potential to affect rates of climate change. It is yet to be seen whether this observed pattern is confined to certain soil conditions and colonising tree species, or whether the carbon stocks in the soils of other arctic or alpine ecosystems may be vulnerable to colonisation by new plant communities as the climate continues to warm. The research took place within the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)-funded Arctic Biosphere Atmosphere Coupling at Multiple Scales project (ABACUS; www.abacus-ipy.org) which was led by the University of Edinburgh. This particular study was carried out by a team from the University of Exeter, University of Stirling, NERC Radiocarbon Facility, James Hutton Institute (Aberdeen), the University of Sheffield, and Heriot-Watt University. Additional information: The University’s Department of Animal and Plant Sciences The University of Sheffield With nearly 25,000 students from 125 countries, the University of Sheffield is one of the UK’s leading and largest universities. A member of the Russell Group, it has a reputation for world-class teaching and research excellence across a wide range of disciplines. The University of Sheffield has been named University of the Year in the Times Higher Education Awards for its exceptional performance in research, teaching, access and business performance. In addition, the University has won four Queen’s Anniversary Prizes (1998, 2000, 2002, and 2007). These prestigious awards recognise outstanding contributions by universities and colleges to the United Kingdom’s intellectual, economic, cultural and social life. Sheffield also boasts five Nobel Prize winners among former staff and students and many of its alumni have gone on to hold positions of great responsibility and influence around the world. The University’s research partners and clients include Boeing, Rolls Royce, Unilever, Boots, AstraZeneca, GSK, ICI, Slazenger, and many more household names, as well as UK and overseas government agencies and charitable foundations. The University has well-established partnerships with a number of universities and major corporations, both in the UK and abroad. Its partnership with Leeds and York Universities in the White Rose Consortium has a combined research power greater than that of either Oxford or Cambridge. For more information please contact: Paul Mannion
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