Abstract
Rising levels of atmospheric CO2 frequently stimulate plant inputs to soil, but the consequences of these changes for soil carbon (C) dynamics are poorly understood. Plant-derived inputs can accumulate in the soil and become part of the soil C pool ("new soil C"), or accelerate losses of pre-existing ("old") soil C. The dynamics of the new and old pools will likely differ and alter the long-term fate of soil C, but these separate pools, which can be distinguished through isotopic labeling, have not been considered in past syntheses. Using meta-analysis, we found that while elevated CO2 (ranging from 550 to 800 parts per million by volume) stimulates the accumulation of new soil C in the short term (<1 year), these effects do not persist in the longer term (1-4 years). Elevated CO2 does not affect the decomposition or the size of the old soil C pool over either temporal scale. Our results are inconsistent with predictions of conventional soil C models and suggest that elevated CO2 might increase turnover rates of new soil C. Because increased turnover rates of new soil C limit the potential for additional soil C sequestration, the capacity of land ecosystems to slow the rise in atmospheric CO2 concentrations may be smaller than previously assumed.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Journal | Global Change Biology |
| DOIs | |
| State | Accepted/In press - 2017 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- Isotopes
- Meta-analysis
- Respiration
- Roots
- Soil carbon
- Turnover
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Global and Planetary Change
- Environmental Chemistry
- Ecology
- Environmental Science(all)
Cite this
Faster turnover of new soil carbon inputs under increased atmospheric CO2 . / van Groenigen, Kees Jan; Osenberg, Craig W.; Terrer, César; Carrillo, Yolima; Dijkstra, Feike A.; Heath, James; Nie, Ming; Pendall, Elise; Phillips, Richard P.; Hungate, Bruce A.
In: Global Change Biology, 2017.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Faster turnover of new soil carbon inputs under increased atmospheric CO2
AU - van Groenigen, Kees Jan
AU - Osenberg, Craig W.
AU - Terrer, César
AU - Carrillo, Yolima
AU - Dijkstra, Feike A.
AU - Heath, James
AU - Nie, Ming
AU - Pendall, Elise
AU - Phillips, Richard P.
AU - Hungate, Bruce A
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Rising levels of atmospheric CO2 frequently stimulate plant inputs to soil, but the consequences of these changes for soil carbon (C) dynamics are poorly understood. Plant-derived inputs can accumulate in the soil and become part of the soil C pool ("new soil C"), or accelerate losses of pre-existing ("old") soil C. The dynamics of the new and old pools will likely differ and alter the long-term fate of soil C, but these separate pools, which can be distinguished through isotopic labeling, have not been considered in past syntheses. Using meta-analysis, we found that while elevated CO2 (ranging from 550 to 800 parts per million by volume) stimulates the accumulation of new soil C in the short term (<1 year), these effects do not persist in the longer term (1-4 years). Elevated CO2 does not affect the decomposition or the size of the old soil C pool over either temporal scale. Our results are inconsistent with predictions of conventional soil C models and suggest that elevated CO2 might increase turnover rates of new soil C. Because increased turnover rates of new soil C limit the potential for additional soil C sequestration, the capacity of land ecosystems to slow the rise in atmospheric CO2 concentrations may be smaller than previously assumed.
AB - Rising levels of atmospheric CO2 frequently stimulate plant inputs to soil, but the consequences of these changes for soil carbon (C) dynamics are poorly understood. Plant-derived inputs can accumulate in the soil and become part of the soil C pool ("new soil C"), or accelerate losses of pre-existing ("old") soil C. The dynamics of the new and old pools will likely differ and alter the long-term fate of soil C, but these separate pools, which can be distinguished through isotopic labeling, have not been considered in past syntheses. Using meta-analysis, we found that while elevated CO2 (ranging from 550 to 800 parts per million by volume) stimulates the accumulation of new soil C in the short term (<1 year), these effects do not persist in the longer term (1-4 years). Elevated CO2 does not affect the decomposition or the size of the old soil C pool over either temporal scale. Our results are inconsistent with predictions of conventional soil C models and suggest that elevated CO2 might increase turnover rates of new soil C. Because increased turnover rates of new soil C limit the potential for additional soil C sequestration, the capacity of land ecosystems to slow the rise in atmospheric CO2 concentrations may be smaller than previously assumed.
KW - Isotopes
KW - Meta-analysis
KW - Respiration
KW - Roots
KW - Soil carbon
KW - Turnover
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85020074615&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85020074615&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/gcb.13752
DO - 10.1111/gcb.13752
M3 - Article
JO - Global Change Biology
JF - Global Change Biology
SN - 1354-1013
ER -