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Mayer M, Baltensweiler A, James J, Rigling A, Hagedorn F. A global synthesis and conceptualization of the magnitude and duration of soil carbon losses in response to forest disturbances. GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY : A JOURNAL OF MACROECOLOGY 2024; 33:141-150. [PMID: 38516344 PMCID: PMC10953364 DOI: 10.1111/geb.13779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
Aim Forest disturbances are increasing around the globe due to changes in climate and management, deteriorating forests' carbon sink strength. Estimates of global forest carbon budgets account for losses of plant biomass but often neglect the effects of disturbances on soil organic carbon (SOC). Here, we aimed to quantify and conceptualize SOC losses in response to different disturbance agents on a global scale. Location Global. Time Period 1983-2022. Major Taxa Studied Forest soils. Methods We conducted a comprehensive global analysis of the effects of harvesting, wildfires, windstorms and insect infestations on forest SOC stocks in the surface organic layer and top mineral soil, synthesizing 927 paired observations from 151 existing field studies worldwide. We further used global mapping to assess potential SOC losses upon disturbance. Results We found that both natural and anthropogenic forest disturbances can cause large SOC losses up to 60 Mg ha-1. On average, the largest SOC losses were found after wildfires, followed by disturbances from windstorms, harvests and insects. However, initial carbon stock size, rather than disturbance agent, had the strongest influence on the magnitude of SOC losses. SOC losses were greatest in cold-climate forests (boreal and mountainous regions) with large accumulations of organic matter on or near the soil surface. Negative effects are present for at least four decades post-disturbance. In contrast, forests with small initial SOC stocks experienced quantitatively lower carbon losses, and their stocks returned to pre-disturbance levels more quickly. Main Conclusions Our results indicate that the more carbon is stored in the forest's organic layers and top mineral soils, the more carbon will be lost after disturbance. Robust estimates of forest carbon budgets must therefore consider disturbance-induced SOC losses, which strongly depend on site-specific stocks. Particularly in cold-climate forests, these disturbance-related losses may challenge forest management efforts to sequester CO2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathias Mayer
- Forest Soils and BiogeochemistrySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL)BirmensdorfSwitzerland
- Forest Ecology, Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems (ITES)ETH ZurichZurichSwitzerland
- Institute of Forest Ecology, Department of Forest and Soil SciencesUniversity of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU)ViennaAustria
| | - Andri Baltensweiler
- Forest Resources and ManagementSwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL)BirmensdorfSwitzerland
| | | | - Andreas Rigling
- Forest Ecology, Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems (ITES)ETH ZurichZurichSwitzerland
- Forest DynamicsSwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL)BirmensdorfSwitzerland
| | - Frank Hagedorn
- Forest Soils and BiogeochemistrySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL)BirmensdorfSwitzerland
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Mayer M, Rusch S, Didion M, Baltensweiler A, Walthert L, Ranft F, Rigling A, Zimmermann S, Hagedorn F. Elevation dependent response of soil organic carbon stocks to forest windthrow. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 857:159694. [PMID: 36302424 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Storms represent a major disturbance factor in forest ecosystems, but the effects of windthrows on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks are poorly quantified. Here, we assessed the SOC stocks of windthrown forests at 19 sites across Switzerland spanning an elevation gradient from 420 to 1550 m, encompassing a strong climatic gradient. Results show that the effect size of disturbance on SOC stocks increases with the size of the initial SOC stocks. The largest windthrow-induced SOC losses of up to 29 t C ha-1 occurred in high-elevation forests with a harsh climate developing thick organic layers. In contrast, SOC stocks of low-elevation forests with thin organic layers were hardly affected. A mineralization study further revealed high elevation forests to store higher amounts of easily mineralizable C in thick organic layers that got lost following windthrow. These findings are supported by a meta-analysis of available windthrow studies, showing an increase of storm-induced SOC losses with the size of the initial SOC stocks. Modelling simulations further indicate longer-lasting SOC losses and a slower recovery of SOC stocks after windthrow at high compared to low elevations, due to a slower regeneration of mountain forests and associated lower C inputs into soils in a harsh climate. Upscaling the experimental findings/observed patterns by linking them to a data base of Swiss forest soils shows a total SOC loss of ∼0.4 Mt. C for the whole forested area of Switzerland after two major storm events, counteracting the forest net carbon sink of decades. Our study provides strong evidence that the vulnerability of SOC stocks to windthrow is particularly high in forests featuring thick and slowly forming organic layers, such as mountain soils. Thus, the risk of losing SOC to more frequent windthrows in mountain forests strongly limits their potential to mitigate climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathias Mayer
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland; Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems (ITES), ETH Zurich, Universitätsstrasse 16, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland; Institute of Forest Ecology, Department of Forest and Soil Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Peter-Jordan Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria.
| | - Silvan Rusch
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Markus Didion
- Forest Resources and Management, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Andri Baltensweiler
- Forest Resources and Management, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Lorenz Walthert
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Fabienne Ranft
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Rigling
- Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems (ITES), ETH Zurich, Universitätsstrasse 16, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland; Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Stephan Zimmermann
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Frank Hagedorn
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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Buma B, Thompson T. Long-term exposure to more frequent disturbances increases baseline carbon in some ecosystems: Mapping and quantifying the disturbance frequency-ecosystem C relationship. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0212526. [PMID: 30789951 PMCID: PMC6383921 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0212526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2018] [Accepted: 02/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Disturbance regimes have a major influence on the baseline carbon that characterizes any particular ecosystem. Often regimes result in lower average regional baseline C (compared to those same systems if the disturbance processes were lessened/removed). However, in infrequently disturbed systems the role of disturbance as a “background” process that influences broad-scale, baseline C levels is often neglected. Long-term chronosequences suggest disturbances in these systems may serve to increase regional biomass C stocks by maintaining productivity. However, that inference has not been tested spatially. Here, the large forested system of southeast Alaska, USA, is utilized to 1) estimate baseline regional C stocks, 2) test the fundamental disturbance-ecosystem C relationship, 3) estimate the cumulative impact of disturbances on baseline C. Using 1491 ground points with carbon measurements and a novel way of mapping disturbance regimes, the relationship between total biomass C, disturbance exposure, and climate was analyzed statistically. A spatial model was created to determine regional C and compare different disturbance scenarios. In this infrequently disturbed ecosystem, higher disturbance exposure is correlated with higher biomass C, supporting the hypothesis that disturbances maintain productivity at broad scales. The region is estimated to potentially contain a baseline 1.21–1.52 Pg biomass C (when unmanaged). Removal of wind and landslides from the model resulted in lower net C stocks (-2 to -19% reduction), though the effect was heterogeneous on finer scales. There removal of landslides alone had a larger effect then landslide and wind combined removal. The relationship between higher disturbance exposure and higher biomass within the broad ecosystem (which, on average, has a very low disturbance frequency) suggest that disturbances can serve maintain higher levels of productivity in infrequently disturbed but very C dense ecosystems. Carbon research in other systems, especially those where disturbances are infrequent relative to successional processes, should consider the role of disturbances in maintaining baseline ecosystem productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian Buma
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado, Denver, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Thomas Thompson
- USDA Forest Service, Resource Monitoring and Assessment Program, PNW Research Station, Anchorage, AK, United States of America
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Jackson RB, Lajtha K, Crow SE, Hugelius G, Kramer MG, Piñeiro G. The Ecology of Soil Carbon: Pools, Vulnerabilities, and Biotic and Abiotic Controls. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY EVOLUTION AND SYSTEMATICS 2017. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-112414-054234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 381] [Impact Index Per Article: 54.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert B. Jackson
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305
- Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305
- Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305
| | - Kate Lajtha
- Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331
| | - Susan E. Crow
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawai'i 96822
| | - Gustaf Hugelius
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305
- Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University, Stockholm SE-10691, Sweden
| | - Marc G. Kramer
- School of the Environment, Washington State University Vancouver, Vancouver, Washington 98686
| | - Gervasio Piñeiro
- IFEVA/CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1417DSE, Argentina
- Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 12900, Uruguay
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Mayer M, Sandén H, Rewald B, Godbold DL, Katzensteiner K. Increase in heterotrophic soil respiration by temperature drives decline in soil organic carbon stocks after forest windthrow in a mountainous ecosystem. Funct Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mathias Mayer
- Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Institute of Forest Ecology University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) Peter‐Jordan Straße 82 1190 Wien Austria
| | - Hans Sandén
- Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Institute of Forest Ecology University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) Peter‐Jordan Straße 82 1190 Wien Austria
| | - Boris Rewald
- Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Institute of Forest Ecology University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) Peter‐Jordan Straße 82 1190 Wien Austria
| | - Douglas L. Godbold
- Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Institute of Forest Ecology University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) Peter‐Jordan Straße 82 1190 Wien Austria
| | - Klaus Katzensteiner
- Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Institute of Forest Ecology University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) Peter‐Jordan Straße 82 1190 Wien Austria
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Johnson AC, Yeakley JA. Wood Microsites at Timberline-Alpine Meadow Borders: Implications for Conifer Seedling Regeneration and Alpine Meadow Conifer Invasion. NORTHWEST SCIENCE 2013. [DOI: 10.3955/046.087.0206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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Hobbie EA, Ouimette AP. Controls of nitrogen isotope patterns in soil profiles. BIOGEOCHEMISTRY 2009; 95:355-371. [PMID: 0 DOI: 10.1007/s10533-009-9328-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
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Murakami M, Hirao T, Iwamoto J, Oguma H. Effects of windthrow disturbance on a forest bird community depend on spatial scale. Basic Appl Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2007.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Functional spatial scale of community composition change in response to windthrow disturbance in a deciduous temperate forest. Ecol Res 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/s11284-007-0372-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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