Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem
Abstract Wildfire frequency and expanse in the Arctic have increased in recent years and are projected to increase further with changes in climatic conditions due to warmer and drier summers. Yet, there is a lack of knowledge about the impacts such events may have on the net greenhouse gas (GHG) bal...
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crwiley:10.1111/gcb.16222 2024-06-23T07:50:01+00:00 Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem Hermesdorf, Lena Elberling, Bo D'Imperio, Ludovica Xu, Wenyi Lambæk, Anders Ambus, Per L. Danmarks Grundforskningsfond 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16222 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.16222 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/gcb.16222 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Global Change Biology volume 28, issue 16, page 4882-4899 ISSN 1354-1013 1365-2486 journal-article 2022 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16222 2024-06-13T04:25:44Z Abstract Wildfire frequency and expanse in the Arctic have increased in recent years and are projected to increase further with changes in climatic conditions due to warmer and drier summers. Yet, there is a lack of knowledge about the impacts such events may have on the net greenhouse gas (GHG) balances in Arctic ecosystems. We investigated in situ effects of an experimental fire in 2017 on carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), methane (CH 4 ), and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) surface fluxes in the most abundant tundra ecosystem in West Greenland in ambient and warmer conditions. Measurements from the growing seasons 2017 to 2019 showed that burnt areas became significant net CO 2 sources for the entire study period, driven by increased ecosystem respiration (ER) immediately after the fire and decreased gross ecosystem production (GEP). Warming by open‐top chambers significantly increased both ER and GEP in control, but not in burnt plots. In contrast to CO 2 , measurements suggest that the overall sink capacity of atmospheric CH 4 , as well as net N 2 O emissions, were not affected by fire in the short term, but only immediately after the fire. The minor effects on CH 4 and N 2 O, which was surprising given the significantly higher nitrate availability observed in burnt plots. However, the minor effects are aligned with the lack of significant effects of fire on soil moisture and soil temperature. Net uptake and emissions of all three GHG from burnt soils were less temperature‐sensitive than in the undisturbed control plots. Overall, this study highlights that wildfires in a typical tundra ecosystem in Greenland may not lead to markedly increased net GHG emissions other than CO 2 . Additional investigations are needed to assess the consequences of more severe fires. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Greenland Tundra Wiley Online Library Arctic Greenland Global Change Biology 28 16 4882 4899 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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English |
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Abstract Wildfire frequency and expanse in the Arctic have increased in recent years and are projected to increase further with changes in climatic conditions due to warmer and drier summers. Yet, there is a lack of knowledge about the impacts such events may have on the net greenhouse gas (GHG) balances in Arctic ecosystems. We investigated in situ effects of an experimental fire in 2017 on carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), methane (CH 4 ), and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) surface fluxes in the most abundant tundra ecosystem in West Greenland in ambient and warmer conditions. Measurements from the growing seasons 2017 to 2019 showed that burnt areas became significant net CO 2 sources for the entire study period, driven by increased ecosystem respiration (ER) immediately after the fire and decreased gross ecosystem production (GEP). Warming by open‐top chambers significantly increased both ER and GEP in control, but not in burnt plots. In contrast to CO 2 , measurements suggest that the overall sink capacity of atmospheric CH 4 , as well as net N 2 O emissions, were not affected by fire in the short term, but only immediately after the fire. The minor effects on CH 4 and N 2 O, which was surprising given the significantly higher nitrate availability observed in burnt plots. However, the minor effects are aligned with the lack of significant effects of fire on soil moisture and soil temperature. Net uptake and emissions of all three GHG from burnt soils were less temperature‐sensitive than in the undisturbed control plots. Overall, this study highlights that wildfires in a typical tundra ecosystem in Greenland may not lead to markedly increased net GHG emissions other than CO 2 . Additional investigations are needed to assess the consequences of more severe fires. |
author2 |
Danmarks Grundforskningsfond |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hermesdorf, Lena Elberling, Bo D'Imperio, Ludovica Xu, Wenyi Lambæk, Anders Ambus, Per L. |
spellingShingle |
Hermesdorf, Lena Elberling, Bo D'Imperio, Ludovica Xu, Wenyi Lambæk, Anders Ambus, Per L. Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
author_facet |
Hermesdorf, Lena Elberling, Bo D'Imperio, Ludovica Xu, Wenyi Lambæk, Anders Ambus, Per L. |
author_sort |
Hermesdorf, Lena |
title |
Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
title_short |
Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
title_full |
Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
title_fullStr |
Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
title_full_unstemmed |
Effects of fire on CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 O exchange in a well‐drained Arctic heath ecosystem |
title_sort |
effects of fire on co 2 , ch 4 , and n 2 o exchange in a well‐drained arctic heath ecosystem |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16222 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.16222 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/gcb.16222 |
geographic |
Arctic Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Greenland |
genre |
Arctic Greenland Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Greenland Tundra |
op_source |
Global Change Biology volume 28, issue 16, page 4882-4899 ISSN 1354-1013 1365-2486 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16222 |
container_title |
Global Change Biology |
container_volume |
28 |
container_issue |
16 |
container_start_page |
4882 |
op_container_end_page |
4899 |
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1802640770994274304 |