Biotic SOC Stock: What We Had & What We Lost ...

• Main Author: , Blakemore
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2023
• Subjects: Humus; soil ecology; biotic soil carbon; atmospheric CO2; carbon credits and deficits; permafrost
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7825446; https://zenodo.org/record/7825446

Abstract: Land’s basic metric is soil organic carbon (SOC) yet global estimates range 1,417–15,000 Gt C. Erosion of ancient topsoil and loss of soil taxa are most urgent of all context-triage concerns, and most ignored. Re-evaluation of topographical terrain on a non-flat Earth increases most soil dynamic inventories. Carbon credits of our neglected and disappearing SOC stocks are enumerated for mineral soils (~4,100 Gt C plus ca. 20–30% glomalin), Permafrost (>4,200 Gt C), peat (1,123 Gt C), plant roots (916 Gt C), litter (600 Gt C), microbes (200 Gt C), fungi (30 Gt C), biocrust (10–20 Gt C), earthworms (2.3–3.6 Gt C), termites (0.15 Gt C), nematodes (0.06 Gt C), ants (0.024 Gt C), and soil viruses (0.02–4.0 Gt C). Net contribution to atmospheric CO 2 is more from biotic topsoil loss (>10 Gt C/yr) than fossil fuels (<10 Gt C/yr). Although higher CO 2 results in a terrestrial greening effect with Net Primary Productivity (NPP) now ~220 Gt C/yr (cf. ~20 Gt C/yr Ocean NPP), this is arguably offset by ... : Anonymously Peer Reviewed and Passed for Publication. ...