Soil organic carbon stocks in mountain periglacial areas of northern Patagonia (Argentina)

• Published in: Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research
• Main Authors: Christina Fröjd, Dario Trombotto Liaudat, Christopher Scheer, Ivanna Pecker Marcosig, Peter Kuhry
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2022
• Subjects: Soil organic carbon; land cover upscaling; solifluction; patterned ground; Patagonia mountains; envir; geo; Argentina; Patagonia; Antarctic and Alpine Research; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/15230430.2022.2062102; https://doaj.org/article/7e1bd6a132be4dc69aaf62c6a0491579

This study presents a detailed soil organic carbon (SOC) inventory for two areas in the mountain periglacial zone of northern Patagonia (altitude range c. 1,400–2,100 m). We describe plant cover and soil profiles at twenty-seven sites representing the main land cover classes and landform types at and above the treeline. The mean SOC 0–100 cm storage is 2.31 kg C m−2 for the combined study areas, which includes 69 percent of bare ground surfaces with negligible SOC stocks. If we consider the vegetated alpine belt only, mean SOC 0–100 cm storage increases to 6.96 kg C m−2. Solifluction has resulted in areas with dense plant cover and deep soil profiles with mean SOC 0–100 cm of 17.1 to 18.3 kg C m−2 and a maximum total stock of 51.5 kg C m−2. Lowest SOC storages of 0.13 to 0.63 kg C m−2 are found in bare and sparsely vegetated high-elevation areas with shallow and stony soils developed in patterned ground (stripes and sorted circles). Projected future increases in ambient temperature will likely result in an upward shift of the alpine vegetation belt with soil development, creating new areas of ecosystem carbon storage.