Soil carbon stock and flux in plantation forest and grassland ecosystems in Loess Plateau,China

Carbon sequestration occurs when cultivated soils are re-vegetated. In the hilly area of the Loess Plateau, China, black locust(Robinia pseudoacacia) plantation forest and grassland were the two main vegetation types used to mitigate soil and water loss after cultivation abandonment. The purpose of this study was to compare the soil carbon stock and flux of these two types of vegetation which restored for 25 years. The experiment was conducted in Yangjuangou catchment in Yan′an City, Shaanxi Province, China. Two adjacent slopes were chosen for this study. Six sample sites were spaced every 35–45 m from summit to toe slope along the hill slope, and each sample site contained three sampling plots. Soil organic carbon and related physicochemical properties in the surface soil layer(0–10 cm and 10–20 cm) were measured based on soil sampling and laboratory analysis, and the soil carbon dioxide(CO2) emissions and environmental factors were measured in the same sample sites simultaneously. Results indicated that in general, a higher soil carbon stock was found in the black locust plantation forest than that in grassland throughout the hill slope. Meanwhile, significant differences in the soil carbon stock were observed between these two vegetation types in the upper slope at soil depth 0–10 cm and lower slope at soil depth 10–20 cm. The average daily values of the soil CO2 emissions were 1.27 μmol/(m2·s) and 1.39 μmol/(m2·s) for forest and grassland, respectively. The soil carbon flux in forest covered areas was higher in spring and less variation was detected between different seasons, while the highest carbon flux was found in grassland in summer, which was about three times higher than that in autumn and spring. From the carbon sequestration point of view, black locust plantation forest on hill slopes might be better than grassland because of a higher soil carbon stock and lower carbon flux.     

Age-related changes of carbon accumulation and allocation in plants and soil of black locust forest on Loess Plateau in Ansai County,Shaanxi Province of China

The effects of reforestation on carbon(C) sequestration in China′s Loess Plateau ecosystem have attracted much research attention in recent years. Black locust trees(Robinia pseudoacacia L.) are valued for their important use in reforestation and water and soil conservation efforts. This forest type is widespread across the Loess Plateau, and must be an essential component of any planning for C sequestration efforts in this fragile ecological region. The long-term effects of stand age on C accumulation and allocation after reforestation remains uncertain. We examined an age-sequence of black locust forest(5, 9, 20, 30, 38, and 56 yr since planting) on the Loess Plateau to evaluate C accumulation and allocation in plants(trees, shrubs, herbages, and leaf litter) and soil(0–100 cm). Allometric equations were developed for estimating the biomass of tree components(leaf, branch, stem without bark, bark and root) with a destructive sampling method. Our results demonstrated that black locust forest ecosystem accumulated C constantly, from 31.42 Mg C/ ha(1 Mg = 10~6 g) at 5 yr to 79.44 Mg C/ha at 38 yr. At the ′old forest′ stage(38 to 56 yr), the amount of C in plant biomass significantly decreased(from 45.32 to 34.52 Mg C/ha) due to the high mortality of trees. However, old forest was able to accumulate C continuously in soil(from 33.66 to 41.00 Mg C/ha). The C in shrub biomass increased with stand age, while the C stock in the herbage layer and leaf litter was age-independent. Reforestation resulted in C re-allocation in the forest soil. The topsoil(0–20 cm) C stock increased constantly with stand age. However, C storage in sub-top soil, in the 20–30, 30–50, 50–100, and 20–100 cm layers, was age-independent. These results suggest that succession, as a temporal factor, plays a key role in C accumulation and re-allocation in black locust forests and also in regional C dynamics in vegetation.     

Soil organic carbon pools in particle-size fractions as affected by slope gradient and land use change in hilly regions, western Iran

This study was conducted to explore the effects of topography and land use changes on particulate organic carbon(POC),particulate total nitrogen(PTN),organic carbon(OC) and total nitrogen(TN) associated with different size primary particle fractions in hilly regions of western Iran.Three popular land uses in the selected site including natural forest(NF),disturbed forest(DF) and cultivated land(CL) and three slope gradients(0-10 %,S1,10-30 %,S2,and 30-50%,S3) were employed as the basis of soil sampling.A total of 99 soil samples were taken from the 0-10 cm surface layer in the whole studied hilly region studied.The results showed that the POC in the forest land use in all slope gradients was considerably more than the deforested and cultivated lands and the highest value was observed at NF-S1 treatment with 9.13%.The values of PTN were significantly higher in the forest land use and in the down slopes(0.5%) than in the deforested and cultivated counterparts and steep slopes(0.09%) except for the CL land use.The C:N ratios in POC fraction were around 17-18 in the forest land and around 23 in the cultivated land.In forest land,the silt-associated OC was highest among the primary particles.The enrichment factor of SOC,EC,was the highest for POC.For the primary particles,EC of both primary fractions of silt and clay showed following trend for selected land uses and slope gradients:CL> DF> NF and S3 > S2> S1.Slope gradient of landscape significantly affected the OC and TN contents associated with the silt and clay particles,whereas higher OC and TN contents were observed in lower positions and the lowest value was measured in the steep slopes.Overall,the results showed that native forest land improves soil organic carbon storage and can reduce the carbon emission and soil erosion especially in the mountainous regions with high rainfall in west of Iran.     

Seasonal variations of riverine organic carbon contents in Makou and Hekou gauge stations of the Zhujiang River, China

Water samples were collected and analyzed in high water season (July 1997) and in middle water season (October, 1997) from two main lower reach gauge stations of the Zhujiang (Pearl) River, namely Hekou and Makou, respectively. Content of particulate organic carbon is always higher than that of dissolved organic carbon in both seasons, which is obviously different from the global average pattern, i.e. dissolved organic carbon is the dominant component of the transported riverine organic carbon. The content of dissolved and particulate organic carbon changes with the water levels in a direct ratio. The percentage of organic carbon in total suspended substance changes with the content of total suspended substance in an inverse ratio. The more intense is the soil erosion in the drainage, the more concentrated is the riverine organic carbon in the river. The contribution of autochthonous organic carbon is large in high water season than in middle water season. Fundation item: This project was supported financially by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 49901002), the key funds of resources and eco-environmental research of the CAS (No. KZ952-J1-402), a funds of the state key laboratory of organic geochemistry, and Guangdong Province Science Funds (No. 984131). Biography: Gao Quan-zhou (1965 —), male, a native of Anhui Province, associate professor. His research interests are geomorphology and Quaternary geochemistry.     

Effects of land management practices on labile organic carbon fractions in rice cultivation

A research trial with four land management practices, i.e., traditional tillage-fallow (TTF), traditional tillage-wheat (TTW), conservation tillage-fallow (CTF) and conservation tillage-wheat (CTW), was sampled in the 15th year after its establishment to assess the effects of different management practices on labile organic carbon fractions (LOCFs), such as easily oxidizable organic carbon (EOC), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), particulate organic carbon (POC) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) in a typical paddy soil, Chongqing, Southwest China. The results indicated that LOCFs were significantly influenced by the combination of no-tillage, ridge culture and crop rotation. And, different combination patterns showed different effectiveness on soil LOCFs. The effects of no-tillage, ridge culture and wheat cultivation on EOC, DOC, POC and MBC mainly happened at 0–10cm. At this depth, soil under CTW had higher EOC, DOC, POC and MBC contents, compared to TTF, TTW and CTF, respectively. Moreover, the contents of LOCFs for different practices generally decreased when the soil depth increased. Our findings suggest that the paddy soil in Southwest China could be managed to concentrate greater quantities of EOC, DOC, POC and MBC. Foundation item: Under the auspices of Key Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 40231016)     

基于DEM的黄土地貌类型提取与制图——以黄土高原丘陵沟壑实验样区为例

以陕北绥德县刘家沟流域为实验样区 ,从地貌成因、形态和土地利用角度出发 ,分析了黄土高原丘陵沟壑区 3种典型地貌类型的区域特征 ;以不同地貌类型的区域特征为基础 ,在地理信息系统平台软件 Arc View的支持下 ,利用数字高程模型 (DEM)自动提取黄土丘陵区 3种基本地貌类型的方法和技术。研究分析结果证明 :利用 DEM自动提取地貌类型是一种快速、高效的技术方法 ,对指导退耕还林、防治水土流失和进行土地利用动态监测都具有重要意义。     

Seasonal changes of dissolved and particulate organic carbon in Donghu Lake, China

Concentrations of dissolved and particulate organic carbon (DOC and POC) were documented in 1996–1997 at 4 different trophic state stations in Donghu Lake, a typical shallow eutrophic lake along the Changjiang River's middle reaches. The mean concentrations of DOC were 15.11±3.26, 15.19±4.24, 14.27±3.43, and 13.31±3.30 mg/L in Station I, II, III, and IV, respectively. The DOC concentrations of the studied area were very similar to that in other lakes along the Changjiang River's middle reaches. The POC mean of the whole lake was 5.01 mg/L due to the large amount of organic detritus of both allochthonous and autochthonous origin. Significant linear relationship was found between POC and chlorophyll a at all 4 stations, which presumably reflect that phytoplankton, its exudates and its metabolic products were the main contributors to the POC pool in the water column. The slope of such linear relationship at Station IV was significantly steeper than that at Station I, II and III. In addition, the DOC/POC ratios (mean value: 4.40) indicated that the organic detritus was the most important component of the particulate organic matter; in other works, next to organic detritus, phytoplankton dominated the particulate organic matter in Donghu Lake. Project 39770146, 39430101 supported by NSFC and the State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, affiliated to the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.     

Comparison on soil carbon stocks between urban and suburban topsoil in Beijing,China

The urban population and urbanized land in China have both increased markedly since the 1980s. Urban and suburban developments have grown at unprecedented rates with unknown consequences for ecosystem functions. In particular, the effect of rapid urbanization on the storage of soil carbon has not been studied extensively. In this study, we compared the soil carbon stocks of different land use types in Beijing Municipality. We collected 490 top-soil samples （top 20 cm） from urban and suburban sites within the Sixth Ring Road of Beijing, which cover approximately 2400 km2, and the densities of soil organic carbon （SOC）, soil inorganic carbon （SIC）, and total carbon （TC） were analyzed to determine the spatial distribution of urban and suburban soil carbon characteristics across seven land use types. The results revealed significant differences in soil carbon densities among land use types. Additionally, urban soil had significantly higher SOC and SIC densities than suburban soil did, and suburban shelterbelts and productive plantations had lower SIC densities than the other land use types. The comparison of coefficients of variance （CVs） showed that carbon content of urban topsoil had a lower variability than that of suburban topsoil. Further findings revealed that soil carbon storage increased with built-up age. Ur- ban soil built up for more than 20 years had higher densities of SOC, SIC and TC than both urban soil with less than 10 years and sub- urban soil. Correlation analyses indicated the existence of a significantly negative correlation between the SOC, SIC, and TC densities of urban soil and the distance to the urban core, and the distance variable alone explained 23.3% of the variation of SIC density and 13.8% of the variation of TC density. These results indicate that SOC and SIC accumulate in the urban topsoil under green space as a result of the conversion of agricultural land to urban land due to the urbanization in Beijing.     

Land use effects on soil organic carbon,microbial biomass and microbial activity in Changbai Mountains of Northeast China

Land use changes are known to alter soil organic carbon （SOC） and microbial properties, however, information about how conversion of natural forest to agricultural land use as well as plantations affects SOC and microbial properties in the Changbai Moun- tains of Northeast China is meager. Soil carbon content, microbial biomass carbon （MBC）, basal respiration and soil carbon mineraliza- tion were studied in five selected types of land use： natural old-growth broad-leaved Korean pine mixed forest （NF）; spruce plantation （SP） established following clear-cutting of NF; cropland （CL）; ginseng farmland （GF） previously under NF; and a five-year Mongolian oak young forest （YF） reforested on an abandoned GF, in the Changbai Mountains of Northeast China in 2011. Results showed that SOC content was significantly lower in SP, CL, GF, and YF than in NF. MBC ranged from 304.4 mg/kg in CL to 1350.3 mg/kg in NF, which was significantly higher in the soil of NF than any soil of the other four land use types. The SOC and MBC contents were higher in SP soil than in CL, GF, and YF soils, yielding a significant difference between SP and CL. The value of basal respiration was also higher in NF than in SP, CL, GF, and YF. Simultaneously, higher values of the metabolic quotient were detected in CL, GF, and YF soils, indicat- ing low substrate utilization of the soil microbial community compared with that in NF and SP soil. The values of cumulative mineral- ized carbon and potentially mineralized carbon （Co） in NF were significantly higher than those in CL and GF, while no significant dif- ference was observed between NF and SP. In addition, YF had higher values of Co and C mineralization rate compared with GF. The results indicate that conversion from NF into agricultural land （CL and GF） uses and plantation may lead to a reduction in soil nutrients （SOC and MBC） and substrate utilization efficiency of the microbial community. By contrast, soils below SP were more conducive to the preservation of soil organic matter, which was reflected in the comparison of microbial indicators among CL, GF, and YF land uses. This study can provide data for evaluating soils nutrients under different land use types, and serve as references for the rational land use of natural forest in the study area.     

Effects of land cover on soil organic carbon stock in a karst landscape with discontinuous soil distribution

Land cover type is critical for soil organic carbon(SOC) stocks in territorial ecosystems. However, impacts of land cover on SOC stocks in a karst landscape are not fully understood due to discontinuous soil distribution. In this study, considering soil distribution, SOC content and density were investigated along positive successional stages(cropland, plantation, grassland, scrubland, secondary forest, and primary forest) to determine the effects of land cover type on SOC stocks in a subtropical karst area. The proportion of continuous soil on the ground surface under different land cover types ranged between 0.0% and 79.8%. As land cover types changed across the positive successional stages, SOC content in both the 0–20 cm and 20–50 cm soil layers increased significantly. SOC density(SOCD) within 0–100 cm soil depth ranged from 1.45 to 8.72 kg m-2, and increased from secondary forest to primary forest, plantation, grassland, scrubland, and cropland, due to discontinuous soil distribution. Discontinuous soil distribution had a negative effect on SOC stocks, highlighting the necessity for accurate determination of soil distribution in karst areas. Generally, ecological restoration had positive impacts on SOC accumulation in karst areas, but this is a slow process. In the short term, the conversion of croplandto grassland was found to be the most efficient way for SOC sequestration.     

Extraction and analysis of gully head of Loess Plateau in China based on digital elevation model

In China′s Loess Plateau area, gully head is the most active zone of a drainage system in gully areas. The differentiation of loess gully head follows geospatial patterns and reflects the process of the loess landform development and evolution of its drainage system to some extent. In this study, the geomorphic meaning, basic characteristics, morphological structure and the basic types of loess gully heads were systematically analysed. Then, the loess gully head′s conceptual model was established, and an extraction method based on Digital Elevation Model(DEM) for loess gully head features and elements was proposed. Through analysing the achieved statistics of loess gully head features, loess gully heads have apparently similar and different characteristics depending on the different loess landforms where they are found. The loess head characteristics reflect their growth period and evolution tendency to a certain degree, and they indirectly represent evolutionary mechanisms. In addition, the loess gully developmental stages and the evolutionary processes can be deduced by using loess gully head characteristics. This study is of great significance for development and improvement of the theoretical system for describing loess gully landforms.     

Analysis of comprehensive benefits of transforming slope farmland to terraces on the Loess Plateau: A case study of the Yangou Watershed in Northern Shaanxi Province, China

De-farming slope farmland has been an effective measure in recent years to improve environment and prevent soil and water loss on the Loess Plateau.There are different views about the defarming method,and also various de-farming patterns have been put into practice.This paper takes the Yangou Watershed in Shaanxi Province of China as a case for studying the comprehensive benefits of transforming slope farmland to terraces.Based on the day-by-day meteorological data of the Yan'an station in 2005 and the data...     

Preliminary study on the dissolved and colloidal organic carbon in the Zhujiang River estuary

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黄土高原沟谷地貌发育演化研究进展与展望

黄土沟谷是黄土地貌中最有活力、最具变化、最富特色的对象单元,黄土高原千沟万壑的地貌形态以及触目惊心的侵蚀状态也让区域内沟谷地貌的形成、发育及演化问题成为研究中焦点及前沿性科学问题。近年来,诸多学者采用地学测年法、特征表达法、监测模拟法力图实现对黄土沟谷发育演化进程中“过去-现代-未来”的科学认知。这些研究在相当程度上丰富了黄土沟谷发育过程的认知。本文梳理了黄土高原沟谷地貌演化相关研究的现状,并从黄土高原地貌演化、黄土沟谷发育、基于DEM的沟谷信息提取与表达等研究进行了系统的回顾、梳理与分析。此外,本文提出“黄土沟道剖面群组”概念与方法,试图从新的视角审视黄土沟谷地貌发育演化过程。沟道剖面在黄土沟谷发育演化进程中传递物质能量和累积地形动力,并通过径流节点的串联实现剖面群的连接与组合,形成独特的剖面“群组”模式;该沟道剖面群组是集黄土沟谷地貌特征与过程于一体的综合信息集成体,其三维空间结构是对黄土沟谷地貌发育演化的高度抽象与映射,并可望进一步丰富黄土高原数字地形分析理论与方法体系,为黄土高原黄土地貌成因机理与空间分异格局带来创新的认识。     

Assessing adaptability of planted trees using leaf traits: A case study with Robinia pseudoacacia L. in the Loess Plateau, China

Leaf trait patterns and their variations with climate are interpreted as an adaptive adjustment to environment.This study assessed the adaptability of planted black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) based on the analysis of leaf traits and the comparison of its leaf traits with inter-specific ones existing in the same area.We measured some water and N use related leaf traits: leaf dry mass per unit area (LMA) and N,P and K concentrations based on both leaf area (Narea,Parea and Karea) and leaf mass (Nmass,Pm...     

The burial of biogenic silica,organic carbon and organic nitrogen in the sediments of the East China Sea

We sampled the sediments of the East China Sea during 2005 and 2006, and analysed the contents of the biogenic mat-ters: biogenic silica, organic carbon, and organic nitrogen. From the surface distribu...     

Source and spatial distributions of particulate organic carbon and its isotope in surface waters of Prydz Bay,Antarctica, during summer

In this study, we investigated the distributions of sea-surface suspended particulate organic carbon （POC） and its stable isotope （δ13C POC） in Prydz Bay, Antarctica, and examined the factors influencing their distribution, sources, and transport. We used measurements collected from 61 stations in Prydz Bay during the 29th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition, in combination with remote sensing data on sea surface temperature （SST）, chlorophyll a concentration, and sea ice coverage. The POC concentration in the surface waters of Prydz Bay was 0.28-0.84 mg.L-1, with an average concentration of 0.48 mg.L-1. The δ13C POC value ranged from -29.68‰ to -26.30‰, with an average of-28.01‰. The concentration of suspended POC was highest in near-shore areas and in western Prydz Bay. The POC concentration was correlated with chlorophyll a concentration and sea ice coverage, suggesting that POC was associated with phytoplankton production in local water columns, while the growth of phytoplankton was obviously affected by sea ice coverage. The δ13C poc value in suspended particles decreased gradually towards the outer waters of Prydz Bay, while in eastern Prydz Bay the δ13Cpoc value become gradually more negative from nearshore to deep-water areas, suggesting that δ13C poc was mainly influenced by CO2 fixation by phytoplankton. The δ13C POC value in suspended particles near Zhongshan Station was significantly negative, possibly as a result of the input of terrigenous organic matter and changes in the phytoplankton species composition in the nearshore area.     

Impacts of precipitation variation and soil and water conservation measures on runoff and sediment yield in the Loess Plateau Gully Region,China

The Loess Plateau of China has experienced a lengthy drought and severe soil erosion.Changes in precipitation and land use largely determine the dynamics of runoff and sediment yield in this region. Trend and mutation analyses were performed on hydrological data(1981–2012) from the Yanwachuan watershed in the Loess Plateau Gully Region to study the evolution characteristics of runoff and sediment yield. A time-series contrasting method also was used to evaluate the effects of precipitation and soil and water conservation(SWC) on runoff and sediment yield. Annual sediment yield declined markedly from 1981 to 2012 although there was no significant change in annual precipitation and annual runoff. Change points of annual runoff and annual sediment yield occurred in 1996 and 1997,respectively. Compared with that in the baseline period(1981–1996), annual runoff and annual sediment yield in the change period(1997–2012)decreased by 17.0% and 76.0%, respectively, but annual precipitation increased by 6.3%. Runoff decreased in the flood season and normal season, but increased in the dry season, while sediment yield significantly declined in the whole study period. The SWC measures contributed significantly to the reduction of annual runoff(137.9%) and annual sediment yield(135%) and were more important than precipitation. Biological measures(forestland and grassland) accounted for 61.04% of total runoff reduction, while engineering measures(terraces and dams) accounted for 102.84% of total sediment yield reduction. Furthermore, SWC measures had positive ecological effects. This study provides a scientific basis for soil erosion control on the Loess Plateau.     

The effects of estuarine processes on the fluxes of inorganic and organic carbon in the Yellow River estuary

Riverine carbon flux is an important component of the global carbon cycle. The spatial and temporal variations of organic and inorganic carbon were examined during both dry and wet seasons in the Yellow River estuary. Concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in the Yellow River during dry seasons were higher than those during wet seasons. The effective concentrations of DOC (C_DOC*) were higher than the observed DOC at zero salinity. This input of DOC in the Yellow River estuary was due to sediment desorption processes in low salinity regions. In contrast to DOC, the effective concentrations of DIC were 10% lower than the DIC measured at freshwater end, and the loss of DIC was caused by CaCO₃ precipitation in low salinity region. Particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) contents of the particles stabilized to constant values (0.5%±0.05% and 1.8%±0.2%, respectively) within the turbidity maximum zone (TMZ) and showed no noticeable seasonal variations. A rapid drop of PIC and rise of POC occurred simultaneously outside the TMZ due to an intense dilution of riverine inorganic-rich particles being transported into a pool of aquatic organic-poor particles outside the TMZ. Annually, the Yellow River transported 6.95×10⁵ t of DIC, 0.64×10⁵ t of DOC, 78.58×10⁵ t of PIC and 2.29×10⁵ t of POC to the sea.     

Temporal and spatial variability of dissolved organic carbon concentration in the Xijiang River, South China

A whole year analysis of riverine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations in the Xijiang River (XJR), South China, showed that the mean riverine DOC concentration (1.24 mg L-1) in the XJR was notably lower than the averaged value (5.75 mg L-1) of the global riverine DOC concentration in several major rivers. There is an inconspicuous monthly fluctuation of the DOC signal in the XJR, but on a semi-yearly time scale, however, the riverine DOC concentration had significant difference between hydrological...