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The second State of the Carbon Cycle Report (SOCCR2), published in conjunction with the fourth US National Climate Assessment (NCA4), provides the necessary figures on the rates of carbon loss and accumulation in the United States. terrestrial, aquatic and atmospheric systems in North America.
According to the report, 11-13% of carbon removal from global ecosystems can be attributed to North American ecosystems. Land-use changes in these ecosystems can release more carbon into the atmosphere. For this reason, wetlands and their enormous capacity for carbon sequestration play a crucial role in preventing rising atmospheric carbon levels.
Evan Kane, associate professor, and Rodney Chimner, professor at the Michigan School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, are the authors of chapter 13 of the report, devoted to terrestrial wetlands.
Globally, wetlands account for only 3% of the total land area, but capture 30% of all soil carbon. The wetlands of North America account for 37% of all wetlands in the world. Therefore, their value for carbon accounting can not be overstated. North American terrestrial wetlands currently constitute a carbon dioxide sink of about 123 teragrams of carbon per year, of which about 53% is in forested wetland systems.
"It shows how important wetlands are to the carbon cycle in North America, because despite the fact that a small percentage of the landscape is wetlands, they store a huge percentage of soil carbon." said Chimner.
Maintaining existing wetlands, restoring damaged wetlands and replacing wetlands removed from development are necessary to ensure that soil carbon remains in the soil and is not released into the atmosphere. Although the number of restored or re-created wetlands is increasing in North America, these ecosystems are still threatened by changes in rainfall patterns and forest fires.
"It's not surprising that changing hydrology is changing the ability of wetlands to retain carbon," Kane said. "It is not surprising that dry wetlands are different – they are more susceptible to changes in vegetation – and when they are dry, they are more likely to burn.This is a loop of feedback. "
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The report on the second state of the carbon cycle (SOCCR2) is available via https: /
The 4th National Climate Assessment of the United States was also published simultaneously via
https: /
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