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A global inventory of N2O emissions from tropical rainforest soils using a detailed biogeochemical model

Werner, C. ; Butterbach-Bahl, K. ; Haas, E. ; Hickler, Thomas LU and Kiese, R. (2007) In Global Biogeochemical Cycles 21(3). p.3010-3010
Abstract
Beside agricultural soils, tropical rainforest soils are the main source of atmospheric N2O. Current estimates of the global N2O source strength of tropical rainforest soils are still based on rather simplistic upscaling approaches and do have a large range of uncertainty. In this study, the biogeochemical ForestDNDC-tropica model was recalibrated and intensively tested on the site scale prior to inventory calculations. For this, the model was coupled to a newly developed global GIS database holding relevant information on model initialization and driving parameters in 0.25 degrees x 0.25 degrees resolution. On average, the mean annual N2O emission source strength of rainforests ecosystems worldwide for the 10-year-period 1991-2000 was... (More)
Beside agricultural soils, tropical rainforest soils are the main source of atmospheric N2O. Current estimates of the global N2O source strength of tropical rainforest soils are still based on rather simplistic upscaling approaches and do have a large range of uncertainty. In this study, the biogeochemical ForestDNDC-tropica model was recalibrated and intensively tested on the site scale prior to inventory calculations. For this, the model was coupled to a newly developed global GIS database holding relevant information on model initialization and driving parameters in 0.25 degrees x 0.25 degrees resolution. On average, the mean annual N2O emission source strength of rainforests ecosystems worldwide for the 10-year-period 1991-2000 was calculated to be 1.2 kg N2O-N ha(-1) yr(-1). Using a total rainforest area of 10.9 x 10(6) km(2), this amounts to a total source strength of 1.34 Tg N yr(-1). The result of an initialization parameter uncertainty assessment using Latin Hypercube sampling revealed that the global source strength of N2O emissions from tropical rainforests may range from 0.88 to 2.37 Tg N yr(-1). Our calculations also show that N2O emissions do vary substantially on spatial and temporal scales. Regional differences were mainly caused by differences in soil properties, whereas the pronounced seasonal and interannual variability was driven by climate variability. Our work shows that detailed biogeochemical models are a valuable tool for assessing biosphere-atmosphere exchange even on a global scale. However, further progress and a narrowing of the uncertainty range do crucially depend on the availability of more detailed field measurements for model testing and an improvement of the quality of spatial data sets on soil and vegetation properties. (Less)
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Global Biogeochemical Cycles
volume
21
issue
3
pages
3010 - 3010
publisher
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
external identifiers
  • wos:000248872500001
  • scopus:36749039130
ISSN
0886-6236
DOI
10.1029/2006GB002909
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
db4dd2b2-e2bc-40e5-9d7c-610449551d62 (old id 691936)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 17:03:44
date last changed
2022-04-23 02:26:29
@article{db4dd2b2-e2bc-40e5-9d7c-610449551d62,
  abstract     = {{Beside agricultural soils, tropical rainforest soils are the main source of atmospheric N2O. Current estimates of the global N2O source strength of tropical rainforest soils are still based on rather simplistic upscaling approaches and do have a large range of uncertainty. In this study, the biogeochemical ForestDNDC-tropica model was recalibrated and intensively tested on the site scale prior to inventory calculations. For this, the model was coupled to a newly developed global GIS database holding relevant information on model initialization and driving parameters in 0.25 degrees x 0.25 degrees resolution. On average, the mean annual N2O emission source strength of rainforests ecosystems worldwide for the 10-year-period 1991-2000 was calculated to be 1.2 kg N2O-N ha(-1) yr(-1). Using a total rainforest area of 10.9 x 10(6) km(2), this amounts to a total source strength of 1.34 Tg N yr(-1). The result of an initialization parameter uncertainty assessment using Latin Hypercube sampling revealed that the global source strength of N2O emissions from tropical rainforests may range from 0.88 to 2.37 Tg N yr(-1). Our calculations also show that N2O emissions do vary substantially on spatial and temporal scales. Regional differences were mainly caused by differences in soil properties, whereas the pronounced seasonal and interannual variability was driven by climate variability. Our work shows that detailed biogeochemical models are a valuable tool for assessing biosphere-atmosphere exchange even on a global scale. However, further progress and a narrowing of the uncertainty range do crucially depend on the availability of more detailed field measurements for model testing and an improvement of the quality of spatial data sets on soil and vegetation properties.}},
  author       = {{Werner, C. and Butterbach-Bahl, K. and Haas, E. and Hickler, Thomas and Kiese, R.}},
  issn         = {{0886-6236}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{3010--3010}},
  publisher    = {{American Geophysical Union (AGU)}},
  series       = {{Global Biogeochemical Cycles}},
  title        = {{A global inventory of N2O emissions from tropical rainforest soils using a detailed biogeochemical model}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2006GB002909}},
  doi          = {{10.1029/2006GB002909}},
  volume       = {{21}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}