The Methodology for Farm-Scale Modelling for Spatio-Temporal Prediction of Soil Carbon Sequestration under Climate Change

A methodology for region-specific adaptation of existing soil carbon (C) models was developed by integrating location-specific automated data with local farm-based knowledge. The aim was to optimise the balance between scientific accuracy and farm-scale practicality of C modelling tools to identify the most influential location-specific variables

Molecular and compound-specific stable isotope investigation of the fate of dung carbon in a temperate grassland soil

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Landscape-scale assessments of stable carbon isotopes in soil under diverse vegetation classes in East Africa : application of near-infrared spectroscopy

Stable carbon isotopes are important tracers used to understand ecological food web processes and vegetation shifts over time. However, gaps exist in understanding soil and plant processes that influence delta C-13 values, particularly across smallholder farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa. This study aimed to develop predictive models for delta C-13 values in soil using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to increase overall sample size. In addition, this study aimed to assess the delta C-13 values between five vegetation classes. The Land Degradation Surveillance Framework (LDSF) was used to collect a stratified random set of soil samples and to classify vegetation. A total of 154 topsoil and 186 subsoil samples were collected and analyzed using NIRS, organic carbon (OC) and stable carbon isotopes. Forested plots had the most negative average delta C-13 values, -26.1aEuro degrees; followed by woodland, -21.9aEuro degrees; cropland, -19.0aEuro degrees; shrubland, -16.5aEuro degrees; and grassland, -13.9aEuro degrees. Prediction models were developed for delta C-13 using partial least squares (PLS) regression and random forest (RF) models. Model performance was acceptable and similar with both models. The root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) values for the three independent validation runs for delta C-13 using PLS ranged from 1.91 to 2.03 compared to 1.52 to 1.98 using RF. This model performance indicates that NIR can be used to predict delta C-13 in soil, which will allow for landscape-scale assessments to better understand carbon dynamics

The “Regulator” Function of Viruses on Ecosystem Carbon Cycling in the Anthropocene

Viruses act as “regulators” of the global carbon cycle because they impact the material cycles and energy flows of food webs and the microbial loop. The average contribution of viruses to the Earth ecosystem carbon cycle is 8.6‰, of which its contribution to marine ecosystems (1.4‰) is less than its contribution to terrestrial (6.7‰) and freshwater (17.8‰) ecosystems. Over the past 2,000 years, anthropogenic activities and climate change have gradually altered the regulatory role of viruses in ecosystem carbon cycling processes. This has been particularly conspicuous over the past 200 years due to rapid industrialization and attendant population growth. The progressive acceleration of the spread and reproduction of viruses may subsequently accelerate the global C cycle

Bacteria and fungi respond differently to multifactorial climate change in a temperate heathland, traced with ¹³C-Glycine and FACE CO₂

It is vital to understand responses of soil microorganisms to predicted climate changes, as these directly control soil carbon (C) dynamics. The rate of turnover of soil organic carbon is mediated by soil microorganisms whose activity may be affected by climate change. After one year of multifactorial climate change treatments, at an undisturbed temperate heathland, soil microbial community dynamics were investigated by injection of a very small concentration (5.12 µg C g(-1) soil) of (13)C-labeled glycine ((13)C2, 99 atom %) to soils in situ. Plots were treated with elevated temperature (+1°C, T), summer drought (D) and elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (510 ppm [CO2]), as well as combined treatments (TD, TCO2, DCO2 and TDCO2). The (13)C enrichment of respired CO2 and of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) was determined after 24 h. (13)C-glycine incorporation into the biomarker PLFAs for specific microbial groups (Gram positive bacteria, Gram negative bacteria, actinobacteria and fungi) was quantified using gas chromatography-combustion-stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS). Gram positive bacteria opportunistically utilized the freshly added glycine substrate, i.e. incorporated (13)C in all treatments, whereas fungi had minor or no glycine derived (13)C-enrichment, hence slowly reacting to a new substrate. The effects of elevated CO2 did suggest increased direct incorporation of glycine in microbial biomass, in particular in G(+) bacteria, in an ecosystem subjected to elevated CO2. Warming decreased the concentration of PLFAs in general. The FACE CO2 was (13)C-depleted (δ(13)C = 12.2‰) compared to ambient (δ(13)C = ∼-8‰), and this enabled observation of the integrated longer term responses of soil microorganisms to the FACE over one year. All together, the bacterial (and not fungal) utilization of glycine indicates substrate preference and resource partitioning in the microbial community, and therefore suggests a diversified response pattern to future changes in substrate availability and climatic factors

Comparison of extraction efficiencies for water-transportable phenols from different land uses

The composition and quantification of vascular plant-derived phenols in dissolved organic matter (DOM) is of importance in understanding and estimating carbon flux from soils under different land uses. Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used to extract waterborne organic matter (WBM), and thermally assisted hydrolysis (THM) using tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) was compared with gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) for the quantification of oxygenated aromatics in WBM, from freshwater samples from grazed grassland, woodland and moorland land uses in southwest England, UK.WBM recovered with SPE correlated with water total organic carbon (TOC) content. SPE followed by THM was shown to be the approach for isolating and quantifying water-transportable phenols. All the different land uses exported similar amounts of lignin per unit weight of OC to the drainage water. We also conclude that a significant proportion of lignin phenols is lost from soils as a component of WBM in a particulate form, so the magnitude of total phenol loss is likely greater than previously thought

Bringing Social Science Into Critical Zone Science: Exploring Smallholder Farmers' Learning Preferences in Chinese Human‐Modified Critical Zones

There is a growing global emphasis on sustainable agriculture to reduce human impacts and improve delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With increasing investment in critical zone observatories (CZOs), it becomes important to understand how sustainable agricultural knowledge is produced, shared and used between different groups including farmers, scientists and government. To explore these issues, scientists leading the knowledge exchange (KE) component of a China‐UK CZO program studied three farming regions with contrasting geologies and varying economic levels, using a practice‐based research method. We demonstrate how additional funding for social science research allowed us to understand how farmers access and share farming knowledge through bonding, bridging and linking networks, and how this varies spatially, using interviews and survey questionnaires. Knowledge flows, barriers and opportunities for designing locally suited two‐way KE activities were identified. First, we highlight the need for a more locally, socially embedded and reflexive approach to build trust and better address pressing local environmental challenges. Second, we show how social science can usefully inform KE for collaborative, international development science, to draw on local knowledge, promote research impacts and capacity building while avoiding knowledge mismatches. Lastly, a blueprint for the design and funding of future CZOs, social‐ecological and planetary health research agendas that combine science, social science, local knowledge and KE is presented, including the need for substantive social science research to take place in addition to science research in human‐modified landscapes—enabling the CZ science to be better grounded in, informed by and useful to local communities

Bringing Social Science Into Critical Zone Science:Exploring Smallholder Farmers' Learning Preferences in Chinese Human-Modified Critical Zones

There is a growing global emphasis on sustainable agriculture to reduce human impacts and improve delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With increasing investment in critical zone observatories (CZOs), it becomes important to understand how sustainable agricultural knowledge is produced, shared and used between different groups including farmers, scientists and government. To explore these issues, scientists leading the knowledge exchange (KE) component of a China-UK CZO program studied three farming regions with contrasting geologies and varying economic levels, using a practice-based research method. We demonstrate how additional funding for social science research allowed us to understand how farmers access and share farming knowledge through bonding, bridging and linking networks, and how this varies spatially, using interviews and survey questionnaires. Knowledge flows, barriers and opportunities for designing locally suited two-way KE activities were identified. First, we highlight the need for a more locally, socially embedded and reflexive approach to build trust and better address pressing local environmental challenges. Second, we show how social science can usefully inform KE for collaborative, international development science, to draw on local knowledge, promote research impacts and capacity building while avoiding knowledge mismatches. Lastly, a blueprint for the design and funding of future CZOs, social-ecological and planetary health research agendas that combine science, social science, local knowledge and KE is presented, including the need for substantive social science research to take place in addition to science research in human-modified landscapes—enabling the CZ science to be better grounded in, informed by and useful to local communities