Soil organic carbon storage in a mountain permafrost area of Central Asia (High Altai, Russia)

Summary, in English

The thawing and subsequent decomposition of large stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC) currently stored in the northern circumpolar permafrost region are projected to result in a ‘positive’ feedback on global warming. The magnitude of this feedback can only be assessed with improved knowledge about the total size and geographic distribution of the permafrost SOC pool. This study investigates SOC storage in an under-sampled mountain permafrost area in the Russian High Altai. SOC stocks from 39 soil pits are upscaled using a GIS-based land cover classification. We found that the top 100 cm of soils in Aktru Valley and the adjacent Kuray Basin only holds on average 2.6 ± 0.6 kg C m⁻² (95% confidence interval), of which only c. 1% is stored in permafrost. Global warming will result in an upward shift of alpine life zones, with new plant cover and soil development at higher elevations. As a result, this type of mountain permafrost area might act as a net C sink in the future, representing a ‘negative’ feedback on global warming.

• Author: Didac Pascual; Peter Kuhry; Tatiana Raudina
• Department/s: MERGE: ModElling the Regional and Global Earth system; BECC: Biodiversity and Ecosystem services in a Changing Climate; Dept of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science
• Publishing year: 2021
• Language: English
• Pages: 2022-2037
• Publication/Series: Ambio
• Volume: 50
• Issue: 11
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01433-6
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: Springer
• Topic: Physical Geography; Climate Research
• Keywords: Central Asia; Climate change impacts and feedbacks; Mountain permafrost; Soil organic carbon
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 0044-7447