Continuous soil carbon storage of old permanent pastures in Amazonia
Stahl, Clément (University of Antwerp (Bèlgica). Department of Biology)
Fontaine, Sébastien (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique. Grassland Ecosystem Research Team)
Klumpp, Katja (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique. Grassland Ecosystem Research Team)
Picon-Cochard, Catherine (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique. Grassland Ecosystem Research Team)
Mascarenhas Grise, Marcia (EMBRAPA (Brasil))
Dezécache, Camille (CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement))
Ponchant, Lise (CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement))
Freycon, Vincent (CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement))
Blanc, Lilian (EMBRAPA (Brasil))
Bonal, Damien (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (França))
Burban, Benoit (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (França))
Soussana, Jean-François (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (França))
Blanfort, Vincent (CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement))

Date:	2017
Abstract:	Amazonian forests continuously accumulate carbon (C) in biomass and in soil, representing a carbon sink of 0. 42-0. 65 GtC yr-130 . In recent decades, more than 15% of Amazonian forests have been converted into pastures, resulting in net C emissions (~200 tC ha-1) due to biomass burning and litter mineralization in the first years after deforestation. However, little is known about the capacity of tropical pastures to restore a forest C sink. Our data suggest that 24-year-old permanent tropical pastures in French Amazonia can partly restore the C storage observed in native forest. A unique combination of a large chronosequence study and eddy covariance measurements showed that pastures stored between -1. 27 ± 0. 37 and -5. 31 ± 2. 08 tC ha-1 yr-1 while the nearby native forest stored -3. 31 ± 0. 44 tC ha-1 yr-138 . This carbon is mainly sequestered in the humus of deep soil layers (20-100 cm), whereas no C storage was observed in the 0-20 cm layer. C storage in C4 tropical pasture is associated with the installation and development of C3 species, which increase either the input of N to the ecosystem or the C:N ratio of soil organic matter. Efforts to curb deforestation remain an obvious priority to preserve forest C stocks and biodiversity. However, our results show that if sustainable management is applied in tropical pastures coming from deforestation(avoiding fires and overgrazing, using a grazing rotation plan and a mixture of C3 and C4 species), they can ensure a continuous C storage, thereby adding to the current C sink of Amazonian forests.
Grants:	European Commission 610028
Rights:	Tots els drets reservats.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió sotmesa a revisió
Subject:	Carbon storage ; Mixed-grass pasture ; Native forest ; Deep soil ; CN coupling
Published in:	Global change biology, 2017 , ISSN 1365-2486

DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13573

41 p, 578.0 KB

The record appears in these collections:
Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > CREAF (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals) > Imbalance-P
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles