Impact of aridity rise and arid lands expansion on carbon-storing capacity, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem services
Tariq, Akash (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Sardans i Galobart, Jordi (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Zeng, Fanjiang (Chinese Academy of Sciences. Institute of Ecology and Geography)
Graciano, Corina (Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Instituto de Fisiología Vegetal)
Hughes, Alice (University of Hong Kong. School of Biological Sciences)
Farré-Armengol, Gerard (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Peñuelas, Josep (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)

Date:	2024
Abstract:	Drylands, comprising semi-arid, arid, and hyperarid regions, cover approximately 41% of the Earth's land surface and have expanded considerably in recent decades. Even under more optimistic scenarios, such as limiting global temperature rise to 1. 5°C by 2100, semi-arid lands may increase by up to 38%. This study provides an overview of the state-of-the-art regarding changing aridity in arid regions, with a specific focus on its effects on the accumulation and availability of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) in plant-soil systems. Additionally, we summarized the impacts of rising aridity on biodiversity, service provisioning, and feedback effects on climate change across scales. The expansion of arid ecosystems is linked to a decline in C and nutrient stocks, plant community biomass and diversity, thereby diminishing the capacity for recovery and maintaining adequate water-use efficiency by plants and microbes. Prolonged drought led to a −3. 3% reduction in soil organic carbon (SOC) content (based on 148 drought-manipulation studies), a −8. 7% decrease in plant litter input, a −13. 0% decline in absolute litter decomposition, and a −5. 7% decrease in litter decomposition rate. Moreover, a substantial positive feedback loop with global warming exists, primarily due to increased albedo. The loss of critical ecosystem services, including food production capacity and water resources, poses a severe challenge to the inhabitants of these regions. Increased aridity reduces SOC, nutrient, and water content. Aridity expansion and intensification exacerbate socio-economic disparities between economically rich and least developed countries, with significant opportunities for improvement through substantial investments in infrastructure and technology. By 2100, half the world's landmass may become dryland, characterized by severe conditions marked by limited C, N, and P resources, water scarcity, and substantial loss of native species biodiversity. These conditions pose formidable challenges for maintaining essential services, impacting human well-being and raising complex global and regional socio-political challenges.
Grants:	Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2020-115770RB-I Agencia Estatal de Investigación TED2021-132627B-I00 Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2022-140808NB-I00 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca SGR/2021-1333 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca SGR/2023-00118
Note:	Altres ajuts: Fundación Ramón Areces grant CIVP20A6621
Rights:	Tots els drets reservats.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió acceptada per publicar
Subject:	Climate change ; Aridity ; Arid lands ; Carbon and nutrients ; Biodiversity loss ; Ecosystem services
Published in:	Global change biology, Vol. 30, Issue 4 (April 2024) , art. e17292, ISSN 1365-2486

DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17292

Available from: 2025-04-30 Postprint 42 p, 1.4 MB

Available from: 2025-04-30 Supplementary material 20 p, 260.3 KB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > CREAF (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Articles > Research articles
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