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Carbon sequestration potential of soils in southeast Germany derived from stable soil organic carbon saturation
Author(s) -
Wiesmeier Martin,
Hübner Rico,
Spörlein Peter,
Geuß Uwe,
Hangen Edzard,
Reischl Arthur,
Schilling Bernd,
Lützow Margit,
KögelKnabner Ingrid
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
global change biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.146
H-Index - 255
eISSN - 1365-2486
pISSN - 1354-1013
DOI - 10.1111/gcb.12384
Subject(s) - soil water , carbon sequestration , saturation (graph theory) , silt , soil carbon , soil science , environmental science , total organic carbon , environmental chemistry , hydrology (agriculture) , carbon dioxide , chemistry , geology , geomorphology , mathematics , organic chemistry , combinatorics , geotechnical engineering
Sequestration of atmospheric carbon (C) in soils through improved management of forest and agricultural land is considered to have high potential for global CO 2 mitigation. However, the potential of soils to sequester soil organic carbon ( SOC ) in a stable form, which is limited by the stabilization of SOC against microbial mineralization, is largely unknown. In this study, we estimated the C sequestration potential of soils in southeast Germany by calculating the potential SOC saturation of silt and clay particles according to Hassink [ Plant and Soil 191 (1997) 77] on the basis of 516 soil profiles. The determination of the current SOC content of silt and clay fractions for major soil units and land uses allowed an estimation of the C saturation deficit corresponding to the long‐term C sequestration potential. The results showed that cropland soils have a low level of C saturation of around 50% and could store considerable amounts of additional SOC . A relatively high C sequestration potential was also determined for grassland soils. In contrast, forest soils had a low C sequestration potential as they were almost C saturated. A high proportion of sites with a high degree of apparent oversaturation revealed that in acidic, coarse‐textured soils the relation to silt and clay is not suitable to estimate the stable C saturation. A strong correlation of the C saturation deficit with temperature and precipitation allowed a spatial estimation of the C sequestration potential for Bavaria. In total, about 395 Mt CO 2 ‐equivalents could theoretically be stored in A horizons of cultivated soils – four times the annual emission of greenhouse gases in Bavaria. Although achieving the entire estimated C storage capacity is unrealistic, improved management of cultivated land could contribute significantly to CO 2 mitigation. Moreover, increasing SOC stocks have additional benefits with respect to enhanced soil fertility and agricultural productivity.