Premium
An overview of the permanence of soil organic carbon stocks: influence of direct human‐induced, indirect and natural effects
Author(s) -
Smith P.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
european journal of soil science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.244
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1365-2389
pISSN - 1351-0754
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2389.2005.00708.x
Subject(s) - soil carbon , environmental science , greenhouse gas , carbon sink , kyoto protocol , natural (archaeology) , indirect effect , soil science , ecology , climate change , soil water , biology , paleontology , political science , law
Summary If biospheric sinks, such as soil organic carbon, are to be used to meet obligations for greenhouse gas emission reduction under the Kyoto Protocol, the permanence of these sinks needs to be considered. Further, since only direct human‐induced carbon sinks can be included, and sinks resulting from indirect and natural effects cannot be used, there is a pressing need to separate direct human‐induced effects from indirect and natural effects. Since these effects also influence the permanence of soil organic stocks, this paper attempts to synthesize existing knowledge in soil science, and use models to examine the likely influence of direct, indirect and natural effects on the permanence of soil organic carbon stocks.