Carbon Dioxide Production in Bedrock Beneath Soils Substantially Contributes to Forest Carbon Cycling
Abstract
Abstract Soils are widely considered the primary terrestrial organic matter pool mediating carbon transactions with the atmosphere and groundwater. Because soils are both a host and a product of rhizosphere activity, they are thought to mark the location where photosynthetic fixation of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is balanced by the oxidation of organic matter. However, in many terrestrial environments, the rhizosphere extends below soils and into fractured bedrock, and it is unknown if the resulting biological and hydrologic dynamics in bedrock have a significant impact on carbon cycling. Here we show substantial production of CO 2 in weathered bedrock at 4–8 m below the thin soils (<0.5 m thick) of a Northern California forest using innovative monitoring technology for sampling gases and water in fractured rock. The deep CO 2 production supports a persistent upward flux of CO 2(g) year‐round from bedrock to soil, constituting between 2% and 29% of the average daily CO 2 efflux from the land surface. When water is rapidly transported across the fractured bedrock vadose zone, nearly 50% of the CO 2 produced in the bedrock dissolves into water, promoting water‐rock interaction and export of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) from the unsaturated zone to groundwater, constitutingmore »
- Authors:
-
[1];
[2];
[1];
[1]
- Department of Geological Sciences, Jackson School of Geosciences University of Texas at Austin Austin TX USA
- Department of Geology University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Urbana IL USA
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC); National Science Foundation (NSF)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1734383
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1786722; OSTI ID: 1852930
- Grant/Contract Number:
- DE‐SE001919; DE‐SC0019198; SC0019198; EAR 1331940
- Resource Type:
- Published Article
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Geophysical Research. Biogeosciences
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Journal of Geophysical Research. Biogeosciences Journal Volume: 125 Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 2169-8953
- Publisher:
- American Geophysical Union (AGU)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; 58 GEOSCIENCES; Environmental Sciences & Ecology; Geology
Citation Formats
Tune, Alison K., Druhan, Jennifer L., Wang, Jia, Bennett, Philip C., and Rempe, Daniella M.. Carbon Dioxide Production in Bedrock Beneath Soils Substantially Contributes to Forest Carbon Cycling. United States: N. p., 2020.
Web. doi:10.1029/2020JG005795.
Tune, Alison K., Druhan, Jennifer L., Wang, Jia, Bennett, Philip C., & Rempe, Daniella M.. Carbon Dioxide Production in Bedrock Beneath Soils Substantially Contributes to Forest Carbon Cycling. United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JG005795
Tune, Alison K., Druhan, Jennifer L., Wang, Jia, Bennett, Philip C., and Rempe, Daniella M.. Sat .
"Carbon Dioxide Production in Bedrock Beneath Soils Substantially Contributes to Forest Carbon Cycling". United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JG005795.
@article{osti_1734383,
title = {Carbon Dioxide Production in Bedrock Beneath Soils Substantially Contributes to Forest Carbon Cycling},
author = {Tune, Alison K. and Druhan, Jennifer L. and Wang, Jia and Bennett, Philip C. and Rempe, Daniella M.},
abstractNote = {Abstract Soils are widely considered the primary terrestrial organic matter pool mediating carbon transactions with the atmosphere and groundwater. Because soils are both a host and a product of rhizosphere activity, they are thought to mark the location where photosynthetic fixation of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is balanced by the oxidation of organic matter. However, in many terrestrial environments, the rhizosphere extends below soils and into fractured bedrock, and it is unknown if the resulting biological and hydrologic dynamics in bedrock have a significant impact on carbon cycling. Here we show substantial production of CO 2 in weathered bedrock at 4–8 m below the thin soils (<0.5 m thick) of a Northern California forest using innovative monitoring technology for sampling gases and water in fractured rock. The deep CO 2 production supports a persistent upward flux of CO 2(g) year‐round from bedrock to soil, constituting between 2% and 29% of the average daily CO 2 efflux from the land surface. When water is rapidly transported across the fractured bedrock vadose zone, nearly 50% of the CO 2 produced in the bedrock dissolves into water, promoting water‐rock interaction and export of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) from the unsaturated zone to groundwater, constituting as much as 80% of the DIC exiting the hillslope. Such CO 2 production in weathered bedrock is subject to unique moisture, temperature, biological, and mineralogical conditions which are currently missing from terrestrial carbon models.},
doi = {10.1029/2020JG005795},
journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research. Biogeosciences},
number = 12,
volume = 125,
place = {United States},
year = {2020},
month = {12}
}
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