Impact of Sugarcane Cultivation on C Cycling in Southeastern United States Following Conversion From Grazed Pastures

Gomez‐Casanovas, Nuria; Blanc‐Betes, Elena; Bernacchi, Carl J.; Boughton, Elizabeth H.; Yang, Wendy; Moore, Caitlin; Pederson, Taylor L.; Saha, Amartya; DeLucia, Evan H.

doi:10.1111/gcbb.70003

Title: Impact of Sugarcane Cultivation on C Cycling in Southeastern United States Following Conversion From Grazed Pastures

Journal Article · 24 September 2024 · Global Change Biology. Bioenergy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.70003 · OSTI ID:2448019

^[1];

^[2];

^[3]; Boughton, Elizabeth H. ^[4];

^[5]; Moore, Caitlin ^[6]; Pederson, Taylor L. ^[7]; Saha, Amartya ^[4];

^[5]

Texas A&,M AgriLife Research Center at Vernon Texas City Texas USA, Rangeland, Wildlife &, Fisheries Management Department Texas City Texas USA, DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA
DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA
DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Department of Plant Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Global Change and Photosynthesis Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service USDA Urbana Illinois USA
Archbold Biological Station Lake Placid Florida USA
DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Department of Plant Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA
Centre for Water and Spatial Science The University of Western Australia Crawley Western Australia Australia
DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Illinois USA, Global Change and Photosynthesis Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service USDA Urbana Illinois USA

ABSTRACT The expansion of sugarcane, a tropical high‐yielding feedstock, will likely reshape the Southeastern United States (SE US) bioenergy landscape. However, the sustainability of sugarcane, particularly as it displaces grazed pastures, is highly uncertain. Here, we investigated how pasture conversion to sugarcane in subtropical Florida impacts net ecosystem CO ₂ exchange (NEE) and net ecosystem carbon (C) balance (NECB). Measurements were made over three full growth cycles (> 3 years) in sugarcane—plant cane, PC; first ratoon cane, FRC; second ratoon cane, SRC—and in improved (IM) and semi‐native (SN) pastures, which make up ca. 37% of agricultural land in the region. Immediately following conversion, PC was a stronger net source of CO ₂ than pastures, indicating the importance of CO ₂ losses related to land disturbance. Sugarcane, however, shifted to a strong net sink of CO ₂ after first regrowth, and overall sugarcane was a stronger net CO ₂ sink than pastures. Both stand age and low water availability during cane emergence and tillering substantially decreased its potential gross CO ₂ uptake. Accounting for all C gains and removals (i.e., NECB), greater frequency of burn events and repeated harvest increased removals and overall made sugarcane a stronger C source relative to pastures despite substantial C inputs from the previous land use and a stronger CO ₂ sink strength. Time since conversion substantially reduced C losses from sugarcane, and the NECB of SRC was similar to that of IM pasture but lower than that of SN pasture, indicating a rapid shift in the NECB of cane. We conclude that the C‐balance implications following conversion will depend on the proportion of IM versus SN pastures converted to sugarcane. Furthermore, our findings suggest that no‐burn harvest management strategies will be critical to the development of a sustainable bioenergy landscape in SE US.

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Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0018420

OSTI ID:: 2448019

Journal Information:: Global Change Biology. Bioenergy, Journal Name: Global Change Biology. Bioenergy Journal Issue: 10 Vol. 16; ISSN 1757-1693

Publisher:: Wiley-BlackwellCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United Kingdom

Language:: English

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