Carbon Emission and Redistribution among Forest Carbon Pools, and Change in Soil Nutrient Content after Different Severities of Forest Fires in Northeast China

Xiaoying Ping,Yuanman Hu,Yuchen Jia,Miao Liu,Wentao Huang,Sixue Shi,Dikang Li,Yu Chang

doi:10.3390/f13010110

Abstract

Forest fires are a significant factor that affects the boreal forest carbon distribution which emits carbon into the atmosphere and leads to carbon redistribution among carbon pools. However, knowledge about how much carbon was transferred among pools and the immediate changes in soil nutrient contents in areas that were burned by fires of various severities are still limited. In this study, we surveyed eight wildfire sites that are located in northeast China within three months after the fires occurred. Our results indicate that the total soil nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic carbon contents significantly increased after moderate- and high-severity fires. The carbon emissions were 3.84, 5.14, and 12.86 Mg C/ha for low-, moderate-, and high-severity fires, respectively. The amount of carbon transferred among pools increased with fire severity except for the charcoal pool, storing the highest amounts of carbon in moderate-severity fires. Although the charcoal and ash pools accounted for a small proportion of the total ecosystem, they are important for biogeochemical cycles and are worthy of attention. The carbon redistribution information in our study is important for accurately estimating the forest carbon budget and providing crucial parameters for forest carbon cycling models to incorporate the carbon transfer process.

Highlights

Boreal forests, one of the largest terrestrial biomes, store 32% of global carbon stocks [1]and play a significant role in global carbon cycles and balance [2,3,4]
Forest carbon is held in six primary pools: standing live trees (SLT), standing dead trees (SDT), coarse woody debris (CWD), shrubs and herbaceous vegetation (S&H), forest floors, and mineral soils [5]
Our results indicated that soil nutrient contents, carbon redistribution, and emissions are all affected by fire severities

Summary

Introduction

Boreal forests, one of the largest terrestrial biomes, store 32% of global carbon stocks [1]and play a significant role in global carbon cycles and balance [2,3,4]. Boreal forests, one of the largest terrestrial biomes, store 32% of global carbon stocks [1]. Wildland fire is a crucial factor that influences boreal forest structures and development [2,6], especially under climate change conditions with increases in fire size, frequency, and severity [7,8,9,10]. Depending on the fire severity (i.e., the degree of burning in forest ecosystems) [14], the carbon transfers among carbon pools and emissions could vary widely [15]. These factors could have profound influences on forest carbon cycling. To date, the carbon transfer process is seldom incorporated into forest carbon cycling models, which may affect the accurate estimation of forest carbon stocks

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion