Less storage sinks soil models

Abstract

Carbon Cycle![Figure][1] Soils may sequester less carbon over the next century than previously expected. PHOTO: GLENN MILLINGTON/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO Soils may be a smaller carbon sink than previously assumed and might provide less relief from future global warming than expected. Soils contain more carbon than any other terrestrial reservoir and thus can have large impacts on climate, depending how much atmospheric carbon dioxide they sequester. He et al. use soil radiocarbon measurements to show that models tend to overestimate how much carbon soils will store by the year 2100, mostly because they underestimate the turnover time of soil carbon. Consequently, model projections of carbon storage by the end of the century may be too high by a factor of 2. Science , this issue p. [1419][2] [1]: pending:yes [2]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.aad4273