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The role of non-growing season processes in the methane and nitrous oxide budgets in pristine northern ecosystems

Project description

Greenhouse gas emissions in the Arctic and boreal ecosystems

High latitude regions such as the Arctic and boreal ecosystems represent a key element in the climate change process due to the considerable soil carbon stocks that make them net sources of greenhouse emissions. Scientists have studied the climate's effects during the growing season, but they have overlooked the fact that climate change impacts are particularly strong during the non-growing season causing changes in the timing of spring snowmelt and increasing winter temperatures. As a result, non-growing season methane (CH4) emissions are unmeasured, while there is no knowledge on nitrous oxide (N20) emissions. The EU-funded FluxWIN project will measure the annual magnitude of CH4 and N20 flux, detect controls on non-growing season flux and assess why existing patterns of CH4 flux fail outside of the growing season.

Objective

The response of the terrestrial biosphere to climate change is still largely unknown and represents a key uncertainty in climate change predictions. High latitude regions, including Arctic and boreal ecosystems, constitute a key component of the earth system due to significant soil carbon stocks. High latitude regions are net sources of greenhouse gases, such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), but there is significant disagreement among flux estimates with further uncertainty due to a rapidly changing environment. Climate change effects are particularly strong during the non-growing season, altering the timing of spring snowmelt, fall freeze-up, and increasing winter temperatures. The changes have significant implications for biogeochemical cycles and ecosystem function across high latitude regions.

Despite growing evidence of the importance of non-growing season greenhouse gas emissions, few measurements have been made in pristine Arctic and boreal ecosystems. Non-growing season CH4 emissions can account for 10-100% of annual CH4 flux, while next to nothing is known about emissions of N2O during this period. Process-based models miss non-growing season emissions of CH4, underestimating them by 67% and annual emissions by 25%. I will use complementary observations (WP1), modelling (WP2), and experiments (WP3) to quantify the annual magnitude of CH4 and N2O flux, identify controls on non-growing season flux, and assess why existing models of CH4 flux fail outside of the growing season. Are environmental conditions so different that existing model parameters fail, or is non-growing season biogeochemistry fundamentally different? The overall impact is to shift the paradigm from “nothing happens outside of the growing season” to “capturing non-growing season processes is key to understanding ecosystem dynamics.” Ultimately, results will provide novel insights into greenhouse gas budgets and transform our understanding of fundamental earth system dynamics.

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ERC-STG - Starting Grant

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) ERC-2019-STG

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Host institution

ALFRED-WEGENER-INSTITUT HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM FUR POLAR- UND MEERESFORSCHUNG
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 577 818,75
Address
AM HANDELSHAFEN 12
27570 Bremerhaven
Germany

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Region
Bremen Bremen Bremerhaven, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 577 818,75

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