Assessing Greenhouse Gas Exchange of Agricultural Crops by Flux Measurements in Thrace Part of Turkey

Abstract

Agriculture plays an important role in the global greenhouse gas (GHG) budget andits cycle. CO2 is one of the most important greenhouse gases, and plants releaseCO2 into the atmosphere by respiration and sink it by photosynthesis from theatmosphere. In addition, soil has an essential role in this exchange. Unfortunately,studies on the measurement of greenhouse gases above agricultural crops ininternationally accepted methods are not sufficient, especially in developingcountries. Thus, it is a clear need to determine carbon exchange of agriculturalcrops and activities (sink and emission) by taking into consideration of the specificconditions such as climate, crop variety, soil etc. Eddy Covariance (EC) is one ofthe widely used micrometeorological methods in the world for flux measurementstudies. Developments in measurement and analysis by instruments have allowedthis method to be applied more by researchers for the studies on GHG exchange. Inthis research, carbon exchanges (sink and emission) of watermelon grown inAtatürk Soil, Water and Agricultural Meteorology Research Institute located in theThrace part of Turkey, was measured using the Eddy Covariance method. Finally,estimated gas exchange above crops will be presented.