Methane dynamics in warming tundra of Northeast European Russia

Abstract

Abstract. Methane (CH4) fluxes were investigated in a subarctic Russian tundra site in a multi-approach study combining plot scale data, ecosystem scale eddy covariance (EC) measurements and fine resolution land cover classification scheme for regional upscaling. The flux data as measured by the two independent techniques resulted in a seasonal (May–October 2008) cumulative CH4 emission of 2.4 (EC) and 3.7 g CH4 m−2 (manual chambers) for the source area representative of the footprint of the EC instruments. Upon upscaling for the entire study region of 98.6 km2, the chamber measured flux data yielded a regional flux estimate of 6.7 g CH4 m−2 yr−1. Our upscaling efforts accounted for the large spatial variability in the distribution of the various land cover types (LCTs) predominant at our study site. In particular, wetlands with emissions ranging from 34 to 53 g CH4 m−2 yr−1 were the most dominant CH4 emitting surfaces. Emissions from thermokarst lakes were an order of magnitude lower, while the rest of the landscape (mineral tundra) was a weak sink for atmospheric methane. Vascular plant cover was a key factor in explaining the spatial variability of CH4 emissions among wetland types, as indicated by the positive correlation of emissions with the leaf area index (LAI). As elucidated through a stable isotope analysis, the plant transport was the dominant CH4 release pathway that discriminates against heavier δ13C-CH4. The methane released from wetlands was lighter than that in the surface porewater and δ13C in the emitted CH4 correlated with the vascular plant cover (LAI) implying that the plant-mediated CH4 release dominates. A mean value of δ13C obtained here for the emitted CH4, −68.2 ± 2.0 ‰, is within the range of values from other wetlands, thus reinforcing the use of inverse modeling tools to better constrain the CH4 budget. Based on the IPCC A1B emission scenario, a temperature increase of 7 °C has been predicted for the tundra region of European Russia by the end of the 21st Century. A regional warming of this magnitude will have profound effects on the permafrost distribution leading to considerable changes in the regional landscape with a potential for an increase in the areal extent of methane emitting wet surfaces. We estimate that a projected increase in air temperature of 7 °C with a mere 10 % associated increase in the combined areal coverage of willow stands, fens and lakes in the region will lead to a 51 % higher amount of CH4 being emitted into the atmosphere by the end of this century.

The final meltdown of dead-ice at the Holocene Thermal Maximum (8500–7400 cal. yr BP) in western Latvia, eastern Baltic

“…Changing climate exerts a strong control on the nature, extent and severity of glacial and periglacial processes (Tweed and Carrivick, 2015). An increase in the global mean surface temperature causes permafrost to thaw, which initiates substantial carbon and methane emissions (Wik et al, 2016) and reintroduces previously frozen stores of micro- and macronutrients into the environment of the Northern Hemisphere (IPCC, 2014; Lougheed et al, 2015; Marushchak et al, 2015; Mathijssen et al, 2014; Serov et al, 2015; Sherwood et al, 2014). Furthermore, a recent study by Legendre et al (2015) reveals the exciting finding of a pathogenic DNA virus in prehistorical permafrost layers that should be of concern in the context of global climate change (Tollefson, 2015).…”