Permafrost landslides promote soil CO2 emission and hinder C accumulation

Abstract

In boreal forests developed on permafrost, landslide processes are widespread. They occur primarily in years of above average summer-autumn precipitation and can cover up to 20% of total area of slopes adjacent to rivers. Permafrost landslides will escalate with climate change. These processes are the most destructive natural disturbance events and result in complete disappearance of initial ecosystems (vegetation cover and soil). We have studied sites of landslides of different ages along the Nizhnyaya Tunguska River and the Kochechum River (key site Tura) to analyze postsliding ecosystem succession. Just after the event (as at the 1-year-old site), as compared to the non-affected control site we registered a drop in soil respiration, a 3 times lower microbial respiration rate, and a 4 times smaller mineral soil C and N content at G-plots-bare soil (melkozem) at middle location of a site. Results show that regeneration of soil respiration and ecophysiological status of microbial communities in soil during post disturbance succession starts with re-establishment of the vegetation and the following accumulation of the organic soil layer. During the 35-years succession under observation the, at the oldest site the accumulated litter contained similar C and N stocks as the control sites. However, the mineral soil C and N stocks and the microbial biomass even of the oldest landslide area did not reach the value of these parameters in control plots. We conclude that forested ecosystems in permafrost area disturbed after landsliding require decades for final successful restoration. In addition, the degradation of permafrost due to landslides clearly hinders the accumulation of soil organic matter in the mineral soil.

Mass-Movements in Cold and Polar Climates

“…These phenomena can generate disturbance to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems (Bowden et al, 2008;Callaghan et al, 2011;Cannone et al, 2010;Osterkamp et al, 2009;Racine et al, 2004). An increase in mass movements occurrence in cold and polar terrains due to permafrost thaw because of the warming climate may also accelerate the release to the atmosphere of Pleistocene sequestered carbon (Belshe et al, 2013;Grosse et al, 2011;Masyagina et al, 2019;Pautler et al, 2010;Schuur et al, 2009Schuur et al, , 2008Tarnocai et al, 2009). Thaw-slumps and active-layer-detachment-slides activity in the Arctic has enhanced in the last decades (Jorgenson and Osterkamp, 2005;Luo et al, 2019), generating alterations in the water quality of nearby lakes and streams Lafrenière and Lamoureux, 2019;Segal et al, 2016), vegetation and soils (Khomutov and Leibman, 2014;, and trace gases .…”

Development of an Amorphous Nickel Boride/Manganese Molybdate Heterostructure as an Efficient Electrode Material for a High-Performance Asymmetric Supercapacitor

“…This leads to serious problems such as massive energy consumption, environmental pollution, and the continuous depletion of fossil fuels. Therefore, energy generation from various sustainable and renewable clean energy sources is an important aspect of the current situation. , Consequently, finding an efficient way to store energy resources is imperative. Therefore, the development of energy storage systems for environmentally friendly sustainable energy sources such as wind, geothermal, and solar energy is of great importance. , The development of electrochemical energy storage systems has attracted significant attention from researchers to modulate and balance energy supply and reduce environmental pollution.…”

“…Therefore, energy generation from various sustainable and renewable clean energy sources is an important aspect of the current situation. 1,2 Consequently, finding an efficient way to store energy resources is imperative. Therefore, the development of energy storage systems for environmentally friendly sustainable energy sources such as wind, geothermal, and solar energy is of great importance.…”

Divergent Trajectory of Soil Autotrophic and Heterotrophic Respiration upon Permafrost Thaw

“…During the past decade, growing concern was paid on the impacts of thermokarst formation on Rs and the associated drivers. − Previous studies, mostly from the Arctic permafrost ecosystems, have revealed that Rs increased with active layer thickness, soil temperature, , bulk density, and soil organic matter (SOM) content, , but declined with soil moisture . These studies have promoted our understanding on the drivers of Rs, yet some key biotic and abiotic factors are ignored.…”