Seasonal and Diurnal Net Methane Emissions from Organic Soils of the Eastern Alps, Austria: Effects of Soil Temperature, Water Balance, and Plant Biomass

Koch, Oliver; Tscherko, Dagmar; Kandeler, Ellen

doi:10.1657/1523-0430(06-020)[koch]2.0.co;2

Cited by 34 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 38 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The methane emissions obtained through static chambers during the snowfree period (*125-313 mg CH 4 m -2 day -1 ) are in the range of what was observed for fens of the Tibetan Plateau (Hirota et al 2004;Chen et al 2008) and of the Rocky Mountains (Sebacher et al 1986;Wickland et al 1999;Chimner and Cooper 2003) and were similar to methane emissions from wet Arctic tundra during summer (Sebacher et al 1986;Whalen andReeburgh 1988, 1990;Morrissey and Livingston 1992;Bartlett et al 1992;Whalen and Reeburgh 1992;Christensen 1993;Shannon and White 1994;Christensen et al 1995, Shannon et al 1996, Sachs et al 2010. The emissions were slightly higher than those observed by Koch et al (2007) for alpine fens from Europe. In their study, maximum methane emissions were below 150 mg CH 4 m -2 day -1 and average methane emissions in the snow-free period were in the range of 19-116 mg CH 4 m -2 day -1 .…”

Section: Methane Fluxes and Profilessupporting

confidence: 69%

“…Year-round soil temperatures above the freezing point as a result of the insulation through snow were also reported by Mast et al (1998) for a subalpine wetland in the Rocky Mountains at 3,200 m a.s.l. and by Koch et al (2007) for an alpine site at 2,250 m a.s.l. in Austria.…”

Section: Subsurface Temperaturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Data on methane emissions from European main wetland ecosystem types are scarce (Saarnio et al 2009). To our knowledge only one study dealt with methane emissions from alpine fens in Europe so far (Koch et al 2007). However, that report did not consider methane concentration profiles in the subsurface.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Methane emissions from an alpine fen in central Switzerland

2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Methane emissions and below ground methane pore water concentrations were determined in an alpine fen at 1,915 m a.s.l. in central Switzerland. The fen represented an acidic (pH 4.5-4.9), nutrient-poor to mesotrophic habitat dominated by Carex limosa, Carex rostrata, Trichophorum caespitosum and Sphagnum species. From late fall to late spring the fen was snow-covered. Throughout winter the temperatures never dropped below 0°C at 5 cm below the vegetation surface. Methane emissions in June, July, August and September were in the range of 125 (±26)-313 (±71) mg CH 4 m -2 day -1 with a tendency to decrease along the summer season. Mean methane pore water concentrations at a depth of 20-40 cm below the vegetation surface were 526 (±32) lM in June and in the range of 144 (±10)-233 (±7) lM in July, August and September. At a depth of 0-20 cm the mean methane pore water concentrations dropped back to \20 lM with an almost linear decrease between 0 and 15 cm. Oxygen pore water concentrations were close to air saturation in the first few centimeters and dropped back below detection limit at a depth of 20 cm. In July and August the pore water concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were in the range of 7.2-10.1 mg C l -1 at all depths. The pore water concentrations of acetate, formate and oxalate were in the range of 2.0-8.2 lM at all depths. Methanotrophic and methanogenic communities were quantified using pmoA and mcrA, respectively, as marker genes. The abundances of both communities showed a distinct peak at a depth of 10-15 cm below the vegetation surface.

show abstract

Section: Methane Fluxes and Profilessupporting

confidence: 69%

Section: Subsurface Temperaturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Methane emissions from an alpine fen in central Switzerland

2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Several factors that influence these variations have been identified: temperature, level of the water table, plant cover, pH, or soil characteristics (13)(14)(15)(16). In particular, vascular plants play a key role in CH 4 emissions from wetlands, since they affect the individual processes involved in CH 4 cycling, i.e., CH 4 production, oxidation, and transportation (17).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies on CH 4 dynamics in alpine fens have been conducted mainly in the Rocky Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau (34)(35)(36)(37)(38). Studies in the European Alps, however, have been limited to an Austrian (16) and several Swiss (32) alpine fens. These studies focused mainly on in situ measurements of CH 4 emissions and concentrations in pore water, reporting spatial and seasonal variability in emissions.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Methanotrophic and Methanogenic Communities in Swiss Alpine Fens Dominated by Carex rostrata and Eriophorum angustifolium

Cheema

Zeyer

Henneberger

2015

Appl Environ Microbiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Vascular plants play a key role in controlling CH 4 emissions from natural wetlands, because they influence CH 4 production, oxidation, and transport to the atmosphere. Here we investigated differences in the abundance and composition of methanotrophic and methanogenic communities in three Swiss alpine fens dominated by different vascular plant species under natural conditions. The sampling locations either were situated at geographically distinct sites with different physicochemical properties but the same dominant plant species (Carex rostrata) or were located within the same site, showing comparable physicochemical pore water properties, but had different plant species (C. rostrata or Eriophorum angustifolium). All three locations were permanently submerged and showed high levels of CH 4 emissions (80.3 to 184.4 mg CH 4 m ؊2 day ؊1 ). Soil samples were collected from three different depths with different pore water CH 4 and O 2 concentrations and were analyzed for pmoA and mcrA gene and transcript abundance and community composition, as well as soil structure. The dominant plant species appeared to have a significant influence on the composition of the active methanotrophic communities (transcript level), while the methanogenic communities differed significantly only at the gene level. Yet no plant species-specific microbial taxa were discerned. Moreover, for all communities, differences in composition were more pronounced with the site (i.e., with different physicochemical properties) than with the plant species. Moreover, depth significantly influenced the composition of the active methanotrophic communities. Differences in abundance were generally low, and active methanotrophs and methanogens coexisted at all three locations and depths independently of CH 4 and O 2 concentrations or plant species.T he atmospheric concentration of the highly potent greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ) has increased over the past several decades to a current value of ca. 1.8 ppm by volume (ppmv) and is continuing to rise after an apparent stagnation in the early 2000s (1). Natural wetlands are the most important nonanthropogenic CH 4 source, with estimated emissions of 177 to 284 Tg year Ϫ1 , accounting for 26 to 42% of the global CH 4 budget (2). Wetlands in northern high latitudes (north of 45°N) contribute approximately 44.0 to 53.7 Tg CH 4 year Ϫ1 (3). The CH 4 cycle in these environments is driven by microorganisms: methanogenic archaea (methanogens) generate CH 4 in the anoxic zones of the wetland soil as the terminal step of anaerobic degradation of organic matter. These microorganisms represent a monophyletic euryarchaeal lineage and largely utilize hydrogen or carbon dioxide, acetate, or small methylated compounds as substrates (4, 5). On the other hand, a substantial amount of CH 4 generated in wetlands is oxidized before it can reach the atmosphere by aerobic methaneoxidizing bacteria (methanotrophs), which are active mainly at the oxic-anoxic interface (6). These organisms can utilize CH 4 as the sole energy and carbon...

show abstract

Interannual, seasonal, and retrospective analysis of the methane and carbon dioxide budgets of a temperate peatland

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

[1] Three years (2009)(2010)(2011) of near-continuous methane (CH 4 ) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) fluxes were measured with the eddy covariance (EC) technique at a temperate peatland located within the Marcell Experimental Forest, in northern Minnesota, USA. The peatland was a net source of CH 4 and a net sink of CO 2 in each year with annual carbon budgets of À26.8 (AE18.7), À15.5 (AE14.8), and À14.6 (AE21.5) g C m À2 yr À1 for 2009-2011, respectively. Differences in the seasonal hydrometeorological conditions among the three study years were most pronounced during 2011, which was considerably warmer (+1.3 C) and wetter (+40 mm) than the 30 year average. The annual CH 4 budget was +11.8 (AE3.1), +12.2 (AE3.0), and +24.9 (AE5.6) g C m À2 yr À1 for the respective years and accounted for 23%-39% of the annual carbon budget. The larger CH 4 emission in 2011 is attributed to significant warming of the peat column coupled with a high water table position throughout the entire growing season. Historical (1991-2011) CH 4 emissions were estimated based on long-term hydrometeorological records and functional relationships derived from our 3 year field study. The predicted historical annual CH 4 budget ranged from +7.8 to +15.2 (AE2.7) g CH 4 -C m À2 yr À1 . Recent (2007Recent ( -2011 increases in temperature, precipitation, and rising water table at this site suggest that CH 4 emissions have been increasing, but were generally greater from 1991 to 1999 when average soil temperature and precipitation were higher than in recent years. The global warming potential (considering CO 2 and CH 4 ) for this peatland was calculated based on a 100 year time horizon. In all three study years, the peatland had a net positive radiative forcing on climate and was greatest (+187 g C m À2 ) in 2011. The interannual variability in CH 4 exchange at this site suggests high sensitivity to variations in hydrometeorological conditions. Citation: Olson, D. M., T. J. Griffis, A. Noormets, R. Kolka and J. Chen (2013), Interannual, seasonal, and retrospective analysis of the methane and carbon dioxide budgets of a temperate peatland,

show abstract

Seasonal and Diurnal Net Methane Emissions from Organic Soils of the Eastern Alps, Austria: Effects of Soil Temperature, Water Balance, and Plant Biomass

Cited by 34 publications

References 38 publications

Methane emissions from an alpine fen in central Switzerland

Methane emissions from an alpine fen in central Switzerland

Methanotrophic and Methanogenic Communities in Swiss Alpine Fens Dominated by Carex rostrata and Eriophorum angustifolium

Interannual, seasonal, and retrospective analysis of the methane and carbon dioxide budgets of a temperate peatland

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About