Woodwell Climate Research Center’s Post

A concerning study on Northern Latitudes and the role of #permafrost as a carbon sink just came out, and the news, while not at all unexpected, isn't positive. After millennia of serving as a carbon deep-freezer for the planet, recent studies published in Nature Climate Change reveal concerning shifts in the Arctic-boreal zone (ABZ). The region, encompassing treeless #tundra, boreal #forests, and #wetlands in Earth's #northernlatitudes, now shows a significant change in its #carbon balance. An international team, spearheaded by the Woodwell Climate Research Center, has discovered that approximately 34% of the ABZ has transitioned into a carbon source for the atmosphere. This shift includes the interplay of carbon dioxide (CO2) absorption through plant photosynthesis and subsequent CO2 release via microbial and plant respiration. When factoring in emissions from wildfires, this percentage escalates to 40%. The study represents a comprehensive evaluation of carbon flux dynamics in the ABZ, leveraging an extensive dataset spanning from 1990 to 2020. By analyzing a vast array of CO2 data collected from 200 study sites, the research sheds light on the evolving carbon balance influenced by changing climate patterns and fire occurrences in the north. Utilizing carbon flux monitoring towers and chambers, researchers monitor gas exchanges between the land and the atmosphere, offering insights into the region's respiration and absorption processes. Over three decades, the study highlights notable trends, such as the increase in summer carbon uptake juxtaposed with heightened carbon emissions during non-growing season months. Notably, the study's high-resolution mapping (1km x 1km for 2001–2020) provides a detailed perspective on the spatial distribution of these evolving carbon dynamics, unraveling the geographical nuances behind the observed trendlines. The key takeaway is that the #accelerated #warming that the northern latitudes have been experiencing has more impact than expected, which could bode poorly for #climate in general, as these latitudes hold enormous amounts (Gigatons) of carbon stored as organic matter in the frozen ground, which has the potential to accelerate the overall warming process when the ground melts (#tippingpoint). This acceleration of warming is made worse by the fact that a lot of the permafrost-bound carbon will be released not as CO2, but as Methane (CH4) which is significantly stronger as a #GHG.