East Siberian Arctic inland waters emit mostly contemporary carbon

Joshua F. Dean (), Ove H. Meisel, Melanie Martyn Rosco, Luca Belelli Marchesini, Mark H. Garnett, Henk Lenderink, Richard van Logtestijn, Alberto V. Borges, Steven Bouillon, Thibault Lambert, Thomas Röckmann, Trofim Maximov, Roman Petrov, Sergei Karsanaev, Rien Aerts, Jacobus van Huissteden, Jorien E. Vonk and A. Johannes Dolman
Additional contact information
Joshua F. Dean: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Ove H. Meisel: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Melanie Martyn Rosco: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Luca Belelli Marchesini: Department of Sustainable Agro-ecosystems and Bioresources, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach
Mark H. Garnett: Natural Environment Research Council Radiocarbon Facility
Henk Lenderink: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Richard van Logtestijn: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Alberto V. Borges: University of Liège
Steven Bouillon: Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Thibault Lambert: University of Liège
Thomas Röckmann: Utrecht University
Trofim Maximov: Institute for Biological Problems of the Cryolithozone, Siberian Branch Russian Academy of Sciences
Roman Petrov: Institute for Biological Problems of the Cryolithozone, Siberian Branch Russian Academy of Sciences
Sergei Karsanaev: Institute for Biological Problems of the Cryolithozone, Siberian Branch Russian Academy of Sciences
Rien Aerts: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Jacobus van Huissteden: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Jorien E. Vonk: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
A. Johannes Dolman: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Inland waters (rivers, lakes and ponds) are important conduits for the emission of terrestrial carbon in Arctic permafrost landscapes. These emissions are driven by turnover of contemporary terrestrial carbon and additional pre-aged (Holocene and late-Pleistocene) carbon released from thawing permafrost soils, but the magnitude of these source contributions to total inland water carbon fluxes remains unknown. Here we present unique simultaneous radiocarbon age measurements of inland water CO2, CH4 and dissolved and particulate organic carbon in northeast Siberia during summer. We show that >80% of total inland water carbon was contemporary in age, but pre-aged carbon contributed >50% at sites strongly affected by permafrost thaw. CO2 and CH4 were younger than dissolved and particulate organic carbon, suggesting emissions were primarily fuelled by contemporary carbon decomposition. Our findings reveal that inland water carbon emissions from permafrost landscapes may be more sensitive to changes in contemporary carbon turnover than the release of pre-aged carbon from thawing permafrost.

Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:11:y:2020:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-020-15511-6

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15511-6

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