Global patterns and drivers of tropical aboveground carbon changes

Yu Feng (), Philippe Ciais, Jean-Pierre Wigneron, Yidi Xu, Alan D. Ziegler, Dave Wees, Arthur Nicolaus Fendrich, Dominick V. Spracklen, Stephen Sitch, Martin Brandt, Wei Li, Lei Fan, Xiaojun Li, Jie Wu and Zhenzhong Zeng
Additional contact information
Yu Feng: Eastern Institute of Technology
Philippe Ciais: UMR 1572 CEA-CNRS-UVSQ
Jean-Pierre Wigneron: UMR 1391 ISPA
Yidi Xu: UMR 1572 CEA-CNRS-UVSQ
Alan D. Ziegler: Mae Jo University
Dave Wees: BeZero Carbon
Arthur Nicolaus Fendrich: UMR 1572 CEA-CNRS-UVSQ
Dominick V. Spracklen: University of Leeds
Stephen Sitch: University of Exeter
Martin Brandt: University of Copenhagen
Wei Li: Tsinghua University
Lei Fan: Southwest University
Xiaojun Li: UMR 1391 ISPA
Jie Wu: Eastern Institute of Technology
Zhenzhong Zeng: Eastern Institute of Technology

Nature Climate Change, 2024, vol. 14, issue 10, 1064-1070

Abstract: Abstract Tropical terrestrial ecosystems play an important role in modulating the global carbon balance. However, the complex dynamics and factors controlling tropical aboveground live biomass carbon (AGC) are not fully understood. Here, using remotely sensed observations, we find a moderate net AGC sink of 0.21 ± 0.06 PgC yr−1 throughout the global tropics from 2010 to 2020. This arises from a gross loss of −1.79 PgC yr−1 offset by a marked gain of 2.01 ± 0.06 PgC yr−1. Fire emissions in non-forested African shrubland/savanna biomes, coupled with post-fire carbon recovery, substantially dominated the interannual variability of tropical AGC. Fire radiative power was identified as the primary determinant of the spatial variability in AGC gains, with soil moisture also playing a crucial role in shaping trends. We highlight the dominant roles of anthropogenic and hydroclimatic determinants in orchestrating tropical land carbon dynamics and advocate for land management to conserve indispensable ecosystem services worldwide.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-024-02115-x

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