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Persistence of soil organic matter as an ecosystem property

Author

Listed:
  • Michael W. I. Schmidt

    (University of Zurich)

  • Margaret S. Torn

    (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
    Energy and Resources Group, University of California)

  • Samuel Abiven

    (University of Zurich)

  • Thorsten Dittmar

    (Max Planck Research Group for Marine Geochemistry, University of Oldenburg, Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment
    Max Planck Research Group for Marine Geochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology)

  • Georg Guggenberger

    (Institute of Soil Science, Leibniz Universität Hannover)

  • Ivan A. Janssens

    (University of Antwerp)

  • Markus Kleber

    (Oregon State University)

  • Ingrid Kögel-Knabner

    (Lehrstuhl für Bodenkunde, Technische Universität München)

  • Johannes Lehmann

    (Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University)

  • David A. C. Manning

    (School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Institute for Research on Environment and Sustainability, Newcastle University)

  • Paolo Nannipieri

    (Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Firenze)

  • Daniel P. Rasse

    (Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research)

  • Steve Weiner

    (Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute)

  • Susan E. Trumbore

    (Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry)

Abstract

Soil carbon stability revisited The mechanisms underpinning soil carbon stability are complicated. The future response of soil carbon to climate change is uncertain but crucial, given that the carbon pool in soils is three times greater than that of the atmosphere. In a Perspective, Michael Schmidt and an international team of collaborators discuss how our understanding of soil carbon cycling has been changing. Rather than being mostly a function of molecular structure, as has been assumed, soil organic carbon stability is an ecosystem property. This means that it arises from complex interactions among many biotic and abiotic factors that are not fully understood. This fact must be more rigorously addressed in a new generation of experiments and soil carbon models, say Schmidt et al., if we are to improve our attempts to understand this vital component of the Earth system.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael W. I. Schmidt & Margaret S. Torn & Samuel Abiven & Thorsten Dittmar & Georg Guggenberger & Ivan A. Janssens & Markus Kleber & Ingrid Kögel-Knabner & Johannes Lehmann & David A. C. Manning & Pa, 2011. "Persistence of soil organic matter as an ecosystem property," Nature, Nature, vol. 478(7367), pages 49-56, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:478:y:2011:i:7367:d:10.1038_nature10386
    DOI: 10.1038/nature10386
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