The boreal forest of the northern hemisphere represents one of the world's largest ecozones and contains nearly one third of the world's intact forests and terrestrially stored carbon. Long-term variations in temperature and precipitation have been implied in altering carbon cycling in forest soils, including increased fluxes to receiving waters. In this study, we use a simple hydrologic model and a 40-year dataset (1971–2010) of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from two pristine boreal lakes (ELA, Canada) to examine the interactions between precipitation and landscape-scale controls of DOC production and export from forest catchments to surface waters. Our results indicate that a simplified hydrologically-based conceptual model can enable the long-term temporal patterns of DOC fluxes to be captured within boreal landscapes. Reconstructed DOC exports from forested catchments in the period 1901–2012 follow largely a sinusoidal pattern, with a period of about 37 years and are tightly linked to multi-decadal patterns of precipitation. By combining our model with long-term precipitation estimates, we found no evidence of increasing DOC transport or in-lake concentrations through the 20th century. Highlights: Rainfall is a driving force of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in lacustrine systems. We derive a parsimonious model of the hydro-climatic forcing of DOC. We analyze long-term hydrologic controls of DOC in two pristine boreal lakes (Canada). The model did not reveal increasing in-lake DOC concentrations through the 20th century.
Titolo: | Hydro-climatic forcing of dissolved organic carbon in two boreal lakes of Canada. | |
Autori: | ||
Data di pubblicazione: | 2016 | |
Rivista: | ||
Abstract: | The boreal forest of the northern hemisphere represents one of the world's largest ecozones and c...ontains nearly one third of the world's intact forests and terrestrially stored carbon. Long-term variations in temperature and precipitation have been implied in altering carbon cycling in forest soils, including increased fluxes to receiving waters. In this study, we use a simple hydrologic model and a 40-year dataset (1971–2010) of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from two pristine boreal lakes (ELA, Canada) to examine the interactions between precipitation and landscape-scale controls of DOC production and export from forest catchments to surface waters. Our results indicate that a simplified hydrologically-based conceptual model can enable the long-term temporal patterns of DOC fluxes to be captured within boreal landscapes. Reconstructed DOC exports from forested catchments in the period 1901–2012 follow largely a sinusoidal pattern, with a period of about 37 years and are tightly linked to multi-decadal patterns of precipitation. By combining our model with long-term precipitation estimates, we found no evidence of increasing DOC transport or in-lake concentrations through the 20th century. Highlights: Rainfall is a driving force of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in lacustrine systems. We derive a parsimonious model of the hydro-climatic forcing of DOC. We analyze long-term hydrologic controls of DOC in two pristine boreal lakes (Canada). The model did not reveal increasing in-lake DOC concentrations through the 20th century. | |
Handle: | http://hdl.handle.net/11588/637104 | |
Appare nelle tipologie: | 1.1 Articolo in rivista |