Aims

The project aims at taking a major leap forward in quantifying the potentials for long term C sequestration in Nordic forest soils as well as in understanding their sensitivity to climatic and environmental change.

 

The overall aim will be met by a combination of a set of working packages preformed by the network and by meeting the more detailed objectives below:

 

1. To establish an overview of:
   I) The available SOC data and their spatial coverage, considering the coherence and comparability of the datasets.
   II)  The relevant long-term experiments which are available for impact studies and model validation.
2. To analyse controlling factors on C sequestration using Nordic (and neighbouring countries) SOC databases while extrapolation and mapping of SOC stocks and soil C sequestration will be based on simple empirical models and dynamic models.
3. To quantify short- and long-term effects of forest management strategies on C stocks in soil, particularly:
   I) The effect of repeated nutrient addition to increase tree biomass production.
   II)  The effect of harvesting and removal of branches, tops and stumps to increase biofuel production.
   III)  The effect of alternative management systems such as selection-harvesting and change of tree species.
4. To quantify the effect of N deposition on soil C sequestration. This will particularly involve process studies meant to improve understanding of soil C processes for implementation in models.
5. To quantify the short- and long-term build-up of SOC after abandonment of agricultural activities, including afforestation and natural succession.
6. To improve the understanding of SOC accumulation. Identifying gaps in knowledge and missing experimental platforms.