Evidence that soil carbon pool determines susceptibility of semi-natural ecosystems to elevated nitrogen leaching

Evans, Christopher D. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7052-354X; Reynolds, Brian; Jenkins, Alan; Helliwell, Rachel C.; Curtis, Christopher J.; Goodale, Christine L.; Ferrier, Robert C.; Emmett, Bridget A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2713-4389; Pilkington, Michael G.; Caporn, Simon J. M.; Carroll, Jacky A.; Norris, David; Davies, Jennifer; Coull, Malcolm C.. 2006 Evidence that soil carbon pool determines susceptibility of semi-natural ecosystems to elevated nitrogen leaching. Ecosystems, 9 (3). 453-462. 10.1007/s10021-006-0051-z

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Abstract/Summary

Deposition of reactive nitrogen (N) compounds has the potential to cause severe damage to sensitive soils and waters, but the process of ‘nitrogen saturation’ is difficult to demonstrate or predict. This study compares outputs from a simple carbon–nitrogen model with observations of (1) regional- and catchment-scale relationships between surface water nitrate and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), as an indicator of catchment carbon (C) pool; (2) inter-regional variations in soil C/N ratios; and (3) plot scale soil and leachate response to long-term N additions, for a range of UK moorlands. Results suggest that the simple model applied can effectively reproduce observed patterns, and that organic soil C stores provide a critical control on catchment susceptibility to enhanced N leaching, leading to high spatial variability in the extent and severity of current damage within regions of relatively uniform deposition. Results also support the hypothesis that the N richness of organic soils, expressed as C/N ratio, provides an effective indicator of soil susceptibility to enhanced N leaching. The extent to which current C/N is influenced by N deposition, as opposed to factors such as climate and vegetation type, cannot be unequivocally determined on the basis of spatial data. However, N addition experiments at moorland sites have shown a reduction in organic soil C/N. A full understanding of the mechanisms of N-enrichment of soils and waters is essential to the assessment of current sensitivity to, and prediction of future damage from, globally increasing reactive nitrogen deposition

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1007/s10021-006-0051-z
Programmes:	CEH Programmes pre-2009 publications > Biogeochemistry
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	_ Biogeochemistry & Ecosystem Function _ Water Quality
ISSN:	1432-9840
Format Availability:	Electronic, Print
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com
Additional Keywords:	carbon, nitrogen, nitrate leaching, soil organic matter, moorland catchments, MAGIC model
NORA Subject Terms:	Agriculture and Soil Science Ecology and Environment Hydrology
Date made live:	04 Jul 2007 11:13 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/315

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