A temperate deciduous forest Free-Air Carbon Enrichment (FACE) facility – results from seasons 0, 1, 2 (& 3) of 10
| Dates: | 11 November 2020 |
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| Times: | 13:00 - 14:00 |
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| What is it: | Seminar |
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| Organiser: | Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences |
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| Who is it for: | University staff, Adults, Alumni, Current University students |
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| Speaker: | Prof Rob Mackenzie |
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Prof Rob Mackenzie, University of Birmingham, joins us for a Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences seminar. Abstract below.
The land carbon sink is calculated to be the most important carbon cycle feedback to 21st century climate change, yet forecasts are highly uncertain and Earth-system models of the process contain ‘known unknowns’. Nutritional constraints and environmental stress may soon limit the land sink, especially in mature forests, which make up a dominant part of the sink. This would mean that current climate projections are overly optimistic because scenarios, such as those used to inform the Paris-Katowice Agreement, rely on a continuing strong sink. The Birmingham Institute of Forest Research (BIFoR) FACE is one of the three largest global change experiments in the world. BIFoR FACE is set in UK broadleaf forest dominated by 160-year-old and 25 m tall oak trees interspersed with sycamore, hazel, hawthorn, and holly. CO2-enrichment, scheduled to run until 2026, commenced in spring 2017 and has performed to very high engineering standards. The whole canopy volume of three replicate 30m-diameter (0.07 ha) plots is immersed in air containing 150 ppm CO2 above ambient. The whole forest system responds promptly. So far, we find species-dependent increased carbon assimilation, increased fine root production, and responses in water and nutrient cycling. Whether these signals will persist is the $50M question.
Speaker
Prof Rob Mackenzie
Organisation: University of Birmingham
Travel and Contact Information
Find event
G.03
Williamson Building
Manchester
