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BG3.37 | Where does carbon go? Unravelling the connection between tree photosynthesis, carbon allocation, and ecosystem storage
Where does carbon go? Unravelling the connection between tree photosynthesis, carbon allocation, and ecosystem storage
Convener: Leonardo Montagnani | Co-conveners: Antoine CabonECSECS, Daniele Castagneri, Tamir Klein, Enrico Tomelleri
Terrestrial ecosystems play a central role in the global carbon (C) cycle, and their importance in mitigating climate change has been widely recognised. Nevertheless, our current comprehension of the intricate interplay between climate and the carbon cycle within woody ecosystems and our capacity to forecast forthcoming carbon cycle dynamics remains fragmentary.
Specifically, our understanding of the relationship between photosynthesis and respiration, C allocation in different tissues, woody biomass production, and long-term storage in the ecosystem remains limited. The poor correlation and substantial temporal discrepancy between C assimilation and wood production, observed at many sites, suggest that the percentage of assimilated C used for biomass formation is highly variable over the season, between years and at different sites. Moreover, a range of processes, including disturbances and decomposition play a crucial role in further shaping ecosystem C persistence. Overall, the fate of C beyond photosynthesis, i.e., to which degree C is rapidly respired back to the atmosphere or is sequestrated in C pools with longer turnover times, is a matter of ongoing research.
This session welcomes contributions using novel, multidisciplinary and cross-scale approaches ranging from the microscopic to the landscape for shedding light on the nexus between climate, and C sequestration, C allocation and storage in woody ecosystems such as vineyards, orchards, tree plantations, and forests. We look forward to stimulating research questions and new ideas on unresolved issues about C cycling in tree ecosystems.