Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Published Online May 22, 2003
Science DOI: 10.1126/science.1083592

Research Articles

Submitted on February 18, 2003
Accepted on May 6, 2003

Europe's Terrestrial Biosphere Absorbs 7 to 12% of European Anthropogenic CO2 Emissions

Ivan A. Janssens 1*, Annette Freibauer 2, Philippe Ciais 3, Pete Smith 4, Gert-Jan Nabuurs 5, Gerd Folberth 3, Bernhard Schlamadinger 6, Ronald W. A. Hutjes 7, Reinhart Ceulemans 1, E.-Detlef Schulze 8, Riccardo Valentini 9, A. Johannes Dolman 8

1 Department of Biology, Universiteit Antwerpen, Belgium.
2 Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Jena, Germany.
3 Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, Paris, France.
4 Department of Plant and Soil Science, University of Aberdeen, UK.
5 Alterra Green World Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands; European Forest Institute, Joenssuu, Finland.
6 Joanneum Research, Graz, Austria.
7 Alterra Green World Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
8 Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Jena, Germany.
9 Department of Forest Science and Environment, University of Tuscia, Italy.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ijanssen{at}uia.ua.ac.be.

Most inverse atmospheric models report considerable uptake of CO2 in Europe's terrestrial biosphere. In contrast, carbon stocks in terrestrial ecosystems increase at a much smaller rate, with carbon gains in forests and grassland soils almost being offset by carbon losses from cropland and peatland soils. Accounting for non-CO2 carbon transfers that are not detected by the atmospheric models and for CO2 fluxes bypassing the ecosystem carbon stocks, considerably reduces the gap between the small carbon stock changes and the larger CO2 uptake estimated by atmospheric models. The remaining difference could be due to missing components in the stock change approach, as well as to the large uncertainty in both methods. Using the corrected atmosphere- and land-based estimates as a dual constraint, we estimate a net carbon sink between 135 and 205 Tg a-1 in Europe's terrestrial biosphere, the equivalent of 7-12 % of the 1995 anthropogenic C emissions.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Characterization of CO2 flux in three Kobresia meadows differing in dominant species.
P. Zhang, M. Hirota, H. Shen, A. Yamamoto, S. Mariko, and Y. Tang (2009)
J Plant Ecol 2, 187-196
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Increases in nitrogen uptake rather than nitrogen-use efficiency support higher rates of temperate forest productivity under elevated CO2.
A. C. Finzi, R. J. Norby, C. Calfapietra, A. Gallet-Budynek, B. Gielen, W. E. Holmes, M. R. Hoosbeek, C. M. Iversen, R. B. Jackson, M. E. Kubiske, et al. (2007)
PNAS 104, 14014-14019
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Weak Northern and Strong Tropical Land Carbon Uptake from Vertical Profiles of Atmospheric CO2.
B. B. Stephens, K. R. Gurney, P. P. Tans, C. Sweeney, W. Peters, L. Bruhwiler, P. Ciais, M. Ramonet, P. Bousquet, T. Nakazawa, et al. (2007)
Science 316, 1732-1735
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Forest carbon management in the United States: 1600-2100..
R. Birdsey, K. Pregitzer, and A. Lucier (2006)
J. Environ. Qual. 35, 1461-1469
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Vadose Zone Flow and Transport of Dissolved Organic Carbon at Multiple Scales in Humid Regimes.
P. M. Jardine, M. A. Mayes, P. J. Mulholland, P. J. Hanson, J. R. Tarver, R. J. Luxmoore, J. F. McCarthy, and G. V. Wilson (2006)
Vadose Zone J. 5, 140-152
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)