High latitude regions play a key role in the global carbon cycle and climate system.
High latitude regions play a key role in the global carbon cycle and climate system. An important question is the degree of mobilization and atmospheric release of vast soil carbon stocks, partly stored in permafrost, with amplified warming of these regions. A fraction of this carbon is exported to inland waters and emitted to the atmosphere, yet these losses are poorly constrained and seldom accounted for in assessments of high latitude carbon balances. This is particularly relevant for Western Siberia, with its extensive peatland carbon stocks that are expected to be affected by climate warming.
Now researchers at the Climate Impacts Research Centre (CIRC), Umeå University, and collaborators from Russia and France have quantified the carbon emission from inland waters of Western Siberia. Due to the remoteness and large area (3.6 million km2 area) of the study region, sampling of lakes and rivers were carried out over several years.
“We collected data of representative lakes and rivers over 2,000 km distance, including the main channel of Arctic’s largest watershed the Ob’ River”, explains lead author Jan Karlsson.
Read more at: Umea University
