Work

Soil organic carbon stocks are systematically overestimated by misuse of the parameters bulk density and rock fragment content

Year: 2017

Type: article

Abstract: . Estimation of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks requires estimates of the carbon content, bulk density, stone content and depth of a respective soil layer. However, different application of these parameters could introduce a considerable bias. Here, we explain why three out of four frequently applied methods overestimate SOC stocks. In stone rich soils (> 30 Vol. %), SOC stocks could be overestimated by more than 100 %, as revealed by using German Agricultural Soil Inventory data. Due to relatively low stone content, the mean systematic overestimation for German agricultural soils was 2.1–10.1 % for three different commonly used equations. The equation ensemble as re-formulated here might help to unify SOC stock determination and avoid overestimation in future studies.

Source: SOIL

DOI: 10.5194/soil-3-61-2017

Authors: Christopher Poeplau, Cora Vos, Axel Don

Institution: Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut

Language: English

Topic: Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics

Subfield: Soil Science

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Life on land

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,110