Experts prove the geochemical origin of part of the CO2 emissions in semiarid climates

Measuring tower of CO2 ecosystem-atmosphere interchange by means of the eddy covariance technique. Click here for more information.

The implementation of the Kyoto Protocol has raised, among other pressing matters, the need of getting to know the annual levels of carbon in different earth’s ecosystems. Scientists connected with the CEAMA-Andalusian Centre for the Environment (University of Granada-Andalusian Council) are studying these levels in semiarid Mediterranean scrubland, situated in Eastern Andalusia, whose results are comparable to wide regions of the world.

These researchers have analysed for the first time the CO2 level in carbonated semiarid systems. The interest of the work lies in the knowledge of the CO2 production processes and their absorption and in the conservation of one of the richest ecosystems of Spain.

One of the most recent studied on the subject is the doctoral thesis “CO2 interchanges between atmosphere and karst ecosystems: Applicability of the commonly applied techniques”, read by Penélope Serrano Ortiz and led by Doctors Andrew S. Kowalski and Lucas Alados Arboledas.

The work, supported by the “Carbon and water balance in Mediterranean thicket ecosystems in Andalusia: Effect of the climatic change” project, has permitted to quantify and identify the processes involved in carbon annual balance in a semiarid carbonated substrate ecosystem, situated in Sierra de Gádor (Almeria). After three years of observation of this ecosystem (2004-2006), through the use of the most advanced techniques (attached photo), have permitted to estimate the annual carbon balance. The carbon balance of this type of ecosystem has been checked for the first time, revealing that it acts as a CO2 drain which assimilates approximately 25 g C m-2 a year (between 10 and 20 times lower than arable land and tree ecosystems respectively).