Dynamics of carbon storage in degraded arid land environments: a case study from the Jornada experimental range, New Mexico, (USA)

TitleDynamics of carbon storage in degraded arid land environments: a case study from the Jornada experimental range, New Mexico, (USA)
Publication TypeConference Proceedings
Year of Publication1995
AuthorsConnin S.L, Virginia R.A, Page C, Huenneke L., Harrison K, Schlesinger W.H
EditorSquires VR, Glenn EP, Ayoub AT eds.
Conference NameCombating Global Climate Change By Combating Land Degradation
Number of Volumespp
Pagination132-148
Date Published1998
PublisherThe University of Arizona Press
Conference LocationNairobi, Kenya
Call Number00772
Keywordsabstract, abstracts, carbon storage, soil, carbon, model, conference, conference proceedings, conferences, desertification, model, global change, carbon sequestration, model, desertification, proceeding, proceedings
AbstractThis paper reviews spatial and temporal dynamics of carbon storage related to Holocene climatic change and recent shrub invasion (due to desertification) in the Jornada Basin, New Mexico (USA). It evaluates the role of regional climate history, vegetation distribution, and soil characteristics as controls on carbon cycling in this system. Ecosystem-level changes in above- and below-ground carbon pools in grassland and desertified shrub communities are compared to quantify changes in the net carbon balance associated with desertification. An assessment is made, in the context of the Jornada desertification model, of the potential opportunities to sequester carbon in drylands and to identify current research needs.
Custom 1Tucson, AZ