In a paper published recently in the journal Ecosystems, a team led by Auburn University School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences researchers found that the southeast region of the United States could be close to a turning point in terms of its carbon footprint.
“What makes the findings so important and relevant to policy, says Hanqin Tian, lead author of the study, is that it is the first study to look at multiple factors affecting regional climate and carbon storage over an extended period of time.
Tian, the Alumni and Solon Dixon Professor in Auburn University’s School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, developed a computer model that makes it possible to understand the intricate ways that climate change, atmospheric carbon dioxide, ozone, nitrogen and land use changes work together. The Dynamic Land Ecosystem Model is a new generation of land ecosystem models to address multiple environmental stresses and changes over time.
“This is the first time in the last century that we have fully evaluated the impacts of human and natural factors on Southern ecosystems including forests,” said Ge Sun of the USDA Forest Service and one of the researchers involved in the project.
Over time, the Southeast has been transformed from being a source of carbon emissions to being a carbon sink. This means that, overall, the environment in the Southeast removes carbon from the atmosphere rather than contributes to it.
From Auburn University: https://wireeagle.auburn.edu/news/4370