Charcoal in Organic Horizon and Surface Mineral Soil in a Boreal Forest Fire Chronosequence of Western Quebec: Stocks, Depth Distribution, Chemical Properties and a Synthesis of Related Studies

Preston, Caroline M.; Simard, M.; Bergeron, Yves; Bernard, Guy M.; Wasylishen, Roderick E.

doi:10.3389/feart.2017.00098

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 91 publications

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“…The average amount of 98 g charcoal m −2 (median = 117 g m −2 ) in our study landscape falls within the range of previously reported results from Fennoscandian boreal forests, which range between 98 and 270 g m −2 (see e.g., Kasin et al, 2017;Ohlson et al, 2009;Zackrisson et al, 1996). This is considerably lower than findings from North American boreal forests (e.g., Hart & Luckai, 2014;Preston et al, 2017;Soucémarianadin et al, 2015). However, we had some soil samples with exceptionally high amounts of charcoal, that is, three of our samples had ≥4000 g charcoal m −2 , and 21 of our samples had ≥1000 g m −2 .…”

Section: Spatial Variability In the Proportion Of Charcoal Csupporting

confidence: 86%

Proportion of charcoal carbon in the forest floor carbon pool in relation to fire history in a boreal forest landscape

Haukenes,

Asplund,

Åsgård

et al. 2023

Ecosphere

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Fire in the boreal forests emits substantial amounts of organically bound carbon (C) to the atmosphere and converts a fraction of the burnt organic matter into charcoal, which in turn is highly refractory and functions as a long‐term stable C pool. It is well established that the boreal forest charcoal pool is sufficiently large to play a significant role in the global C cycle. However, there is a need for spatially representative estimates of how large proportions of the forest floor C pool are made up of charcoal across different plant communities in the boreal forest ecosystem. Thus, we have quantified the amounts of C separately in charcoal and the organic layers of the forest floor across fine spatial scales in a boreal forest landscape with a well‐documented fire history. We found that the proportion of charcoal C made up an average of 1.2% of the total forest floor C, and the charcoal proportions showed a high small‐scale spatial variability and were concentrated in the organic–mineral soil interface. Proportions of charcoal C decreased with increasing time since last fire. Deeper soils, denser soils, and local concave areas had the highest proportions of charcoal C, whereas historical fire frequencies and current differences in vegetation did not relate to the proportions of charcoal C.

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Section: Spatial Variability In the Proportion Of Charcoal Csupporting

confidence: 86%

Proportion of charcoal carbon in the forest floor carbon pool in relation to fire history in a boreal forest landscape

Haukenes,

Asplund,

Åsgård

et al. 2023

Ecosphere

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“…In the first 20 yr post‐disturbance, the effects of wildfires on upland forest soil C and N pools are distinctly different from the effects of bioenergy ash applications: combustion during wildfires oxidizes C and volatilizes N from the forest floor and surface mineral soil, while ash applications cause smaller (though often statistically significant) losses in soil C and N. The extreme temperatures associated with wildfires cause combustion of both aboveground vegetation and the forest soil surface, converting organic C into pyrogenic (‘black’) C or carbon dioxide, and volatilizing organic N, even at relatively low temperatures (Certini, 2005; Bodí et al, 2014a; Preston et al, 2017). This combustion process is the most important cause of soil C and N loss following wildfires (Nave et al, 2011; Maynard et al, 2014), although surface ash and soil can also be displaced by convective transport during burning and by erosive processes after the fire (Certini, 2005; Bodí et al, 2014a).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the production of bioenergy ash, usually from small‐diameter residues generated during stand tending, timber harvesting, and wood processing (Hannam et al, 2018), also generates CO 2 . Furthermore, highly aromatic forms of pyrogenic C (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) produced during wildfires can be particularly resistant to decay and may contribute to long‐term C storage in forest soils (Certini 2005; Bodí et al, 2014a; Preston et al, 2017). In fact, incompletely combusted (and, therefore, C‐rich) bioenergy ash can also contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (Pitman, 2006; Masto et al, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The quantity of ash (and pyrogenic C) produced during wildfires is difficult to measure because of its patchy distribution, the effects of surface erosion and infiltration into the soil surface post‐fire, and continued inputs of material sloughed from burned stems and surface woody debris. However, recent estimates suggest that, on average, 5 to 10 Mg ha −1 of charred material from stems, downed wood and forest floor is produced during boreal wildfires (Preston et al, 2017) and between 14 and 192 Mg ha −1 of ash is deposited on the soil surface following wildfires in North America (Bodí et al, 2014a, 2014b). More work is required to determine if application rates of pre‐treated ash can be manipulated to emulate wildfire effects on soil pH and exchangeable base cations while also avoiding damage to understory vegetation (Emilsson, 2006; Skogsstyrelsen, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Can Bioenergy Ash Applications Emulate the Effects of Wildfire on Upland Forest Soil Chemical Properties?

Hannam

Fleming

Venier

et al. 2019

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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Core Ideas Bioenergy is growing; the ash generated as a by‐product is often treated as waste. Ash applications could be used to emulate wildfire effects on forest soil chemistry. Wildfires and ash applications increase soil phosphorus and calcium and raise pH. Guidance on ash dosage rates and pre‐treatment for emulating wildfire is required. As efforts to combat climate change intensify in Canada and around the world, the use of forest biomass to produce energy is expanding rapidly. At the same time, there is an urgent need for environmentally sustainable methods of handling the ash generated during biomass combustion. Currently, bioenergy ash is often landfilled, placing significant pressure on Canada's waste disposal infrastructure. In some countries, however, the use of bioenergy ash as a nutrient‐rich forest soil amendment is strongly encouraged. Given that forest management in Canada is often driven by the ‘emulation of natural disturbance’ paradigm, bioenergy ash could have potential as a management tool for improving wildfire emulation in harvested stands. We compared published values of wildfire ash chemistry with those for Canadian and European bioenergy ash and found that they are similar. We used meta‐analysis to examine changes in soil carbon and nitrogen pools, extractable phosphorus, exchangeable calcium and soil pH following wildfires and applications of bioenergy ash on upland forested sites. Both wildfires and bioenergy ash can reduce forest floor C and N pools: wildfires by direct combustion of organic matter, and ash applications by an apparent increase in organic matter decay. Both wildfires and bioenergy ash applications increase extractable P, exchangeable Ca and pH in surface mineral soils. Although bioenergy ash applications can trigger larger increases in available P and pH in surface mineral soils than wildfires, controlling ash dosage rates or pre‐treating the ash to slow the rate of nutrient release could attenuate some of these effects.

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“…"black C"), which is substantially more resistant to decomposition following disturbance. In a Canadian Pinus banksiana forest, Santín et al (2015) estimated that as much as 28% of biomass affected by fire was converted to pyrogenic C. Pyrogenic C stocks have been estimated in the range of 3-10 Mg C ha −1 (Ohlson et al, 2009;Preston et al, 2017;Santín et al, 2015), which, due to its recalcitrance, can slow down site level R h rates. Numerous studies have demonstrated short-term reductions in R s after wildfire, with high-intensity or high-frequency fires causing more severe reductions, coinciding with tree death, loss of soil organic matter, and production of pyrogenic C (Kelly et al, 2021;Sawamoto et al, 2000;Singh et al, 2008).…”

Section: Mycorrhizal Mycelial Production and Necromassmentioning

confidence: 99%

The biological controls of soil carbon accumulation following wildfire and harvest in boreal forests: A review

Gundale,

Axelsson,

Buness

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

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Boreal forests are frequently subjected to disturbances, including wildfire and clear‐cutting. While these disturbances can cause soil carbon (C) losses, the long‐term accumulation dynamics of soil C stocks during subsequent stand development is controlled by biological processes related to the balance of net primary production (NPP) and outputs via heterotrophic respiration and leaching, many of which remain poorly understood. We review the biological processes suggested to influence soil C accumulation in boreal forests. Our review indicates that median C accumulation rates following wildfire and clear‐cutting are similar (0.15 and 0.20 Mg ha−1 year−1, respectively), however, variation between studies is extremely high. Further, while many individual studies show linear increases in soil C stocks through time after disturbance, there are indications that C stock recovery is fastest early to mid‐succession (e.g. 15–80 years) and then slows as forests mature (e.g. >100 years). We indicate that the rapid build‐up of soil C in younger stands appears not only driven by higher plant production, but also by a high rate of mycorrhizal hyphal production, and mycorrhizal suppression of saprotrophs. As stands mature, the balance between reductions in plant and mycorrhizal production, increasing plant litter recalcitrance, and ectomycorrhizal decomposers and saprotrophs have been highlighted as key controls on soil C accumulation rates. While some of these controls appear well understood (e.g. temporal patterns in NPP, changes in aboveground litter quality), many others remain research frontiers. Notably, very little data exists describing and comparing successional patterns of root production, mycorrhizal functional traits, mycorrhizal‐saprotroph interactions, or C outputs via heterotrophic respiration and dissolved organic C following different disturbances. We argue that these less frequently described controls require attention, as they will be key not only for understanding ecosystem C balances, but also for representing these dynamics more accurately in soil organic C and Earth system models.

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Charcoal in Organic Horizon and Surface Mineral Soil in a Boreal Forest Fire Chronosequence of Western Quebec: Stocks, Depth Distribution, Chemical Properties and a Synthesis of Related Studies

Cited by 6 publications

References 91 publications

Proportion of charcoal carbon in the forest floor carbon pool in relation to fire history in a boreal forest landscape

Proportion of charcoal carbon in the forest floor carbon pool in relation to fire history in a boreal forest landscape

Can Bioenergy Ash Applications Emulate the Effects of Wildfire on Upland Forest Soil Chemical Properties?

The biological controls of soil carbon accumulation following wildfire and harvest in boreal forests: A review

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