Browsing by Author "McCloskey, Christopher S."
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Item Open Access Contributions and future priorities for soil science: comparing perspectives from scientists and stakeholders(Wiley, 2021-08-27) Cimpoiasu, Mihai O.; Dowdeswell-Downey, Emily; Evans, Daniel L.; McCloskey, Christopher S.; Rose, Lewis S.; Sayer, Emma J.Soils are a fundamental natural resource but intensifying demands and increasing soil degradation necessitate focussed research into the sustainable use of soils. Since soil functioning is critical for the operations and performance of multiple industries, businesses and municipalities, soil scientists need to actively engage with these bodies to orientate research goals towards stakeholder needs. To achieve this, stakeholder views about the current and potential contributions of soil science to different sectors need to be taken into account when setting the future research agenda. Here, we assessed whether the current and future research priorities of soil science match the needs of four major industrial and environmental sectors: agriculture, ecosystem services and natural resources, waste management, and water management. We used an online questionnaire, distributed to 192 organisations and via social media, to compare stakeholders' and scientists' perceptions of (a) the contributions of soil science to date, (b) the areas not currently served by soil science and (c) future research needs in soil science. Stakeholders generally rated the contributions of soil science to date as ‘great’ or ‘fundamental’, but scientists rated the contributions more highly. Respondents identified numerous areas that soil research has not yet sufficiently addressed, which were mostly sector-specific and often overlapped with perceived future research needs. Importantly, stakeholders' and scientists' views of future research priorities differed strongly within sectors, with the notable exception of agriculture, where views were generally consistent. We conclude that soil science may hold unexplored potential in several industrial and environmental sectors. We call for improved research communication and greater stakeholder involvement to shape the future soils research agenda and ensure the sustainable use of soils across multiple areas of society.Item Open Access A field system for measuring plant and soil carbon fluxes using stable isotope methods(Wiley, 2020-06-21) McCloskey, Christopher S.; Otten, Wilfred; Paterson, Eric; Ingram, Benjamin R.; Kirk, Guy J. D.There is a lack of field methods for measuring plant and soil processes controlling soil organic matter (SOM) turnover over diurnal, seasonal, and longer time-scales with which to develop datasets for modelling. We describe an automated field system for measuring plant and soil carbon fluxes over such time-scales using stable isotope methods, and we assess its performance. The system comprises 24 large (1-m deep, 0.8-m diameter) cylindrical lysimeters connected to gas-flux chambers and instruments. The lysimeters contain intact, naturally-structured C3 soil planted with a C4 grass. Fluxes of CO2 and their 13C isotope composition are measured 3-times daily in each lysimeter, and the isotope composition is used to partition the fluxes between plant and soil sources. We investigate the following potential sources of error in the measurement system and show they do not significantly affect the measured CO2 fluxes or isotope signatures: gas leaks; the rate of gas flow through sampling loops; instrument precision and drift; the concentration-dependence of isotope measurements; and the linearity of CO2 accumulation in the chambers and associated isotope fractionation resulting from different rates of 13CO2 and 12CO2 diffusion from the soil. For the loamy grassland soil and US prairie grass (Bouteloua dactyloides) tested, the precision of CO2 flux measurements was ± 0.04 % and that of the flux partitioning ± 0.40 %. We give examples of diurnal and seasonal patterns of plant and soil C fluxes and soil temperature and moisture. We discuss the limitations of the isotope methodology for partitioning fluxes as applied in our system. We conclude the system is suitable for measuring net ecosystem respiration fluxes and their plant and soil components with sufficient precision to resolve diurnal and seasonal patternsItem Open Access Measuring and modelling plant-driven soil carbon dynamics.(Cranfield University, 2021-01) McCloskey, Christopher S.; Otten, Wilfred; Paterson, EricPlant root activity and deposition of root carbon (C) into the rhizosphere are known to influence the turnover of existing soil organic matter (SOM) in so- called rhizosphere priming effects (RPE). Thereby soil microbes may access nutrients in SOM which are otherwise unavailable to them. However the magnitudes, drivers and mechanisms of these effects are poorly understood. In this thesis I develop a field system to measure such effects on diurnal, seasonal and longer timescales, and use it to explore RPEs and their drivers in contrasting soils under grass. The field system measures CO₂ fluxes and their ¹³ C isotope composition (δ¹³C) near continuously in large (0.8 m diameter, 1 m deep) lysimeters containing two naturally-structured C₃ soils planted with a C₄ grass. The difference in δ¹³C between C₃ SOM and C₄ plants is used to partition fluxes between plant and soil sources. The system’s accuracy and precision were sufficient to resolve diurnal and seasonal patterns in both plant and soil fluxes. Diurnal changes in plant δ¹³C can cause large partitioning errors. I show how, with long-term datasets with sufficient temporal resolution, part of the dataset can be used to allow for transient shifts in plant and soil δ¹³C. I explored the magnitude and mechanisms of RPEs in the two contrasting soils over two years, and the effect of differences in nitrogen supply. I used solar radiation as a proxy for photosynthesis, root activity and rhizodeposition. I found that seasonal and particularly diurnal patterns in SOM turnover were tightly coupled to solar radiation, and more so than in previously published studies. Model estimates of SOM turnover were improved by the inclusion of solar radiation as an explanatory variable alongside soil moisture and temperature, consistent with RPEs. There was no evidence for differences in RPEs with nitrogen supply in either soil.Item Open Access On allowing for transient variation in end-member δ13C values in partitioning soil C fluxes from net ecosystem respiration(Wiley, 2021-09-24) McCloskey, Christopher S.; Otten, Wilfred; Paterson, Eric; Kirk, Guy J. D.The use of stable isotope analysis to resolve ecosystem respiration into its plant and soil components rests on how well the end-member isotope signatures (δ13C) are characterised. In general, it is assumed that end-member values are constant over time. However, there are necessarily diurnal and other transient variations in end-members with environmental conditions. We analyse diurnal and seasonal patterns of ecosystem respiration and its δ13C in a C4 grass growing in a C3 soil using fixed and diurnally varying plant and soil δ13C end-members. We measure the end-members independently, and we assess the effects of expected variation in values. We show that variation in end-members within realistic ranges, particularly diurnal changes in the plant end-member, can cause partitioning errors of 40% during periods of high plant growth. The effect depends on how close the end-member is to the measured net respiration δ13C, that is, the proportion of the respiration due to that end-member. We show light-driven variation in plant end-members can cause substantial distortion of partitioned soil organic matter (SOM) flux patterns on a diurnal scale and cause underestimation of daily to annual SOM turnover of approximately 25%. We conclude that, while it is not practicable to independently measure the full temporal variation in end-member values over a growing season, this error may be adjusted for by using a diurnally varying δ13Cplant.Item Open Access The three-peat challenge: business as usual, responsible agriculture, and conservation and restoration as management trajectories in global peatlands(Taylor and Francis, 2023-11-01) Girkin, Nicholas T.; Burgess, Paul J.; Cole, Lydia; Cooper, Hannah; Coronado, Euridice Honorio; Davidson, Scott J.; Hannam, Jacqueline; Harris, Jim A.; Holman, Ian P.; McCloskey, Christopher S.; McKeown, Michelle M.; Milner, Alice M.; Page, Susan; Smith, Jo; Young, DylanPeatlands are a globally important carbon store, but peatland ecosystems from high latitudes to the tropics are highly degraded due to increasingly intensive anthropogenic activity, making them significant greenhouse gas (GHG) sources. Peatland restoration and conservation have been proposed as a nature-based solution to climate change, by restoring the function of peatlands as a net carbon sink, but this may have implications for many local communities who rely on income from activities associated with transformed peatlands, particularly those drained for agriculture. However, without changing the way that humans interact with and exploit peatlands in most regions, peatlands will continue to degrade and be lost. We propose that there are ultimately three potential trajectories for peatland management: business as usual, whereby peatland carbon sink capacity continues to be eroded, responsible agricultural management (with the potential to mitigate emissions, but unlikely to restore peatlands as a net carbon sink), and restoration and conservation. We term this the three-peat challenge, and propose it as a means to view the benefits of restoring peatlands for the environment, as well as the implications of such transitions for communities who rely on ecosystem services (particularly provisioning) from degraded peatlands, and the consequences arising from a lack of action. Ultimately, decisions regarding which trajectories peatlands in given localities will follow torequire principles of equitable decision-making, and support to ensure just transitions, particularly for communities who rely on peatland ecosystems to support their livelihoods.