Infrastructure needed to implement line of research focused on the quantification of CO2 in soil

Abstract

Carbon global budget and atmospheric CO2 flux have become the subject of significant scientific interest, due the evidences which have demonstrate the role of this gas in global warming. The understanding of the processes involved in global CO2 flux is related to the issue of global and regional climate variability. Initially we intend to study the variability of CO2 flux coming from soil and its correlation with soil temperature and humidity. This study will be carried out based on data from soil samples collected in a native forest planted. This forest is on different stages of regeneration within areas of State Forest Edmundo Navarro de Andrade (FEENA), located in Rio Claro, São Paulo state - Brazil. CO2 flux and emission from soil will be measured using soil chambers coupled to a gas analyzer infrared. Soil moisture content and temperature will be measured in the field, during measurements of CO2 flux, since other studies suggest a strong relationship between these parameters in the diurnal and seasonal cycle of emission of this gas. Further sites will also be characterized with respect to the amount of organic matter in the soil, capacity cation exchange, particle size, levels of macronutrients (K, P, S, Mg and Ca). The main purpose of this study is to evaluate CO2 emission and its relationship with variables controlling soil in secondary forest system in southwestern Brazil. This approach signifies a major advance in the understanding of regional climate processes in southeastern Brazil, since the change of use and land cover changes the CO2 flux at the surface of this ecosystem. (AU)