Articles | Volume 17, issue 13
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3367-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3367-2020
Research article
 | 
03 Jul 2020
Research article |  | 03 Jul 2020

From fibrous plant residues to mineral-associated organic carbon – the fate of organic matter in Arctic permafrost soils

Isabel Prater, Sebastian Zubrzycki, Franz Buegger, Lena C. Zoor-Füllgraff, Gerrit Angst, Michael Dannenmann, and Carsten W. Mueller

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Cited articles

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Short summary
Large amounts of soil organic matter stored in permafrost-affected soils from Arctic Russia are present as undecomposed plant residues. This large fibrous organic matter might be highly vulnerable to microbial decay, while small mineral-associated organic matter can most probably attenuate carbon mineralization in a warmer future. Labile soil fractions also store large amounts of nitrogen, which might be lost during permafrost collapse while fostering the decomposition of soil organic matter.
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