Articles | Volume 23, issue 21
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-8275-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-8275-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Spatial modelling of available aluminum in glacial till: informing a boreal forest soil carbon predictor
Department of Earth Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
Benjamin Misiuk
Department of Earth Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
Mackenzie E. Patrick
Department of Earth Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
deceased
Susan E. Ziegler
Department of Earth Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John's, A1C 5S7, Canada
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Alessia A. Colussi, Daniel Persaud, Melodie Lao, Bryan K. Place, Rachel F. Hems, Susan E. Ziegler, Kate A. Edwards, Cora J. Young, and Trevor C. VandenBoer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 3697–3718, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3697-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3697-2024, 2024
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A new modular and affordable instrument was developed to automatically collect wet deposition continuously with an off-grid solar top-up power package. Monthly collections were performed across the Newfoundland and Labrador Boreal Ecosystem Latitudinal Transect of experimental forest sites from 2015 to 2016. The proof-of-concept systems were validated with baseline measurements of pH and conductivity and then applied to dissolved organic carbon as an analyte of emerging biogeochemical interest.
Keri L. Bowering, Kate A. Edwards, and Susan E. Ziegler
Biogeosciences, 20, 2189–2206, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2189-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2189-2023, 2023
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Dissolved organic matter (DOM) mobilized from surface soils is a source of carbon (C) for deeper mineral horizons but also a mechanism of C loss. Composition of DOM mobilized in boreal forests varied more by season than as a result of forest harvesting. Results suggest reduced snowmelt and increased fall precipitation enhance DOM properties promoting mineral soil C stores. These findings, coupled with hydrology, can inform on soil C fate and boreal forest C balance in response to climate change.
Allison N. Myers-Pigg, Karl Kaiser, Ronald Benner, and Susan E. Ziegler
Biogeosciences, 20, 489–503, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-489-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-489-2023, 2023
Short summary
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Boreal forests, historically a global sink for atmospheric CO2, store carbon in vast soil reservoirs. To predict how such stores will respond to climate warming we need to understand climate–ecosystem feedbacks. We find boreal forest soil carbon stores are maintained through enhanced nitrogen cycling with climate warming, providing direct evidence for a key feedback. Further application of the approach demonstrated here will improve our understanding of the limits of climate–ecosystem feedbacks.
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Short summary
Boreal forest soils store approximately one third of forest soil carbon globally. Stabilization of organic carbon in these soils is largely controlled by reactive aluminum content derived from parent material, which in boreal regions is typically glacial till. We used a Random Forest approach to predictively map and model reactive aluminum and its uncertainty in glacial till across Newfoundland. This supports future modelling efforts and estimates of the soil carbon reservoir in boreal forests.
Boreal forest soils store approximately one third of forest soil carbon globally. Stabilization...
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