Spatial variability of greenhouse gas emissions in a pre-alpine Bavarian grassland

Agricultural grasslands are a significant source of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. However, uncertainties in estimates of greenhouse gas fluxes from farmlands are still high. Soil models used to quantify and simulate greenhouse gas emissions, generally use average site inputs for soil and vegetation initialization using a limited number of samples and do not account for the spatial variability of soil characteristics and environmental conditions. We will evaluate the representativeness of this “average” modeling approach by comparing simulated greenhouse gas emissions with an average site parameterization against the averaged simulation derived from multiple spatially explicit simulations. We will use the process based LandscapeDNDC model which combines plant growth, micrometeorology, water cycling, microbial carbon and nitrogen cycling and exchange processes with the atmosphere and hydrosphere of terrestrial ecosystems. Results from the model simulations will also be compared with field measurements of soil greenhouse gas emissions previously collected in a Bavarian grassland to quantify uncertainties for the validation of biogeochemical models.

Faculty Supervisor:

Gerardo Arturo Sanchez-Azofeifa

Student:

Partner:

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Education

University:

University of Alberta

Program: