Multiple environmental factors interact to affect wet grassland ecosystem functions

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F60076658%3A12310%2F25%3A43909798" target="_blank" >RIV/60076658:12310/25:43909798 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925857424003367?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" >https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925857424003367?via%3Dihub</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2024.107511" target="_blank" >10.1016/j.ecoleng.2024.107511</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Multiple environmental factors interact to affect wet grassland ecosystem functions

Original language description

Wet grasslands are highly productive wetland ecosystems that provide many important ecosystem services, including nutrient removal for water purification, carbon (C) sequestration, local climate regulation, water retention, and flood attenuation. Like other ecosystems, wet grasslands are affected by multiple biotic and abiotic factors, the interactions of which may affect their functionality. We conducted a fully factorial mesocosm experiment to disentangle the importance of soil type (mineral or organic), water (high vs low) and nutrient level (NPK fertilized or unfertilized) effects on plant and soil parameters and how these affect ecosystem respiration (RECO) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the fifth year of the experiment, we measured plant biomass and production, soil biological and chemical parameters, and GHG fluxes four times during the year, once before the start of the growing season and then in the beginning, peak and end of the growing season. We found that plant, soil and GHG parameters showed distinct seasonality and were influenced by all tested factors, both singly and interactively, affecting many aspects of wet grassland ecosystems by acting through several plant-soil feedbacks. Soil type, both primarily and in several interactions with water and nutrient levels, controlled soil properties, microbial biomass, and bacterial and fungal abundances. Plant presence, the productivity of which was stimulated by nutrient addition, together with some plant-soil feedbacks, were the main drivers of RECO and GHG emissions (relevant only for CH4 because N2O was not emitted in any sampling occasion). As a result, CO2 and CH4 emissions were 12 and 3 times greater, respectively, in vegetated compared to un-vegetated samples. In addition, water level and nutrient addition interactions influenced gas emissions, with CO2 emissions being greater in low water, fertilized conditions, while CH4 emissions increased under high water, unfertilized conditions. When correcting for the greater global warming potential (GWP) of CH4, it still accounted for only a maximum of 18 % of the GHG fluxes. We showed that multiple environmental factors interact to impact wet grassland functions. Managers should focus their activities on managing the factors that most allow for wet grasslands to maintain their structure and functions to future disturbances.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

—

OECD FORD branch

10511 - Environmental sciences (social aspects to be 5.7)

Project

<a href="/en/project/GA19-13254S" target="_blank" >GA19-13254S: The influence of plant functional type and phenology on plant inputs to soil as affected by simultaneous changes in environmental factors</a><br>

Continuities

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Publication year

2025

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Ecological Engineering

ISSN

0925-8574

e-ISSN

1872-6992

Volume of the periodical

212

Issue of the periodical within the volume

FEB 2025

Country of publishing house

NL - THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS

Number of pages

12

Pages from-to

nestránkováno

UT code for WoS article

001410137500001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-85214306937