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The production of bioenergy in Europe is one of the strategies conceived to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The suitability of the land use change from a cropland (REF site) to a short-rotation coppice plantation of hybrid poplar (SRC site) was investigated by comparing the GHG budgets of these two systems over 24 months in Viterbo, Italy. This period corresponded to a single rotation of the SRC site. The REF site was a crop rotation between grassland and winter wheat, i.e. the same management of the SRC site before the conversion to short-rotation coppice. Eddy covariance measurements were carried out to quantify the net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (FCO2 ), whereas chambers were used to measure N2O and CH4 emissions from soil. The measurements began 2 years after the conversion of arable land to SRC so that an older poplar plantation was used to estimate the soil organic carbon (SOC) loss due to SRC establishment and to estimate SOC recovery over time. Emissions from tractors and from production and transport of agricultural inputs (FMAN/ were modelled. A GHG emission offset, due to the substitution of natural gas with SRC biomass, was credited to the GHG budget of the SRC site. Emissions generated by the use of biomass (FEXP) were also considered. Suitability was finally assessed by comparing the GHG budgets of the two sites. CO2 uptake was 3512±224 g CO2 m-2 at the SRC site in 2 years, and 1838±107 g CO2 m-2 at the REF site. FEXP was equal to 1858±240 g CO2 m-2 at the REF site, thus basically compensating for FCO2 , while it was 1118±521 g CO2 m-2 at the SRC site. The SRC site could offset 379.7±175.1 g CO2eq m-2 from fossil fuel displacement. Soil CH4 and N2O fluxes were negligible. FMAN made up 2 and 4% in the GHG budgets of SRC and REF sites respectively, while the SOC loss was 455±524 g CO2 m-2 in 2 years. Overall, the REF site was close to neutrality from a GHG perspective (156±264 g CO2eq m-2), while the SRC site was a net sink of 2202±792 g CO2eq m-2. In conclusion the experiment led to a positive evaluation from a GHG viewpoint of the conversion of cropland to bioenergy SRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of bioenergy in Europe is one of the strategies conceived to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The suitability of the land use change from a cropland (REF site) to a short-rotation coppice plantation of hybrid poplar (SRC site) was investigated by comparing the GHG budgets of these two systems over 24 months in Viterbo, Italy. This period corresponded to a single rotation of the SRC site. The REF site was a crop rotation between grassland and winter wheat, i.e. the same management of the SRC site before the conversion to short-rotation coppice. Eddy covariance measurements were carried out to quantify the net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (FCO2), whereas chambers were used to measure N2O and CH4 emissions from soil. The measurements began 2 years after the conversion of arable land to SRC so that an older poplar plantation was used to estimate the soil organic carbon (SOC) loss due to SRC establishment and to estimate SOC recovery over time. Emissions from tractors and from production and transport of agricultural inputs (FMAN) were modelled. A GHG emission offset, due to the substitution of natural gas with SRC biomass, was credited to the GHG budget of the SRC site. Emissions generated by the use of biomass (FEXP) were also considered. Suitability was finally assessed by comparing the GHG budgets of the two sites. CO2 uptake was 3512±224 g CO2 m-2 at the SRC site in 2 years, and 1838±107 g CO2 m-2 at the REF site. FEXP was equal to 1858±240 g CO2 m-2 at the REF site, thus basically compensating for FCO2, while it was 1118±521 g CO2 m-2 at the SRC site. The SRC site could offset 379.7±175.1 g CO2eqm-2 from fossil fuel displacement. Soil CH4 and N2O fluxes were negligible. FMAN made up 2 and 4% in the GHG budgets of SRC and REF sites respectively, while the SOC loss was 455±524 g CO2 m-2 in 2 years. Overall, the REF site was close to neutrality from a GHG perspective (156±264 g CO2eqm-2 ), while the SRC site was a net sink of 2202±792 g CO2eqm-2 . In conclusion the experiment led to a positive evaluation from a GHG viewpoint of the conversion of cropland to bioenergy SRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of bioenergy in Europe is one of the strategies conceived to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The suitability of the land use change from a cropland (REF site) to a short rotation coppice plantation of hybrid poplar (SRC site) was investigated by comparing the GHG budgets of these two systems over 24 months in Viterbo, Italy. Eddy covariance measurements were carried out to quantify the net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (FCO2), whereas chambers were used to measure N2O and CH4 emissions from soil. Soil organic carbon (SOC) of an older poplar plantation was used to estimate via a regression the SOC loss due to SRC establishment. Emissions from tractors and from production and transport of agricultural inputs (FMAN) were modelled and GHG emission offset due to fossil fuel substitution was credited to the SRC site considering the C intensity of natural gas. Emissions due to the use of the biomass (FEXP) were also considered. The suitability was finally assessed comparing the GHG budgets of the two sites. FCO2 was the higher flux in the SRC site (-3512 ± 224 g CO2 eq m-2 in two years), while in the REF site it was −1838 ± 107 g CO2 m-2 in two years. FEXP was equal to 1858 ± 240 g CO2 m-2 in 24 months in the REF site, thus basically compensating FCO2, while it was 1118 ± 521 g CO2 eq m-2 in 24 months in the SRC site. This latter could offset -379.7 ± 175.1 g CO2 eq m-2 from fossil fuel displacement. Soil CH4 and N2O fluxes were negligible. FMAN weighed 2 and 4% in the GHG budgets of SRC and REF sites respectively, while the SOC loss weighed 455 ± 524 g CO2 m-2 in two years. Overall, the REF site was close to neutrality in a GHG perspective (156 ± 264 g CO2 eq m-2), while the SRC site was a net sink of -2202 ± 792 g CO2 eq m-2. In conclusion the experiment led to a positive evaluation of the conversion of cropland to bioenergy SRC from a GHG viewpoint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of bioenergy in Europe is one of the strategies conceived to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The suitability of the land use change from a cropland (REF site) to a short rotation coppice plantation of hybrid poplar (SRC site) was investigated by comparing the GHG budgets of these two systems over 24 months in Viterbo, Italy. Eddy covariance measurements were carried out to quantify the net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (...), whereas chambers were used to measure N2O and CH4 emissions from soil. Soil organic carbon (SOC) of an older poplar plantation was used to estimate via a regression the SOC loss due to SRC establishment. Emissions from tractors and from production and transport of agricultural inputs (FMAN) were modelled and GHG emission offset due to fossil fuel substitution was credited to the SRC site considering the C intensity of natural gas. Emissions due to the use of the biomass (FEXP) were also considered. The suitability was finally assessed comparing the GHG budgets of the two sites. ... was the higher flux in the SRC site (-3512±224 gCO2 eq m-2 in two years), while in the REF site it was -1838 ± 107 g CO2 m-2 in two years. FEXP was equal to 1858±240 gCO2 m-2 in 24 months in the REF site, thus basically compensating ..., while it was 1118±521 gCO2 eq m-2 in 24 months in the SRC site. This latter could offset -379.7±175.1 gCO2 eq m-2 from fossil fuel displacement. Soil CH4 and N2O fluxes were negligible. FMAN weighed 2 and 4% in the GHG budgets of SRC and REF sites respectively, while the SOC loss weighed 455±524 gCO2 m-2 in two years. Overall, the REF site was close to neutrality in a GHG perspective (156±264 gCO2 eq m-2), while the SRC site was a net sink of -2202±792 gCO2 eq m-2. In conclusion the experiment led to a positive evaluation of the conversion of cropland to bioenergy SRC from a GHG viewpoint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (NEE) varies at time scales from seconds to years and longer via the response of its components, gross ecosystem productivity (GEP) and ecosystem respiration (RE), to physical and biological drivers. Quantifying the relationship between flux and climate at multiple time scales is necessary for a comprehensive understanding of the role of climate in the terrestrial carbon cycle. Orthonormal wavelet transformation (OWT) can quantify the strength of the interactions between gappy eddy covariance flux and micrometeorological measurements at multiple frequencies while expressing time series variance in few energetic wavelet coefficients, offering a low-dimensional view of the response of terrestrial carbon flux to climatic variability. The variability of NEE, GEP and RE, and their co-variability with dominant climatic drivers, are explored with nearly one thousand site-years of data from the FLUXNET global dataset consisting of 253 eddy co- variance research sites. The NEE and GEP wavelet spectra were similar among plant functional types (PFT) at weekly and shorter time scales, but significant divergence appeared among PFT at the biweekly and longer time scales, at which NEE and GEP were relatively less variable than climate. The RE spectra rarely differed among PFT across time scales as expected. On average, RE spectra had greater low frequency (monthly to interannual) variability than NEE, GEP and climate. CANOAK ecosystem model simulations demonstrate that "multi-annual" spectral peaks in flux may emerge at low (4+ years) time scales. Biological responses to climate and other internal system dynamics, rather than direct ecosystem response to climate, provide the likely explanation for observed multi-annual variability, but data records must be lengthened and measurements of ecosystem state must be made, and made available, to disentangle the mechanisms responsible for low frequency patterns in ecosystem CO2 exchange. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The biosphere-atmosphere flux of CO2 responds to climatic variability at time scales from seconds to years and longer. Quantifying the strength of the interaction between the flux and climate variables at multiple frequencies is necessary to begin understanding the climatic controls on the dynamics of the terrestrial carbon cycle. Orthonormal wavelet transformation (OWT) can quantify the interaction between flux and microclimate at multiple frequencies while expressing time series variance in few energetic wavelet coefficients, offering a low-dimensional view of the measured climate-flux interaction. The variability of the net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (NEE), gross ecosystem productivity (GEP) and ecosystem respiration (RE), and their co-variability with dominant climatic drivers, are explored with a global dataset consisting of 253 eddy covariance research sites. Results demonstrate that the NEE and GEP wavelet spectra are similar amongst plant functional types (PFT) at weekly and shorter time scales, but significant divergence appeared among PFT at the biweekly and longer time scales, t which NEE and GEP are relatively less variable than climate. The RE spectra rarely differ among PFT across time scales. On average, RE spectra had greater low frequency (monthly to interannual) variability than NEE, GEP and climate. The low frequency Fourier coefficients of eight sites with more than eight years of data were compared against CANOAK ecosystem model simulations. Both measurements and theory demonstrate that "multi-annual" spectral peaks in flux may emerge at low (4+ years) time scales. Biological responses to climate and other internal system dynamics provide the likely explanation for observed multi-annual variability, but data records must be lengthened and measurements of ecosystem state must be made, and made available, to disentangle the mechanisms responsible for these patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]