YAKUTSK, February 10. /TASS/. Scientists plan to organize in Yakutia a carbon polygon to study the permafrost’s conditions in the changing climate, the North-Eastern Federal University’s (NEFU) Rector Anatoly Nikolayev told TASS.
Carbon polygons are areas that are organized to study climatically active (greenhouse) gases. At the polygons scientists develop and adapt technologies to measure aboveground and underground phytomass, conduct agrochemical studies of soils, measure greenhouse gas emissions and analyze how ecosystems absorb greenhouse gases. In such areas scientists use remote sensing technologies from space or from unmanned platforms; they develop and adapt mathematical models to calculate carbon balance in ecosystems at reference sites.
"The region’s territory is practically fully taken by the permafrost. The permafrost’s reactions to global climate changes are rather diverse. At open areas, we have seen over recent decades an active degradation of perennially frozen grounds, which may be accompanied by rather strong emissions into the atmosphere of methane and other greenhouse gases. In my opinion, in addition to these observations we must make forecasts to realize what we will face in the near future," he said.
Yakutia’s more than 70% of the territory is taken by forests. These forests in the country’s biggest region play a very important role in the carbon balance, he added.
"A carbon polygon in Yakutia, which will be a scientific area to study the balance of carbon and other gases, is quite realistic and reasonable. Moreover, the region already has the so-called forest facilities, which in fact could be upgraded to carbon polygons. In addition to the polygons of our university, those are the facilities, where specialists of the Institute for Cryolytozone Biology, the Melnikov Permafrost Institute (the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Siberian Branch) have been working on the equipment from the University. By having data on the carbon status of the country’s biggest region, we will forecast how the climate changes will influence the dynamics of forests and the perennially frozen grounds and vice versa," the expert said.
The Russian Academy of Sciences must offer methods to structure the work of carbon polygons, he stressed. "NEFU will be happy to unite efforts from educational and scientific organizations. Only by working in a team with other carbon polygons, we will be able to understand the situation across the country, to model the regions’ intake of carbon and the emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere."
Thawing permafrost
The University’s expert Nikita Tananayev stressed in Yakutia’s many districts scientists have observed the permafrost’s degradation in various forms.
"The thawing permafrost contains huge amounts of carbon - twice more than the modern atmosphere has. If it thaws, this carbon will be eaten up by soil bacteria and will get into rivers, emitting CO2 and methane. Scientists are aware of possible consequences: up to 10-15% of expected warming to 2100, that is the global temperature may rise by 0.1-0.5 degrees, may be caused by additional carbon emissions from the permafrost," he said.
Higher air temperatures have been registered practically throughout Yakutia. "Clearly, they (temperatures) are beyond the well-known natural cycles and everywhere they are caused by human activities, with the exception for the Anabarsky (Arctic - TASS) District: according to the statistics we have, in that district, we do not see any major statistically important warming," he told TASS.
At the same time, he continued, scientists cannot be sure that in the future the temperature in that Arctic region will remain unchanged. The climate forecasts say the warming there will begin later than in Yakutia’s other districts. "We still can see there the Arctic ecosystems in their initial conditions, before the permafrost’s degradation affects it. This explains the huge scientific interest," he said.
Application from Arctic Agro-Technical University
Yakutia’s Arctic State Agro-Technical University has been working on an application for the organization of a carbon polygon. "We have been working on the application, on industrial partnership with mining companies. We could unite efforts with Yakutia’s educational institutions to file the application," the University’s representative Konstantin Nifontov said.
"As for carbon polygons, Yakutia has vast areas of larch forests, as well as of coniferous trees. For example, Daurian (Gmelin) larch, which grows in Yakutia, can absorb big amounts of carbon dioxide - about 1.5 tonnes a year," he said, adding the university owns sites in the Khangalassky District, where the university’s Oktemsky Branch is located, and an area at the 35th kilometer of the Vilyuy road near Yakutsk.
From 2020, the university has been working on an interesting experiment. Specialists have a forest nursery in the permafrost - not far from the Solyanka village in the Olekminsky District. "[In addition to tree seedlings] at the nursery we plan to grow broad-leaved species, shrubs, perennial grasses. They will also be interesting for the work of a carbon polygon: annual and perennial grasses also absorb carbon dioxide. They can be planted further on at the university’s farmlands," he added.