Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming
Abstract In lakes, phytoplankton sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and store it in the form of biomass organic carbon (OC); however, only a small fraction of the OC remains buried, while the remaining part is recycled to the atmosphere as CO2 and methane (CH4). This has the potential effect...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2024-12-01
|
| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54926-3 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1846136938524835840 |
|---|---|
| author | Wenqing Shi Boqiang Qin Qingji Zhang Hans W. Paerl Bryce Van Dam Erik Jeppesen Chenjun Zeng |
| author_facet | Wenqing Shi Boqiang Qin Qingji Zhang Hans W. Paerl Bryce Van Dam Erik Jeppesen Chenjun Zeng |
| author_sort | Wenqing Shi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract In lakes, phytoplankton sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and store it in the form of biomass organic carbon (OC); however, only a small fraction of the OC remains buried, while the remaining part is recycled to the atmosphere as CO2 and methane (CH4). This has the potential effect of adding CO2-equivalents (CO2-eq) to the atmosphere and producing a warming effect due to the higher radiative forcing of CH4 relative to CO2. Here we show a 3.1-fold increase in CO2-eq emissions over a 100-year horizon, with the effect increasing with global warming intensity. Climate warming has stimulated phytoplankton growth in many lakes worldwide, which, in turn, can feed back CO2-eq and create a positive feedback loop between them. In lakes where phytoplankton is negatively impacted by climate warming, the CO2-eq feedback capacity may diminish gradually with the ongoing climate warming. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c6cdda33f03049c3bece8ab94db4c723 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-c6cdda33f03049c3bece8ab94db4c7232024-12-08T12:36:58ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232024-12-011511610.1038/s41467-024-54926-3Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warmingWenqing Shi0Boqiang Qin1Qingji Zhang2Hans W. Paerl3Bryce Van Dam4Erik Jeppesen5Chenjun Zeng6Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technologies, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environmental Monitoring & Pollution Control, School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & TechnologyTaihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research, State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of SciencesSchool of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing UniversityInstitute of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillInstitute of Carbon Cycles, Department of Fluxes across Interfaces, Helmholtz-Zentrum HereonDepartment of Ecoscience and Center for Water Technology, Aarhus UniversityGuangdong Research Institute of Water Resources and HydropowerAbstract In lakes, phytoplankton sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and store it in the form of biomass organic carbon (OC); however, only a small fraction of the OC remains buried, while the remaining part is recycled to the atmosphere as CO2 and methane (CH4). This has the potential effect of adding CO2-equivalents (CO2-eq) to the atmosphere and producing a warming effect due to the higher radiative forcing of CH4 relative to CO2. Here we show a 3.1-fold increase in CO2-eq emissions over a 100-year horizon, with the effect increasing with global warming intensity. Climate warming has stimulated phytoplankton growth in many lakes worldwide, which, in turn, can feed back CO2-eq and create a positive feedback loop between them. In lakes where phytoplankton is negatively impacted by climate warming, the CO2-eq feedback capacity may diminish gradually with the ongoing climate warming.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54926-3 |
| spellingShingle | Wenqing Shi Boqiang Qin Qingji Zhang Hans W. Paerl Bryce Van Dam Erik Jeppesen Chenjun Zeng Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming Nature Communications |
| title | Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| title_full | Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| title_fullStr | Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| title_full_unstemmed | Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| title_short | Global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| title_sort | global lake phytoplankton proliferation intensifies climate warming |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54926-3 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT wenqingshi globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT boqiangqin globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT qingjizhang globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT hanswpaerl globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT brycevandam globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT erikjeppesen globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming AT chenjunzeng globallakephytoplanktonproliferationintensifiesclimatewarming |