Carbon storage in soil aggregates - a new SUSALPS publication

Alpine and pre-alpine grassland soils provide a variety of ecosystem services and are are hotspots for the storage of soil organic carbon (SOC) in Central Europe. Yet, information about aggregate-related SOC storage and its controlling factors is limited. A new study within SUSALPS is dedicated to this topic and was recently published in a scientific journal.

Noelia Garcia Franco and her co-authors show in their study that soil organic carbon is stabilized by the formation of aggregates. At higher altitudes, calcium ions in particular serve as binding agents. At lower altitudes earthworms promote the formation of soil aggregates by excreting biogenic carbonates.