CO2 fluxes before and after partial deforestation of a Central European spruce forest

Abstract

Abstract A seven year CO2-flux dataset measured in a 70 year old spruce monoculture is presented, of which 22% was deforested three years after the start of the measurements to accelerate regeneration towards natural deciduous vegetation. An eddy covariance (EC) system, mounted on top of a tower within the spruce forest, continuously sampled fluxes of momentum, sensible heat, latent heat and CO2. After clear-cutting, a second EC station with an identical set of instruments was installed inside the deforested area. In total, we examined an EC dataset including three years before (forest) and four years after partial deforestation (forest and deforested). Full time series and annual carbon budgets of the net ecosystem exchange (NEE) and its components gross primary production (GPP) and total ecosystem respiration (Reco) were calculated for both EC sites. Soil respiration was measured with manual chambers on average every month after the deforestation at 75 measurement points in the forest and deforested area. Annual sums of NEE measured above the forest indicated a strong carbon sink of -660 (-535) g C m-2 y-1 with small interannual variability ±78 (72) g C m-2 y-1 (values in brackets including correction for self-heating of the open-path gas analyzer). In the first year after partial deforestation, regrowth on the clearcut consisted mainly of grasses, with beginning of the second year shrubs and young trees became increasingly important. The regrowth of vegetation is reflected in the annual sums of NEE, which decreased from a carbon source of 521 (548) g C m-2 y-1 towards 82 (236) g C m-2 y-1 over the past four years, due to an increase in the magnitude of GPP from 385 (447) to 892 (1036) g C m-2 y-1.