Carbon availability in soils of thermo-erosional valleys– a case study from a valley on Herschel Island,West Canadian Arctic
2017
Permafrost is a perennially frozen ground often occurring in periglacial environments. Due to
its frozen state, organic carbon accumulates in the soils. By temperature rise and thaw of the
active layer, these stocks become vulnerable to microbial decomposition. To predict the future
of organic carbon in the Arctic, it is necessary to expand the knowledge on its spatial
distribution across arctic environments. This study examined the spatial distribution of
organic carbon and its availability within a valley, which is subjected to thermo-erosion on
Herschel Island, Yukon Territory. By analyses of soil samples variations in soil organic
carbon, total nitrogen and the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C/N) were investigated. Ecological
units, hillslope position and distance to shore helped to identify spatial differences between
sites. The analyses showed that highest values for soil organic carbon, total nitrogen and C/N
occurred on uplands, followed closely of the values in the valley bed. On slopes the values of
soil organic carbon, total nitrogen and C/N were lower. Further, differences of the soil organic
carbon, total nitrogen and C/N stocks occurred across the valley locations with distance to the
shore. Upstream the soil organic carbon, total nitrogen and C/N stocks were higher to those
downstream. Sites on slopes and downstream are characterized by continuous surface
disturbances due to permafrost degradation, thermo-erosion and hillslope processes. This
study could demonstrate that even in local scales organic carbon stocks and its availability
differs spatially depending on environmental parameters.
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