Soil resources and element stocks in drylands to face global issues

Scientific Reports
César PlazaFernando T Maestre

Abstract

Drylands (hyperarid, arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid ecosystems) cover almost half of Earth's land surface and are highly vulnerable to environmental pressures. Here we provide an inventory of soil properties including carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) stocks within the current boundaries of drylands, aimed at serving as a benchmark in the face of future challenges including increased population, food security, desertification, and climate change. Aridity limits plant production and results in poorly developed soils, with coarse texture, low C:N and C:P, scarce organic matter, and high vulnerability to erosion. Dryland soils store 646 Pg of organic C to 2 m, the equivalent of 32% of the global soil organic C pool. The magnitude of the historic loss of C from dryland soils due to human land use and cover change and their typically low C:N and C:P suggest high potential to build up soil organic matter, but coarse soil textures may limit protection and stabilization processes. Restoring, preserving, and increasing soil organic matter in drylands may help slow down rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide by sequestering C, and is strongly needed to enhance food security and reduce the risk of land degradation and de...Continue Reading

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Citations

Apr 29, 2020·Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America·Heather L ThroopMitchel P McClaran
May 22, 2019·Nature Sustainability·Eduardo Moreno-JiménezFernando T Maestre
Jun 26, 2020·Communications Biology·Eduardo Moreno-JiménezFernando T Maestre
Jun 13, 2020·Scientific Reports·Keila R MendesCláudio M Santos E Silva
Jan 16, 2019·Nature Ecology & Evolution·Marina DacalPablo García-Palacios
Jan 12, 2021·Environmental Research·Remus PrăvălieGeorgeta Bandoc
Jul 24, 2021·Nature Ecology & Evolution·Nancy ShackelfordKatharine L Suding
Sep 2, 2021·The Science of the Total Environment·Michele L de OliveiraCelso A G Santos
Feb 15, 2019·The Science of the Total Environment·Beatrice GiannettaDonald L Sparks

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