Exchange Plan for the whole duration of the project
The objective of this plan is to cooperate with scientists on nutrient
cycling in terestrial ecosystems from Germany as well as Russia to investigate
and evaluate the influence of forest disturbance on the carbon and nitrogen
balance and cycle in a large scale in Siberia permafrost area.
According to IPCC, this area will suffer from climate change most severely in the next 100 years. In addition, disturbance of forest such as forest fire happens frequently in this area changing this ecosystem from sink of green house gases to source of it. A strategy to protect and regenerate this ecosystem is necessary to conserve it for the next generation.
We utilize the geo information system to expand the study area gradually.
The results we gain will be published via internet to increase research
cooperation. A goal is to create a transect research program throughout
east-west and north-south, and thus establish a information platform for
the whole Siberian permafrost area.
The outline of the study plan in 2005
(1) Cooperation
The study base will be the Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone
Siberian in Yakutsk, east Siberia, and Sukachev Institute of Forest in
Krasnoyarsk, west Sibera. We gather data on carbon and nitrogen dynamics,
which can be found in gaseous, dissolved, organic and also inorganic forms.
With the help of German scientists, we establish monitoring points on forest,
grassland, wetland and disturbed forest at both sites and measure seasonal
changes of the depth of melted and active layers of permafrost, change
of soil moisture and temperature. We also measure the carbon and nitrogen
cycle, gas fluxes induced by plant and biological activity and compare
it with the soil moisture and temperature and analyze the influence of
different ecosystems.
At small watersheds, we measure the carbon and nitrogen outflow to
rivers and lakes due to melting of the permafrost. The proportion and type
of forest will be analyzed on its influence on the outflow.
The observation will last from beginning of the snowmelt in May till
the first snow in middle September. In July and August, as permafrost layer
melt and active layers will become deeper, soil and plant survey are planned.
Samples to evaluate the carbon and nitrogen accumulation will be gathered
and biological activities concerning carbon and nitrogen dynamics will
be investigated.
Those studies, in addition with preceding studies, are the base of
a frame work to establish a database for a quantitative large-scale evaluation
using geographic information systems. A large-scale evaluation method,
how destruction of permafrost due to forest disturbance influences the
environment, will be obtained from this work.
The Japanese site held a meeting to discuss the general plan of this
year in the beginning of April, 2005. Detail plan will be presented in
another meeting in end of May 2005, and the results of the year 2005/06
will be presented in the beginning of March, 2006.
(2) Seminars and Symposiums
Immediately after the adoption of this project, we had a workshop initiated
by the German in Krasnoyarsk (16-18 March, 2005). We decided to quantify
the amount of carbon accumulated in the whole Siberia, and to analyze the
influence of the destruction of the permafrost on the gas emission and
water quality. A consensus to develop the geographic information system
further on was found. We agreed to held a symposium in September on preceding
studies in order to stimulate and promote the research.
Based on this agreement, a symposium will be held about the Symptoms
of the environmental change due to destruction of permafrost in Siberia・on
29-30 November, 2005 in Sapporo. Four Russian scientists will be invited
and together with six German scientists, five Japanese scientists, they
will lead the plenary session and the succeeding general presentation.
From 1-3 December, a section meeting, according to each specialty (permafrost,
soil organic materials, river water outflow and nutrient cycling) will
be held with the invited Russian scientists.
(3) Researchers
Graduate students and PD scientists will visit Germany and exchange information especially on remote sensing and geologic information systems, establishment and decline of permafrost and activity of microbes associated to green house gas production (June and October 2005 and February 2006). An exchange with German scientists visiting the symposium is also planed.