Changing carbon sinks in subarctic Canada

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In the Anthropocene, human-driven changes to carbon cycles alter global and local climates and hence all**aspects of economy and human life. The subarctic is 1/6 of the Canadian land mass but a poorly studied area**where human habitation is sparse and rates of resource extraction are increasing. The central and western**subarctic is particularly vulnerable to climate change effects (temperature and precipitation) due to extensive**permafrost, large stores of carbon, and low annual precipitation. Carbon fluxes to the atmosphere from surface**water bodies as greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) is a balance between carbon sources from**terrestrial systems including wetlands and lake/pond margins and carbon stored in sediments. This loss from**surface water bodies is large and complicates our ability to quantify the effect of climate change and human**activities on this large region. This proposal examines the landscape-scale carbon balance in three areas along a**transect from south to north covering conditions of continuous, widespread discontinuous, and sporadic**discontinuous permafrost. We use a combination of hydroclimatic information, chemical analysis, highly**specialized isotopic techniques, remote sensing, and numerical modelling to improve our quantitative**understanding and forecasting of carbon dynamics, greenhouse gas production, carbon stores and the critical**carbon balance between long-term storage in sediments (carbon sequestration) and release to the atmosphere**(increasing greenhouse gases). We have formed a strong research team including Canadian and international**research scientists from universities, territorial and federal governments, students, and Indigenous**communities. Research outcomes will inform science-based management and policy decisions and delivery of**climate change actions for Canada's north and Canada's obligations for international reporting on greenhouse**gas emissions.