Laboratory Research Manager:
Task Leads:
Margaret S. Torn, Climate and Ecosystem Sciences Division, LBNL
Eoin Brodie, Peter Nico, William Riley, and Jackie Peña, Climate and Ecosystem Sciences Division, LBNL (Jackie Peña is also affiliated with UC Davis)
Our researchers study soil processes that affect plant growth, microbial dynamics, and hydrological and thermal dynamics in order to improve predictive models.
In our long-term forest experiment, warming the whole soil by 4 °C has increased CO2 respiration by 30% throughout the profile, potentially impacting forest resiliency and productivity. Interactions between microbes, plants, and soil make projecting these responses over space and time difficult. Thus, the Belowground Biogeochemisty SFA is focusing on those processes and integration into models.
Task 1: Ecosystem Experiments and Biogeochemistry
Task 2: Microbial Responses and Feedbacks
Task 3: Organic Geochemical Controls on Soil Organic Matter
Task 4: Soil Biogeochemistry and Carbon Cycle Modeling
Task 5: Impacts of Wildfire and Warming on Soil Biogeochemistry and Forest Regeneration