The impacts of elevated CO<sub>2</sub> on forest growth, mortality, and recovery in the Amazon rainforest

Yao, Yitong; Ciais, Philippe; Joetzjer, Emilie; Li, Wei; Zhu, Lei; Wang, Yujie; Frankenberg, Christian; Viovy, Nicolas

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-15-763-2024

Articles | Volume 15, issue 3

https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-15-763-2024

© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-15-763-2024

© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 15, issue 3

Research article

| Highlight paper

|

13 Jun 2024

Research article | Highlight paper |

| 13 Jun 2024

The impacts of elevated CO₂ on forest growth, mortality, and recovery in the Amazon rainforest

Yitong Yao, Philippe Ciais, Emilie Joetzjer, Wei Li, Lei Zhu, Yujie Wang, Christian Frankenberg, and Nicolas Viovy

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-15-763-2024-supplement

Data sets

CRU JRA v2.1: A forcings dataset of gridded land surface blend of Climatic Research Unit (CRU) and Japanese reanalysis (JRA) data, Jan.1901-Dec.2019 I. C. Harris https://catalogue.ceda.ac.uk/uuid/10d2c73e5a7d46f4ada08b0a26302ef7

Plot Data from: Long-term decline of the Amazon carbon sink R. J. W. Brienen et al. https://doi.org/10.5521/ForestPlots.net/2014_4

Model code and software

ORCHIDEE-CAN-NHA model (r7236) Yitong Yao https://doi.org/10.14768/8C2D06FB-0020-4BC5-A831-C876F5FBBFE9

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Chief editor

The Amazon rainforest plays a crucial role in global carbon storage, and even a minor destabilization could result in considerable carbon loss. This study uses a process-based model to show that elevated CO2 concentrations have multiple and sometimes contrasting effects on the Amazon forest's carbon dynamics and vulnerability. The study thus provides valuable insights into the rainforest’s evolution in the context of more frequent and intense future climate extremes.

Short summary

Elevated CO₂ concentration (eCO₂) is critical for shaping the future path of forest carbon uptake, while uncertainties remain about concurrent carbon loss. Here, we found that eCO₂ might amplify competition-induced carbon loss, while the extent of drought-induced carbon loss hinges on the balance between heightened biomass density and water-saving benefits. This is the first time that such carbon loss responses to ongoing climate change have been quantified separately over the Amazon rainforest.

The impacts of elevated CO2 on forest growth, mortality, and recovery in the Amazon rainforest

Supplement

Data sets

Model code and software

The impacts of elevated CO₂ on forest growth, mortality, and recovery in the Amazon rainforest