Challenges in elevated CO₂ experiments on forests

• Published in: Trends in plant science Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 5 - 10
• Main Authors: Calfapietra, Carlo, Ainsworth, Elizabeth A, Beier, Claus, De Angelis, Paolo, Ellsworth, David S, Godbold, Douglas L, Hendrey, George R, Hickler, Thomas, Hoosbeek, Marcel R, Karnosky, David F, King, John, Körner, Christian, Leakey, Andrew D.B, Lewin, Keith F, Liberloo, Marion, Long, Stephen P, Lukac, Martin, Matyssek, Rainer, Miglietta, Franco, Nagy, John, Norby, Richard J, Oren, Ram, Percy, Kevin E, Rogers, Alistair, Mugnozza, Giuseppe Scarascia, Stitt, Mark, Taylor, Gail, Ceulemans, Reinhart
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington [Kidlington, Oxford, UK]: Elsevier Science Ltd 01-01-2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: 54; air fumigation; anthropogenic activities; atmospheric co2; Biological and medical sciences; carbon dioxide; Carbon Dioxide - analysis; Carbon Dioxide - metabolism; climate change; design; Earth and Related Environmental Sciences; Ecosystem; ecosystem responses; enrichment system; environmental impact; forest ecosystems; free air carbon dioxide enrichment; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Geovetenskap och miljövetenskap; Greenhouse Effect; greenhouse gases; growth dynamics; literature reviews; Natural Sciences; Naturgeografi; Naturvetenskap; ozone; Physical Geography; plantations; spruce; Trees - metabolism; Experimentation; Forests; Increase; Plant sciences; Carbon dioxide; Challenge
• ISSN: 1360-1385; 1878-4372
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2009.11.001

Current forest Free Air CO₂ Enrichment (FACE) experiments are reaching completion. Therefore, it is time to define the scientific goals and priorities of future experimental facilities. In this opinion article, we discuss the following three overarching issues (i) What are the most urgent scientific questions and how can they be addressed? (ii) What forest ecosystems should be investigated? (iii) Which other climate change factors should be coupled with elevated CO₂ concentrations in future experiments to better predict the effects of climate change? Plantations and natural forests can have conflicting purposes for high productivity and environmental protection. However, in both cases the assessment of carbon balance and how this will be affected by elevated CO₂ concentrations and the interacting climate change factors is the most pressing priority for future experiments.