Multi-temporal assessment of a wildfire chronosequence by remote sensing.

The study aimed to develop a methodological framework to identify forest ecosystems affected by wildfires and evaluate their recovery chronologically. To do this remote sensing analysis, sites with burn scars were selected based on various criteria (fire severity, affected area, vegetation and soil type, slope, aspect, and one-time occurrence of wildfire in the last 23 years). Spectral vegetation indices (VIs) from satellite imagery were used to estimate burn severity and vegetation cover changes.

Fertilization shapes microbial life strategies, carbon and nitrogen metabolic functions in Camellia oleifera soil.

Mineral and organic fertilizers as well as microbial inoculations are crucial to maintain and to improve soil health and quality, ecosystem functions, and fruit yield in Camellia oleifera plantations. However, how these fertilizers shape the life strategies and functions of microbial communities in soil is unclear. Here, we conducted a one-year field experiment with three types of fertilizers: mineral (NPK), manure (Man), and microbial (MicrF), and analyzed soil properties, bacterial and fungal communities to assess microbial life strategies, functional traits and their determinants.

Wildfire effects on mercury fate in soils of North-Western Siberia.

Arctic soils store 49 Gg mercury (Hg) - an extremely toxic heavy metal, whereas soil Hg can be released to the atmosphere by wildfires. For the first time we investigated the effects of wildfires on the fate of soil Hg in North-Western (NW) Siberia based on GIS maps of areas burned during the last 38 years and a field paired comparison of unburned and burned areas in tundra (mosses, lichens, some grasses, and shrubs) and forest-tundra (multi-layered canopy of larch trees, shrubs, mosses, and lichens). These field surveys were deepened by soil controlled burning to assess the Hg losses from organic horizon and mineral soil.

Low carbon availability in paleosols nonlinearly attenuates temperature sensitivity of soil organic matter decomposition.

Temperature sensitivity (Q ) of soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition is an important parameter in models of the global carbon (C) cycle. Previous studies have suggested that substrate quality controls the intrinsic Q , whereas environmental factors can impose large constraints. For example, physical protection of SOM and its association with minerals attenuate the apparent Q through reducing substrate availability and accessibility ([S]).

Characterization of solid airborne particles deposited in snow in the vicinity of urban fossil fuel thermal power plant (Western Siberia).

Recognition and detailed characterization of solid particles emitted from thermal power plants into the environment is highly important due to their potential detrimental effects on human health. Snow cover is used for the identification of anthropogenic emissions in the environment. However, little is known about types, physical and chemical properties of solid airborne particles (SAP) deposited in snow around thermal power plants.