{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/121049"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/121049","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Exploring the Impact of Climate and Productivity on Soil Carbon Across the Native Range of Loblolly Pine","abstract":"Policies intended to pursue climate mitigation through soil carbon sequestration require accurate estimates of soil carbon stocks and projections of how carbon pools will change with future climate. In this study, the process model MIMICS-CN was utilized to explore the potential changes in bulk soil organic carbon (SOC) and protected mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) with changes in mean annual temperature (MAT) and annual net primary productivity (NPP) for the native range of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L). A Monte Carlo method was used to calibrate a large ensemble of model parameters using observational data from loblolly pine stands. Spatial projections of carbon pools across the native range of loblolly pine were produced for nine temperature and productivity scenarios representing a range of likely futures. The standard deviation of the mean total SOC pool to a depth of 30 cm was 3.6 kg C m-2 while the standard deviation of potential changes in pool magnitude was 0.96 kg C m-2. Associated with regional climate change projections, increases in MAT caused losses in bulk SOC but did not affect MAOM. Simulated increases in NPP resulted in increased bulk SOC, MAOM and the proportion of SOC that is MAOM (MAOM:SOC) highlighting the importance of productivity in sequestering atmospheric CO2 in general and in protected C pools, specifically. SOC pools did not change consistently across the landscape. Rather, they varied by subregion due to differences in soil texture and changes in forecasted NPP. Soils with clay contents above 18% had the greatest potential to accumulate MAOM and bulk SOC under a realistic future climate scenarios. In regions with low clay content, significant increases in total SOC are driven by the accumulation of C in unprotected SOC sub-pools. With the maximum likely increase in NPP (31.4%), a regionwide increase in total SOC of 29% was projected whereas subregions in which NPP decreases showed no potential to increase soil carbon stocks. We conclude that the management of loblolly pine to increase productivity can increase the amount of SOC and the residence time of bulk SOC over decadal time scales, however regional differences in the proportion of C in MAOM and unprotected pools must be considered when planning silvicultural management.","abstract_html":"Policies intended to pursue climate mitigation through soil carbon sequestration require accurate estimates of soil carbon stocks and projections of how carbon pools will change with future climate. In this study, the process model MIMICS-CN was utilized to explore the potential changes in bulk soil organic carbon (SOC) and protected mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) with changes in mean annual temperature (MAT) and annual net primary productivity (NPP) for the native range of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L). A Monte Carlo method was used to calibrate a large ensemble of model parameters using observational data from loblolly pine stands. Spatial projections of carbon pools across the native range of loblolly pine were produced for nine temperature and productivity scenarios representing a range of likely futures. The standard deviation of the mean total SOC pool to a depth of 30 cm was 3.6 kg C m-2 while the standard deviation of potential changes in pool magnitude was 0.96 kg C m-2. Associated with regional climate change projections, increases in MAT caused losses in bulk SOC but did not affect MAOM. Simulated increases in NPP resulted in increased bulk SOC, MAOM and the proportion of SOC that is MAOM (MAOM:SOC) highlighting the importance of productivity in sequestering atmospheric CO2 in general and in protected C pools, specifically. SOC pools did not change consistently across the landscape. Rather, they varied by subregion due to differences in soil texture and changes in forecasted NPP. Soils with clay contents above 18% had the greatest potential to accumulate MAOM and bulk SOC under a realistic future climate scenarios. In regions with low clay content, significant increases in total SOC are driven by the accumulation of C in unprotected SOC sub-pools. With the maximum likely increase in NPP (31.4%), a regionwide increase in total SOC of 29% was projected whereas subregions in which NPP decreases showed no potential to increase soil carbon stocks. We conclude that the management of loblolly pine to increase productivity can increase the amount of SOC and the residence time of bulk SOC over decadal time scales, however regional differences in the proportion of C in MAOM and unprotected pools must be considered when planning silvicultural management.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Price, Aaron Cooper"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":"masters","degree_discipline":"Forestry","degree_department":"Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Strahm, Brian"],"committee_members":["Thomas, Robert Quinn","Carter, David Robert James","Badgley, Brian Douglas"],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-08-30","date_published":"2024-08-30","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:49Z","subjects":["Soil carbon","MIMICS-CN","process-model","global change","forestry"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:41332"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:41332","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/121049","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Strahm, Brian"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Thomas, Robert Quinn","Carter, David Robert James","Badgley, Brian Douglas"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Price, Aaron Cooper"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2024-08-31T08:00:46Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-08-31T08:00:46Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2024-08-30"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Forestry"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["masters"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Soil carbon","MIMICS-CN","process-model","global change","forestry"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:41332"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/121049"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Policies intended to pursue climate mitigation through soil carbon sequestration require accurate estimates of soil carbon stocks and projections of how carbon pools will change with future climate. In this study, the process model MIMICS-CN was utilized to explore the potential changes in bulk soil organic carbon (SOC) and protected mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) with changes in mean annual temperature (MAT) and annual net primary productivity (NPP) for the native range of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L). A Monte Carlo method was used to calibrate a large ensemble of model parameters using observational data from loblolly pine stands. Spatial projections of carbon pools across the native range of loblolly pine were produced for nine temperature and productivity scenarios representing a range of likely futures. The standard deviation of the mean total SOC pool to a depth of 30 cm was 3.6 kg C m-2 while the standard deviation of potential changes in pool magnitude was 0.96 kg C m-2. Associated with regional climate change projections, increases in MAT caused losses in bulk SOC but did not affect MAOM. Simulated increases in NPP resulted in increased bulk SOC, MAOM and the proportion of SOC that is MAOM (MAOM:SOC) highlighting the importance of productivity in sequestering atmospheric CO2 in general and in protected C pools, specifically. SOC pools did not change consistently across the landscape. Rather, they varied by subregion due to differences in soil texture and changes in forecasted NPP. Soils with clay contents above 18% had the greatest potential to accumulate MAOM and bulk SOC under a realistic future climate scenarios. In regions with low clay content, significant increases in total SOC are driven by the accumulation of C in unprotected SOC sub-pools. With the maximum likely increase in NPP (31.4%), a regionwide increase in total SOC of 29% was projected whereas subregions in which NPP decreases showed no potential to increase soil carbon stocks. We conclude that the management of loblolly pine to increase productivity can increase the amount of SOC and the residence time of bulk SOC over decadal time scales, however regional differences in the proportion of C in MAOM and unprotected pools must be considered when planning silvicultural management."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["Managing soil carbon in southeastern U.S. loblolly pine forests creates a sustainable system of producing large quantities of forest products and has the potential to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Accurate estimates of the amount of carbon in soils at regional scales and projections of changes in soil carbon caused by global change are critical components to successfully determining the effectiveness of this approach to climate change mitigation. In this study, a model of soil carbon designed to describe the range of loblolly pine is utilized to simulate soil carbon changes using three realistic potential increases in temperature and three projections of changing ecosystem productivity to the year 2050. As temperature increases, the total amount of carbon in soils decreases because the rate of decomposition by microbial organisms hastens. However, with increasing productivity, losses of soil carbon due to increased temperatures are mitigated, and, at the highest levels of productivity, soil carbon stocks and the resistance of soil carbon to future losses increase by up to 26 percent. Here, we propose a productivity focused management approach to sequestering carbon in loblolly pine soils and highlight sub regions which may be more vulnerable to soil carbon losses due to environmental factors such as flooding and nutrient limitations."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Exploring the Impact of Climate and Productivity on Soil Carbon Across the Native Range of Loblolly Pine"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Strahm, Brian"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Thomas, Robert Quinn","Carter, David Robert James","Badgley, Brian Douglas"],"dc:contributor.department":["Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation"],"dc:creator":["Price, Aaron Cooper"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2024-08-31T08:00:46Z"],"dc:date.available":["2024-08-31T08:00:46Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2024-08-30"],"dc:description.abstract":["Policies intended to pursue climate mitigation through soil carbon sequestration require accurate estimates of soil carbon stocks and projections of how carbon pools will change with future climate. In this study, the process model MIMICS-CN was utilized to explore the potential changes in bulk soil organic carbon (SOC) and protected mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) with changes in mean annual temperature (MAT) and annual net primary productivity (NPP) for the native range of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L). A Monte Carlo method was used to calibrate a large ensemble of model parameters using observational data from loblolly pine stands. Spatial projections of carbon pools across the native range of loblolly pine were produced for nine temperature and productivity scenarios representing a range of likely futures. The standard deviation of the mean total SOC pool to a depth of 30 cm was 3.6 kg C m-2 while the standard deviation of potential changes in pool magnitude was 0.96 kg C m-2. Associated with regional climate change projections, increases in MAT caused losses in bulk SOC but did not affect MAOM. Simulated increases in NPP resulted in increased bulk SOC, MAOM and the proportion of SOC that is MAOM (MAOM:SOC) highlighting the importance of productivity in sequestering atmospheric CO2 in general and in protected C pools, specifically. SOC pools did not change consistently across the landscape. Rather, they varied by subregion due to differences in soil texture and changes in forecasted NPP. Soils with clay contents above 18% had the greatest potential to accumulate MAOM and bulk SOC under a realistic future climate scenarios. In regions with low clay content, significant increases in total SOC are driven by the accumulation of C in unprotected SOC sub-pools. With the maximum likely increase in NPP (31.4%), a regionwide increase in total SOC of 29% was projected whereas subregions in which NPP decreases showed no potential to increase soil carbon stocks. We conclude that the management of loblolly pine to increase productivity can increase the amount of SOC and the residence time of bulk SOC over decadal time scales, however regional differences in the proportion of C in MAOM and unprotected pools must be considered when planning silvicultural management."],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["Managing soil carbon in southeastern U.S. loblolly pine forests creates a sustainable system of producing large quantities of forest products and has the potential to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Accurate estimates of the amount of carbon in soils at regional scales and projections of changes in soil carbon caused by global change are critical components to successfully determining the effectiveness of this approach to climate change mitigation. In this study, a model of soil carbon designed to describe the range of loblolly pine is utilized to simulate soil carbon changes using three realistic potential increases in temperature and three projections of changing ecosystem productivity to the year 2050. As temperature increases, the total amount of carbon in soils decreases because the rate of decomposition by microbial organisms hastens. However, with increasing productivity, losses of soil carbon due to increased temperatures are mitigated, and, at the highest levels of productivity, soil carbon stocks and the resistance of soil carbon to future losses increase by up to 26 percent. Here, we propose a productivity focused management approach to sequestering carbon in loblolly pine soils and highlight sub regions which may be more vulnerable to soil carbon losses due to environmental factors such as flooding and nutrient limitations."],"dc:description.degree":["Master of Science"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:41332"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/121049"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["Soil carbon","MIMICS-CN","process-model","global change","forestry"],"dc:title":["Exploring the Impact of Climate and Productivity on Soil Carbon Across the Native Range of Loblolly Pine"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Forestry"],"thesis:degree_level":["masters"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:49Z"}