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Estimation of green house gas emissions from Koteshwar hydropower reservoir, India

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Abstract

The emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) from soils are of significant importance for global warming. The biological and physico-chemical characteristics of soil affect the GHG emissions from soils of different land use types. Methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and carbon dioxide (CO2) production rates from six forest and agricultural soil types in the Koteshwar hydropower reservoir catchments located in the Uttarakhand, India, were estimated and their relations with physico-chemical characteristics of soils were examined. The samples of different land use types were flooded and incubated under anaerobic condition at 30 °C for 60 days. The cumulative GHG production rates in reservoir catchment are found as 1.52 ± 0.26, 0.13 ± 0.02, and 0.0004 ± 0.0001 μg g soil−1 day−1 for CO2, CH4, and N2O, respectively, which is lower than global reservoirs located in the same eco-region. The significant positive correlation between CO2 productions and labile organic carbon (LOC), CH4 and C/N ratio, while N2O and N/P ratio, while pH of soils is negatively correlated, conforms their key role in GHG emissions. Carbon available as LOC in the reservoir catchment is found as 3–14% of the total ‟C” available in soils and 0–23% is retained in the soil after the completion of incubation. The key objective of this study to signify the C, N, and P ratios, LOC, and pH with GHG production rate by creating an incubation experiment (as in the case of benthic soil/sediment) in the lab for 60 days. In summary, the results suggest that carbon, as LOC were more sensitive indicators for CO2 emissions and significant C, N, and P ratios, affects the GHG emissions. This study is useful for the hydropower industry to know the GHG production rates after the construction of reservoir so that its effect could be minimized by taking care of catchment area treatment plan.

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Abbreviations

GHG:

Greenhouse gases

CO2 :

Carbon dioxide

N2O:

Nitrous oxide

CH4 :

Methane

GWP:

Global warming potentials

AGB:

Above ground biomass

LOC:

Labile organic carbon

SOC:

Soil organic carbon

TOC:

Total organic carbon

DOC:

Dissolve organic carbon

OC:

Organic carbon

LULC:

Land use and land cover

GC:

Gas chromatography

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support from Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, in the form of a scholarship to carry out this research work.

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  1. Biomass and Ecosystem Laboratory, Alternate Hydro Energy Centre, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, 247667, India

    Amit Kumar & M. P. Sharma

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Correspondence to Amit Kumar.

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Kumar, A., Sharma, M.P. Estimation of green house gas emissions from Koteshwar hydropower reservoir, India. Environ Monit Assess 189, 240 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-5958-7

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