Abstract
Previously, most carbon (C) sequestration research focused on the effects of nitrogen (N) fertilization on soil organic C sequestration rather than on the separate effects of synthetic phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) and the integrated effect of NPK. In this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to synthesize 84 long-term trials with 385 paired comparisons to quantify the variance of soil C storage in response to synthetic fertilizer addition. Compared with unfertilized soil, higher C storage was observed in soils fertilized with NPK, N, P, and K (10, 5, 5, and 2%, respectively) at a depth of 0–20 cm, and changes in soil C storage were dependent on the cropping system, experimental duration, geographic region, and fertilization rate. Soils fertilized with NPK and N in wheat (Triticum aestivum) and maize (Zea mays) cropping systems in the northern region of China had greater soil C storage. The greatest increase in C storage occurred in soils fertilized with P in rice (Oryza sativa) and wheat cropping systems. Additionally, the ratio of N/P added as fertilizer was negatively related to soil C storage. When N, P, and K were applied together, N and P fertilizers explained 49 and 11% of the variability in soil C storage, while the contribution of K was unclear. This study reveals the important roles of P and N fertilizers in soil C sequestration. We estimated that fertilizer use resulted in the sequestration of 947.2–1093 Tg C in China’s croplands from 1980 to 2014.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Major Research Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China (Grant No. 2016YFC0503403) and Youth Innovation Promotion Association, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We also acknowledge Zhaozhong Feng for the assistance on the use of meta-analysis.
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Zhao, H., Sun, B., Lu, F. et al. Roles of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers in carbon sequestration in a Chinese agricultural ecosystem. Climatic Change 142, 587–596 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-017-1976-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-017-1976-2