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Relative Linkages of Canopy-Level CO2 Fluxes with the Climatic and Environmental Variables for US Deciduous Forests

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Abstract

We used a simple, systematic data-analytics approach to determine the relative linkages of different climate and environmental variables with the canopy-level, half-hourly CO2 fluxes of US deciduous forests. Multivariate pattern recognition techniques of principal component and factor analyses were utilized to classify and group climatic, environmental, and ecological variables based on their similarity as drivers, examining their interrelation patterns at different sites. Explanatory partial least squares regression models were developed to estimate the relative linkages of CO2 fluxes with the climatic and environmental variables. Three biophysical process components adequately described the system-data variances. The ‘radiation-energy’ component had the strongest linkage with CO2 fluxes, whereas the ‘aerodynamic’ and ‘temperature-hydrology’ components were low to moderately linked with the carbon fluxes. On average, the ‘radiation-energy’ component showed 5 and 8 times stronger carbon flux linkages than that of the ‘temperature-hydrology’ and ‘aerodynamic’ components, respectively. The similarity of observed patterns among different study sites (representing gradients in climate, canopy heights and soil-formations) indicates that the findings are potentially transferable to other deciduous forests. The similarities also highlight the scope of developing parsimonious data-driven models to predict the potential sequestration of ecosystem carbon under a changing climate and environment. The presented data-analytics provides an objective, empirical foundation to obtain crucial mechanistic insights; complementing process-based model building with a warranted complexity. Model efficiency and accuracy (R 2 = 0.55–0.81; ratio of root-mean-square error to the observed standard deviations, RSR = 0.44–0.67) reiterate the usefulness of multivariate analytics models for gap-filling of instantaneous flux data.

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Acknowledgments

The research was funded by grants from the National Science Foundation's Environmental Sustainability Program (NSF CBET Award No. 1336911), and from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA NERRA Grant No. NA09NOS4190153). The supports are gratefully acknowledged. We also acknowledge the availability and usefulness of AmeriFLUX database, as funded by the US Department of Energy's Office of Science. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of NSF or NOAA. Thanks to the reviewers and the Editor for providing insightful comments.

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  1. Ecological and Water Resources Engineering Laboratory (EWREL), Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Florida International University, 10555 W Flagler Street, EC-3781, Miami, FL, 33174, USA

    Khandker S. Ishtiaq

  2. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Florida International University, 10555 W Flagler Street, EC-3606, Miami, FL, 33174, USA

    Omar I. Abdul-Aziz

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Ishtiaq, K.S., Abdul-Aziz, O.I. Relative Linkages of Canopy-Level CO2 Fluxes with the Climatic and Environmental Variables for US Deciduous Forests. Environmental Management 55, 943–960 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-014-0437-1

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