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Plant Impact on CO2 Consumption by Silicate Weathering: The Role of Bamboo

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Abstract

CO2 consumption by silicate weathering has exerted a major control on atmospheric CO2 over geologic time. In order to assess plant impact on this process, the study compared water geochemistry and CO2 consumption rates by silicate weathering in watersheds covered by bamboos and other forests. Our study showed that SiO2 concentrations (80 ~ 150 μmol/L, average 105 μmol/L) in water from pure bamboo forest watersheds were higher than that (15 ~ 85 μmol/L, average 60 μmol/L) from other watersheds. Si/(Nasilicate + Ksilicate) ratios in water draining from bamboo watersheds (2.0 ~ 4.0, average 2.9) were higher than that from other watersheds ?>(0.7 ~ 2.7, average 2.2). CO2 consumption rates by silicate weathering in bamboo watersheds (1.8 ~ 3.4 105 mol/km2/yr, average 2.5 105 mol/km2/yr) were higher than that in other watersheds (1.5 ~ 2.6 105 mol/km2/yr, average 2.0 105 mol/km2/yr). Therefore, bamboo-enhanced silicate weathering is a potential biogeochemical remediation approach for atmospheric CO2.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful for support from Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation Program (Grant No. Y5080110 and Z5080203); Opening Project of State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry (SKLEG9011); Research Development Program of Zhejiang A & F University (2351000741 and 2451012029).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Carbon Cycling in Forest Ecosystems and Carbon Sequestration, Zhejiang A & F University, Lin’an, 311300, China

    Zhaoliang Song, Songlai Zhao & Zhihong Cao

  2. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, 550002, China

    Zhaoliang Song

  3. Lin’an Institute of Forestry Sciences, Lin’an, 311300, China

    Youzhen Zhang & Guoliang Hu

  4. Joint Laboratory of Soil and Environment, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

    Zhihong Cao & Minghung Wong

  5. Institute of Soil Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China

    Zhihong Cao & Minghung Wong

  6. School of Environment and Resources, Zhejiang A & F University, No. 88 North Huancheng Road, Lin’an, Zhejiang, 311300, China

    Zhihong Cao

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  1. Zhaoliang Song
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  2. Songlai Zhao
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  3. Youzhen Zhang
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  4. Guoliang Hu
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  5. Zhihong Cao
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  6. Minghung Wong
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Correspondence to Zhihong Cao.

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Song, Z., Zhao, S., Zhang, Y. et al. Plant Impact on CO2 Consumption by Silicate Weathering: The Role of Bamboo. Bot. Rev. 77, 208–213 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12229-011-9077-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12229-011-9077-9

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