Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Article
  • Published:

High riverine CO2 emissions at the permafrost boundary of Western Siberia

Abstract

The fate of the vast stocks of organic carbon stored in permafrost of the Western Siberian Lowland, the world’s largest peatland, is uncertain. Specifically, the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from rivers in the region is unknown. Here we present estimates of annual CO2 emissions from 58 rivers across all permafrost zones of the Western Siberian Lowland, between 56 and 67° N. We find that emissions peak at the permafrost boundary, and decrease where permafrost is more prevalent and in colder climatic conditions. River CO2 emissions were high, and on average two times greater than downstream carbon export. We suggest that high emissions and emission/export ratios are a result of warm temperatures and the long transit times of river water. We show that rivers in the Western Siberian Lowland play an important role in the carbon cycle by degassing terrestrial carbon before its transport to the Arctic Ocean, and suggest that changes in both temperature and precipitation are important for understanding and predicting high-latitude river CO2 emissions in a changing climate.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Map of the study sites in the WSL, Russia.
Fig. 2: Annual river CO2 emissions per unit of water area across different permafrost zones.
Fig. 3: Climate-dependent factors controlling river CO2 emissions across different permafrost zones.
Fig. 4: A conceptual model for changes in CO2 emissions and downstream C export from permafrost-draining river network with warming.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Tarnocai, C. et al. Soil organic carbon pools in the northern circumpolar permafrost region. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 23, GB2023 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Hugelius, G. et al. Estimated stocks of circumpolar permafrost carbon with quantified uncertainty ranges and identified data gaps. Biogeosciences 11, 6573–6593 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Schuur, E. A. G. et al. Climate change and the permafrost carbon feedback. Nature 520, 171–179 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Crowther, T. W. et al. Quantifying global soil carbon losses in response to warming. Nature 540, 104–108 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Smith, L. C. Siberian peatlands a net carbon sink and global methane source since the Early Holocene. Science 303, 353–356 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Vonk, J. E. et al. Reviews and syntheses: effects of permafrost thaw on Arctic aquatic ecosystems. Biogeosciences 12, 7129–7167 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Dorrepaal, E. et al. Carbon respiration from subsurface peat accelerated by climate warming in the subarctic. Nature 460, 616–619 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Vonk, J. E. & Gustafsson, Ö. Permafrost-carbon complexities. Nat. Geosci. 6, 675–676 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Cole, J. J. et al. Plumbing the global carbon cycle: integrating inland waters into the terrestrial carbon budget. Ecosystems 10, 172–185 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Cooper, L. W.et al. Flow-weighted values of runoff tracers (δ18O, DOC, Ba, alkalinity) from the six largest Arctic rivers. Geophys. Res. Lett. 35, L18606 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Striegl, R. G., Aiken, G. R., Dornblaser, M. M., Raymond, P. A. & Wickland, K. P. A decrease in discharge-normalized DOC export by the Yukon River during summer through autumn. Geophys. Res. Lett. 32, L21413 (2005).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Striegl, R. G., Dornblaser, M. M., McDonald, C. P., Rover, J. R. & Stets, E. G. Carbon dioxide and methane emissions from the Yukon River system. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 26, GB0E05 (2012).

  13. Denfeld, B. A., Frey, K. E., Sobczak, W. V., Mann, P. J. & Holmes, R. M. Summer CO2 evasion from streams and rivers in the Kolyma River basin, north-east Siberia. Polar Res. 32, 1–15 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Lundin, E. J., Giesler, R., Persson, A., Thompson, M. S. & Karlsson, J. Integrating carbon emissions from lakes and streams in a subarctic catchment. J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosci. 118, 1200–1207 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Abbott, B. W., Larouche, J. R., Jones, J. B., Bowden, W. B. & Balser, A. W. Elevated dissolved organic carbon biodegradability from thawing and collapsing permafrost. J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosci. 119, 2049–2063 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Vonk, J. E. et al. High biolability of ancient permafrost carbon upon thaw. Geophys. Res. Lett. 40, 2689–2693 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Dubois, K. D., Lee, D. & Veizer, J. Isotopic constraints on alkalinity, dissolved organic carbon, and atmospheric carbon dioxide fluxes in the Mississippi River. J. Geophys. Res. 115, G02018 (2010).

  18. Knoblauch, C., Beer, C., Sosnin, A., Wagner, D. & Pfeiffer, E. M. Predicting long-term carbon mineralization and trace gas production from thawing permafrost of Northeast Siberia. Glob. Change Biol. 19, 1160–1172 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Sheng, Y. et al. A high-resolution GIS-based inventory of the west Siberian peat carbon pool. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 18, GB3004 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Frey, K. E., Siegel, D. I. & Smith, L. C. Geochemistry of west Siberian streams and their potential response to permafrost degradation. Water Resour. Res. 43, W03406 (2007).

  21. Frappart, F. et al. Interannual variations of the terrestrial water storage in the Lower Ob’ Basin from a multisatellite approach. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 14, 2443–2453 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Romanovsky, V. E. et al. Thermal state of permafrost in Russia. Permafr. Periglac. Process. 21, 136–155 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Alin, S. R. et al. Physical controls on carbon dioxide transfer velocity and flux in low-gradient river systems and implications for regional carbon budgets. J. Geophys. Res. 116, G01009 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Frey, K. E. Amplified carbon release from vast West Siberian peatlands by 2100. Geophys. Res. Lett. 32, L09401 (2005).

    Google Scholar 

  25. Frey, K. E. & McClelland, J. W. Impacts of permafrost degradation on arctic river biogeochemistry. Hydrol. Process. 23, 169–182 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Frey, K. E., McClelland, J. W., Holmes, R. M. & Smith, L. C. Impacts of climate warming and permafrost thaw on the riverine transport of nitrogen and phosphorus to the Kara Sea. J. Geophys. Res. 112, G04S58 (2007).

  27. Hugelius, G. et al. The northern circumpolar soil carbon database: spatially distributed datasets of soil coverage and soil carbon storage in the northern permafrost regions. Earth Syst. Sci. Data 5, 3–13 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Algesten, G. et al. Role of lakes for organic carbon cycling in the boreal zone. Glob. Change Biol. 10, 141–147 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Ala-aho, P. et al. Using stable isotopes to assess surface water source dynamics and hydrological connectivity in a high-latitude wetland and permafrost influenced landscape. J. Hydrol. 556, 279–293 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Kawahigashi, M., Kaiser, K., Kalbitz, K., Rodionov, A. & Guggenberger, G. Dissolved organic matter in small streams along a gradient from discontinuous to continuous permafrost. Glob. Chang. Biol. 10, 1576–1586 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Pokrovsky, O. S. et al. Permafrost coverage, watershed area and season control of dissolved carbon and major elements in western Siberian rivers. Biogeosciences 12, 6301–6320 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Raymond, P. A. et al. Global carbon dioxide emissions from inland waters. Nature 503, 355–359 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Lauerwald, R., Laruelle, G. G., Hartmann, J., Ciais, P. & Regnier, P. A. G. Spatial patterns in CO 2 evasion from the global river network. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 29, 534–554 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Richey, J. E., Melack, J. M., Aufdenkampe, A. K., Ballester, V. M. & Hess, L. L. Outgassing from Amazonian rivers and wetlands as a large tropical source of atmospheric CO2. Nature 416, 617–620 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Zakharova, E., Kouraev, A. V., Rémy, F., Zemtsov, V. & Kirpotin, S. N. Seasonal variability of the Western Siberia wetlands from satellite radar altimetry. J. Hydrol. 512, 366–378 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Smith, L. C. et al. Influence of permafrost on water storage in West Siberian peatlands revealed from a new database of soil properties. Permafr. Periglac. Process. 23, 69–79 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Brown, J., Ferrians, O. J. J., Heginbottom, J. A. & Melnikov, E. S. Circum-Arctic Map of Permafrost and Ground Ice Conditions (National Snow and Ice Data Center, World Data Center for Glaciology, 2001).

  38. Zakharova, E. A. A. et al. The modern hydrological regime of the northern part of Western Siberia from in situ and satellite observations. Int. J. Environ. Stud. 66, 447–463 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Karlsson, J. M., Lyon, S. W. & Destouni, G. Thermokarst lake, hydrological flow and water balance indicators of permafrost change in Western Siberia. J. Hydrol. 464–465, 459–466 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Raudina, T. V. et al. Dissolved organic carbon and major and trace elements in peat porewater of sporadic, discontinuous, and continuous permafrost zones of western Siberia. Biogeosciences 14, 3561–3584 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Yamamoto, S., Alcauskas, J. B. & Crozier, T. E. Solubility of methane in distilled water and seawater. J. Chem. Eng. Data 21, 78–80 (1976).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Cuthbert, I. D. & del Giorgio, P. Toward a standard method of measuring color in freshwater. Limnol. Oceanogr. 37, 1319–1326 (1992).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Johnson, M. S. et al. Direct and continuous measurement of dissolved carbon dioxide in freshwater aquatic systems-method and applications. Ecohydrology 3, 68–78 (2009).

  44. Wanninkhof, R. Relationship between wind speed and gas exchange over the ocean. J. Geophys. Res. 97, 7373–7382 (1992).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Vachon, D., Prairie, Y. T. & Cole, J. J. The relationship between near-surface turbulence and gas transfer velocity in freshwater systems and its implications for floating chamber measurements of gas exchange. Limnol. Oceanogr. 55, 1723–1732 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Jähne, B., Heinz, G. & Dietrich, W. Measurement of the diffusion coefficients of sparingly soluble gases in water. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 92, 10767–10776 (1987).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Nikitin, S. P. & Zemtsov, V. A. The Variability of Hydrological Parameters of Western Siberia (Nauka, Novosibirsk, 1986).

  48. Novikov, S. M. et al. Hydrology of Bog Territories of the Permafrost Zone of Western Siberia (BBM, St. Petersburg, 2009).

  49. Gordeev, V. V., Martin, J. M., Sidorov, I. S. & Sidorova, M. V. A reassessment of the Eurasian river input of water, sediment, major elements, and nutrients to the Arctic Ocean. Am. J. Sci. 296, 664–691 (1996).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The study was part of the JPI Climate initiative, financially supported by VR (the Swedish Research Council) grant no. 325-2014-6898 to J.K. Additional funding from RNF (RSCF) grant no. 18-17-00237, RFBR grant no. 17-55-16008 and RF Federal Target Program RFMEFI58717X0036 ‘Kolmogorov’ to O.S.P. and S.N.K. as well as NERC grant no. NE/M019896/1 to C.S. is acknowledged. The authors thank A. Sorochinskiy and A. Lim for assistance in the field, as well as M. Myrstener, M. Klaus and S. Monteux for advice on data analysis. L. Kovaleva is acknowledged for artwork.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Contributions

J.K. and O.S.P. contributed to study design. S.N.K. organized sampling campaigns and logistics. S.S., R.M.M., I.V.K. and V.K. contributed to sampling. L.S.S. analysed the DOC and DIC samples. S.G.K. complemented data with literature material. S.S. analysed data, and prepared figures and tables. S.S., J.K., O.S.P. and H.L. wrote the paper. C.S., D.T. and P.A. helped with interpreting the results. All authors commented on the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to S. Serikova or J. Karlsson.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher’s note: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information

Supplementary Figures 1–3, Supplementary Tables 1–5

Supplementary Dataset

Water chemistry parameters and watershed characteristics for each river sampled

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Serikova, S., Pokrovsky, O.S., Ala-Aho, P. et al. High riverine CO2 emissions at the permafrost boundary of Western Siberia. Nature Geosci 11, 825–829 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0218-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0218-1

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing