Stockbridge Sch of Agriculture 692B - S-Soils & Climate Change

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, global temperatures are expected to increase 1.1 to 6.4 degrees Celsius during the 21st century, and precipitation patterns will be altered by climate change. Soils are intricately linked to the atmospheric climate system through the carbon, nitrogen, and hydrologic cycles. Altered climate will, therefore, have an effect on soil processes and properties, and at the same time, the soils themselves will have an effect on climate. Study of the effects of climate change on soils is still nascent, but has revealed that climate change will impact soil organic matter dynamics, and soil processes and properties related to fertility, water retention, nutrient export, and contaminant dynamics. This journal club serves to critically review the literature on the direction and magnitude of climate change impacts on soils. Students make one presentation of a journal article from a reputable journal with the advice and final approval from the instructor. Topics may include, but are not limited to soil (micro)biology, chemistry, pedologogy, plant-soil interactions (rhizosphere science), hydrology, biogeochemistry, and ecology.