@article{fdi:010065389,
  title = {{S}oil carbon losses by sheet erosion : a potentially critical contribution to the global carbon cycle},
  author = {{M}uller-{N}edebock, {D}. and {C}haplot, {V}incent},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{D}espite soil erosion through water being a ubiquitous process and its environmental consequences being well understood, its effects upon the global carbon cycle still remain largely uncertain. {H}ow much soil organic carbon ({SOC}) is removed each year from soils by sheet wash, an important if not the most efficient mechanism of detachment and transport of surficial soil material? {W}hat are the main environnemental controls worldwide? {T}hese are important questions which largely remain unanswered. {E}mpirical data from 240 runoff plots studied over entire rainy seasons from different regions of the world were analysed to estimate particulate organic carbon ({POC}) losses ({POCL}), and {POC} enrichment in the sediments compared to the bulk soil ({ER}), which can be used as a proxy of the fate of the eroded {POC}. {T}he median {POCL} was 9.9 g {C} m(-2) y(-1) with highest values observed for semi-arid soils ({POCL}=10.8 g {C} m(-2) y(-1)), followed by tropical soils ({POCL}=6.4 g {C} m(-2) y(-1)) and temperate soils ({POCL}=1.7 g {C} m(-2) y(-1)). {C}onsidering the mean {POCL} of 27.2 g {C} m(-2) y(-1), the total amount of {SOC} displaced annually by sheet erosion from its source would be 1.32 +/- 0.20 {G}t {C}, i.e.14.6% of the net annual fossil fuel induced {C} emissions of 9 {G}t {C}. {B}ecause of low sediment enrichment in {POC}, erosion-induced {CO}2 emissions are likely to be limited in clayey environments while {POC} burial within hillslopes is likely to constitute an important carbon sink. {I}n contrast, most of the {POC} displaced from sandy soils is likely to be emitted to the atmosphere. {T}hese results underpin the major role sheet wash plays in the displacement of {SOC} from its source and in the fate of the eroded {SOC}, with large variations across the different pedo-climatic regions of the world.},
  keywords = {carbon budgeting ; soil erosion ; global data ; soil carbon},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{E}arth {S}urface {P}rocesses and {L}andforms},
  volume = {40},
  numero = {13},
  pages = {1803--1813},
  ISSN = {0197-9337},
  year = {2015},
  DOI = {10.1002/esp.3758},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010065389},
}