Resource description:
Forests are vital for climate change mitigation, absorbing CO2 while also emitting potent greenhouse gases like methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) from trees and soil. These emissions, more potent than CO2, require careful scrutiny to understand forests' role.
Yet, our global understanding of forest greenhouse gas fluxes remains incomplete, particularly for CH4 in boreal and tropical regions. Forests' role in CH4 exchange varies from minor sink to major source, underscoring the need for additional observations. Studies on ecosystem-scale N2O fluxes in forests are also scarce.
This Research Topic “Greenhouse Gas Fluxes in Forest Ecosystems” aims to present the current state of research on the processes related to greenhouse gas fluxes in forest ecosystems and their biotic or abiotic drivers. The Topic covers studies that encompass greenhouse gas fluxes at various scales, from the soil and trees to the entire ecosystem, in a wide array of ecosystems globally. They provide new insights into how environmental changes, particularly land management practices, affect forest greenhouse gas potential while also highlighting critical questions for future research.