Biogeochemical Cycles - 1

Class Lecture Goals

1. What are systems?
2. What are biogeochemical cycles?
3. Why are they important?
4. What is common about them?
5. Carbon and nitrogen cycles
6. Focus on the Water Cycle (Monday)

Todays Topic: Did Logging

Worsen Floods?

State Senate Committee

Weyerhaeuser Co.
State DNR
David Montgomery
Phil Mote
Ideas
System: Watershed
Cumulative effects
Climate Change

What is a system?
System: a collection of matter, parts, or
components which are included inside a specified,
often arbitrary, boundary. Example: Ecosystem
Systems often have inputs and outputs.
For dynamic systems, by definition, one or more
aspects of the system change with time.
Example of a simple dynamic system: bathtub or your bank
account.

Flux
Pool of a dynamic system is chosen for
The
boundary
convenient conceptual separation for the system

Carbon
dioxide

Sugar
C-pool

Night

Reading Assignments
Examine this web page
(http://www.cses.washington.edu/cig/pnwc/cc.shtml)

Select the true statement from

below for the PNW: Climate
change will
0%

1. Increase
precipitation &
snowpack
2. Increase
temperature &
snowpack
3. Increase
precipitation &
decrease snowpack
1

Answer

10

What are biogeochemical cycles?

Earth system has four parts

Atmosphere
Hydrosphere
Lithosphere
Biosphere

Biogeochemical cycles: The chemical

interactions (cycles) that exist between
the atmosphere, hydrosphere,
lithosphere, and biosphere.
Abiotic (physio-chemical) and biotic
processes drive these cycles
Focus on carbon and water cycles (but
could include all necessary elements for
life). N - cycle weakly touched on!

What is common amongst them?

Each compound (water, carbon, nitrogen)
typically exists in all four parts of the Earth
System
There are
Pools
Fluxes in and out of pools
Chemical or biochemical transformations

Transformations
are important
can lead to positive & negative consequences

Transformations
Examples of Transformations
1. Carbon cycle: Organic compounds to CO2
(processes: respiration, decomposition, or fire)
2. Carbon cycle: CO2 to organic compounds (process:
photosynthesis)
3. Nitrogen cycle: N2 to NO3 (atmospheric nitrogen to
plant utilizable nitrate) (process: N-fixation)
4. Nitrogen cycle: N2 to NH3 (plant utilizable ammonia)
(process: Haber-Bosch Industrial N-fixation)
5. Water cycle: Liquid water to water vapor (process:
evaporation and evapo-transpiration)
6. Water cycle: Water vapor to liquid water (process:
condensation)

Carbon Cycle

5000

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/carbon_cycle_version2.html

Carbon Cycle Data

760

59

Burning of fossil
fuels
Land conversion
Cement
Role of Oceans
Role of terrestrial
plants (trees &
soils)
Lithosphere

Changes in Atmospheric C02 - 1

Dr. Pieter Tans, NOAA/ESRL (www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/cgg/trends)

Changes in Atmospheric C02 - 2

http://www.whrc.org/resources/online_publications/warming_earth/scientific_evidence.htm

Key Aspects of the Carbon Cycle

Carbon is the skeleton of all life.
Carbon dioxide is a critical gas:
Taken up by plants in photosynthesis
Released by plants and animals in respiration
Released during decomposition (and fires)
Greenhouse gas (greenhouse effect - your car
in the sun)

Question: Photosynthesis is
an example of a pool
1. True
2. False

0%
1

Answer

10

Nitrogen Cycle

Forms of Nitrogen (N2)

N2 - inert gas, 78% of the atmosphere
NO, N20, NO2 - other gases of nitrogen, not directly
biologically important. Part of the gases found in
smog.
NO3- (nitrate) and NH4+ (ammonium) -- ionic forms of
nitrogen that are biologically usable.

http://soil.gsfc.nasa.gov/NFTG/nitrocyc.htm

Nitrogen Cycle
Forms & Sources of biologically available nitrogen (N2)
For plants
NO3- (nitrate)
NH4+ (ammonium)
Sources: N-fixation by plants (N2 to NH3 and N2 to NO3),
lightening, bacteria decomposition of organic N (amino
acids & proteins)
For animals
Organic forms: amino acids and proteins (from plants or
other animals)
http://soil.gsfc.nasa.gov/NFTG/nitrocyc.htm

Nitrogen Cycle
Losses of nitrogen from system
In bogs, lakes (places of low oxygen), NO3- is converted
to N2 by bacteria (get their oxygen from the NO3)
Volatilization of NH4+ (urea) to ammonia gas (NH3) warm, dry conditions.
Leaching of NO3- (nitrate)
Erosion
Fire (combustion)

http://soil.gsfc.nasa.gov/NFTG/nitrocyc.htm

Nitrogen Sources over time

Nitrogen Cycle: Key Points

Nitrogen is in the atmosphere as N2 (78%)
N2 is an inert gas and cannot be used by
plants or animals
N2 can be converted to a usable form via
Lightening
N-fixing plants and cyanobacteria
Industrial process (energy intensive)

Nitrogen limits plant growth

Nitrogen is easily lost from biological
systems

Summary

1. What are systems?

2. What are biogeochemical cycles?
3. Why are they important?
4. What is common about them?
5. Carbon and nitrogen cycles