Seasonal variability in CO₂ transport through snow in a boreal forest

We used a chamber method to measure CO₂ flux at the surface of the snowpack within three ecotypes of a northern boreal forest near Thompson, Manitoba, during the winter and spring of 1993-1994. We also measured temperatures and CO₂ concentrations at depth within the soil. Vertical concentration gradients, which were observed throughout the winter, declined as soil temperatures dropped and quickly increased when soil temperatures rose. The changing gradients may have been caused by changes in both CO₂ production and the diffusive characteristics of the soil and/or snow. Understanding the role of snowpack variability is essential to ultimately estimating winter CO₂ production in boreal forest soils. -from Authors