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【社会人文】正在推动全球变暖的中国湿地
正在推动全球变暖的中国湿地
By Dan Whipple
ScienceNOW Daily News
27 September 2006
Some countries have been trying to reduce greenhouse gases emissions over the last decade, but a perfect storm of methane emissions may undo all the good work. According to a new study, the environmental threat posed by China's booming economy has been partially masked by a decline in natural methane emissions from wetlands. Soon, however, the drought that has reduced wetland emissions will end, pumping additional greenhouse gases into the atmosphere as China's own emissions continue to rise.
过去的十年，一些国家已经尽力在降低温室气体的排放，但是甲烷释放的“完美风暴”可能会抵消所有这些努力。根据一项新的研究，来自湿地的自然甲烷排放的降低可能部分遮掩了由中国正在起飞的经济造成的环境威胁。干旱会使甲烷的排放降低，但这样的好事很快就要结束了。在中国本身的温室气体排放持续增加的同时，现在又有额外的温室气体被泵入大气。
Methane accounts for about 20% of the 20th century enhanced greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide makes up about 60%, and other gases account for the remainder. Whereas carbon dioxide emissions have marched steadily upward, methane emissions have varied considerably over the last 25 years. Different explanations have been offered for these fluxes, including emissions from fires, wetlands, melting permafrost, and plants.
20世纪，甲烷造成的温室效应增加量大概占总增加量的20%，二氧化碳大约占60%，其它气体贡献了余下的增加量。过去25年二氧化碳排放一直在稳定上升，而甲烷的排放量则变化不定。针对这些排放量变化有着不同的解释，包括来自燃烧物，湿地，融化的冻土和植物的排放。
The team--led by climate scientist Philippe Bousquet of Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement in Gif-sur-Yvette, France, and colleagues--used a technique known as inverse modeling to figure out why the methane flux has varied. It's a bit like the game show Jeopardy, in which you have an answer but must find the question that best fits it. Methane from each source--such as fires, wetlands, and so on--has a distinctive isotopic signature, which allows researchers to identify the source of the methane with more precision.
气候科学家Philippe Bousquet（一段法语）和他的同事领导了一支研究小组，使用了名为转置模型的技术想要探明为何甲烷排放量在变化。这有点像游戏Jeopardy，在其中你知道一个答案，但你必须要寻找到一个最适合这个答案的问题。来自各个源头（燃烧物，湿地等）的甲烷有着不同的同位素特征，这使得研究者可以更精确的鉴定出甲烷的源头。
The team found that anthropogenic methane emissions began to increase in 1999, especially in northern Asia, probably a result of the fierce pace of growth of China's economy. Meanwhile, natural methane emissions from wetlands around the world declined by 5 to 20 teragrams between 1999 and 2003, somewhat offsetting China's contribution. The results suggest that when the global drying trend is reversed, atmospheric methane levels will increase again, exacerbating global warming.
研究小组发现人为甲烷排放自1999年起开始增加，尤其在北亚地区，这或许是中国经济增长在大踏步的前进造成的。1999年至2003年间世界范围内来自湿地的自然甲烷排放降低了5-20万亿克，这部分抵消了中国排放的增加。结果提示当全球干燥趋势逆转时，大气甲烷水平将会再度增加，这将加剧全球变暖
The biggest concern is what might happen in the Arctic, says co-author Ed Dlugokencky, a research chemist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Boulder, Colorado. As permafrost gets warmer, it could become wetlands. This would release large amounts of additional CO2 and methane and further drive warming trends, the team reports tomorrow in Nature.
文章的共同作者，国家海洋和大气管理局的化学家Ed Dlugokencky说最大的影响或许发生在北极。永久冻土变得更加温暖时，将变成湿地。这将大量释放额外的二氧化碳和甲烷，进一步推动变暖趋势，这个研究小组的报告发表在明天的《Nature》上。
"The comparison with model emissions from wetlands driven by climate and biomass-burning models looks good," says David Archer, a geochemist at the University of Chicago in Illinois. "The conclusions about a possible continued rise in atmospheric methane concentration seem sensible and justified."
伊利诺斯州芝加哥大学的地球物理学家David Archer说：“气候驱动的湿地甲烷排放模型和生物量燃烧模型相比较，结果吻合得挺好。”大气甲烷浓度可能持续增加这一结论看起来合情合理而且相当正确。”
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作者:admin@医学,生命科学 2010-12-21 17:14
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