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FROM VOLUME 7, NUMBER 10, OCTOBER 1994

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS... METHANE EMISSIONS AND CYCLES

Item #d94oct16

"Potential Distribution of Methane Hydrates in the World's Oceans," V. Gornitz (Inst. Space Studies, Columbia Univ., New York NY 10025), I. Fung, Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 8(3), 335-347, Sep. 1994.

Estimated the magnitudes and spatial distribution of potential reservoirs based on the in situ bacterial production model and the pore fluid expulsion model. Preliminary results, based on small sample size and uncertain assumptions, suggest that the latter model is more consistent with observations.

Item #d94oct17

"Contribution of Photosynthesized Carbon to the Methane Emitted from Paddy Fields," T. Minoda (Lab. Soil Biol. & Chem., Sch. Agric. Sci., Nagoya Univ., Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-01 Japan), M. Kimura, Geophys. Res. Lett., 21(18), 2007-2010, Sep. 1, 1994.

Measured emission rates of CH4 from paddy soil in pots, with and without rice straw applications. Methane derived from rice straw was 50.4% of the total. The contribution of photosynthesized carbon to the total emitted CH4 without rice straw application ranged from 72-110% at the beginning of the growing season, to 13-17% as the plants matured.

Item #d94oct18

Two items from J. Geophys. Res., 99(D8), Aug. 20, 1994:

"Concentration and 13C Records of Atmospheric Methane in New Zealand and Antarctica: Evidence for Changes in Methane Sources," D.C. Lowe (Natl. Inst. Water & Atmos. Res. Ltd., POB 31-311, Lower Hutt, New Zealand), C.A.M. Brenninkmeijer et al., 16,913-16,925. Measurements of 13C show a persistent but highly variable seasonal cycle. Modeling suggests that the decline of 13C at two Antarctic locations probably resulted from a recent reduction in biomass burning in the Southern Hemisphere, and lower release of fossil methane in the Northern Hemisphere.

"The Growth Rate and Distribution of Atmospheric Methane," E.J. Dlugokencky (CMDL, NOAA, 325 Broadway, Boulder CO 80303), L.P. Steele et al., 17,021-17,043. The global growth rate for methane decreased from 13.5 to 9.3 ppb/yr between 1983 and 1991, probably from a change in an anthropogenic methane source such as fossil fuel production. Current measurements are unlikely to lead to reliable prediction of methane levels.

Item #d94oct19

"Methane Emissions from Rice Fields: Effect of Soil Properties," R.L. Sass (Dept. Ecol. & Evol. Biol., Rice Univ., POB 1892, Houston TX 77251), F.M. Fisher et al., Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 8(2), 135-140, June 1994.

Seasonal methane emissions correlate directly with the percent sand in soil at a Texas site, ranging from 15.1 to 36.3 g m-2 along a transect with sand content ranging from 18.8% to 32.5%.

Item #d94oct20

"Methane Production in Terrestrial Arthropods," J.H.P. Hackstein, C.K. Stumm, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 91(12), 5441-5445, June 1994.

More than 110 representatives of the different taxa of terrestrial arthropods were screened to investigate the origins of biogenic methane. Symbiotic methanogenic bacteria occur in the hindguts of nearly all tropical representatives of millipedes, cockroaches, termites and scarab beetles. The world population of methane-producing arthropods constitutes an enormous biomass, which can contribute significantly to atmospheric methane.

Item #d94oct21

"Beaver Impoundments in Temperate Forests as Sources of Atmospheric CO2," J.B. Yavitt (Dept. Nat. Resour., Fernow Hall, Cornell Univ., Ithaca NY 14853), T.J. Fahey, Geophys. Res. Lett., 21(11), 995-998, June 1, 1994. Impoundments are significant sources of both methane and CO2.

Item #d94oct22

"Clues to Ancient Methane Release," G. Wefer (Fachber. Geowiss., Univ. Bremen, 28334 Bremen, Ger.), P.-M. Heinze, W.H. Berger, Nature, 369(6478), 282, May 26, 1994.

Of two benthic foraminifera studied, N. auris is a potential indicator of the presence of methane, and may specialize in feeding on methane-oxidizing bacteria.

Item #d94oct23

"Production and Transport of Methane in Oceanic Particulate Organic Matter," D.M. Karl (Sch. Ocean & Earth Sci. & Technol., Univ. Hawaii, Honolulu HI 96822), B.D. Tilbrook, ibid., 368(6973), 732-734, Apr. 21, 1994.

Experiments in the North Pacific Ocean reveal that methane is probably a dissolved constituent of the interstitial fluids of biogenic particulates, and exchanges with the water column as particles sink. The process provides a mechanism for active transport in the water column of an otherwise passive, dissolved species.

Item #d94oct24

Two items from ibid., 366(6454), Dec. 2, 1993.

"Ancient Tropical Methane," F.A. Street-Perrott (Environ. Change Unit, Univ. Oxford, Oxford OX1 3TB, UK), 411-412. Comments on the research context of the following paper, which provides evidence for a strong feedback between the biosphere and climate on a timescale of centuries.

"Synchronous Changes in Atmospheric CH4 and Greenland Climate Between 40 and 8 kyr BP," J. Chappellaz (Lab. Glac. & Geophys. l'Environ., BP 96, 38402 St.-Martin-d'Heres Cedex, France), T. Blunier et al., 443-445. A high-resolution record of atmospheric methane indicates that large changes in its concentration during the last deglaciation correlated with variations in Greenland climate. Variations on the hydrologic cycle at low latitudes may be responsible for variations in both methane and Greenland temperature during the interstadials.

Specialized Papers

Item #d94oct25

"Measurements of Methane Fluxes on the Landscape Scale from a Wetland Area in North Scotland," M.W. Gallagher (UMIST, POB 88, Manchester M60 1QD, UK), T.W. Choularton et al., Atmos. Environ., 28(15), 2421-2430, Aug. 1994.

Item #d94oct26

"Impact of Gypsum Application on the Methane Emission from a Wetland Rice Field," H.A.C. Denier van der Gon (Dept. Soil Sci. & Geol., Agric. Univ., POB 37, 6700 AA Wageningen, Neth.), H.U. Neue, Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 8(2), 127-134, June 1994.

Item #d94oct27

"Seasonal Variations in Methane Flux and d13CH4 Values for Rice Paddies in Japan and Their Implications," S.C. Tyler (Dept. Geosci., Univ. Calif., Irvine CA 92717), G.W. Brailsford et al., ibid., 8(1), 1-12, Mar. 1994.

Item #d94oct28

"Measurement of Methane Emissions from Ruminant Livestock Using a SF6 Tracer Technique," K. Johnson (Dept. Animal Sci., Washington State Univ., Pullman WA 99164), M. Huyler et al., Environ. Sci. Technol., 28(2), 359-362, Feb. 1994.

Item #d94oct29

"Methane Emissions from Waterhyacinth-Infested Freshwater Ecosystems," A. Banik (Dept. Bot., Univ. Kalyani, Kalyani-741 235, India), Chemosphere, 27(8), 1539-1552, Aug. 1993.