CatchCaN - Carbon and nitrogen turnover in forest land

CatchCaN is a research project concerning carbon and nitrogen turnover in forest land. Within the project, IVL Swedish Environmental Institute collaborates with researchers from the Czech Republic and Norway to investigate the effects of forestry, climate change, air pollution and other disturbances on carbon and nitrogen cycles in forests, land and water.

The soil plays a key role in the forest's growth and water quality in run-off and in counteracting greenhouse gas emissions through carbon storage. Carbon storage in the forest ecosystem is linked to nitrogen deposition and nitrogen metabolism, especially for nitrogen-restricted systems that are common in temperate and boreal areas.

The project includes the development of biogeochemical models that will be calibrated and tested on data series from monitoring areas in forests in the Czech Republic, Norway and Sweden.

IVL contributes through the Swedish NITREX trial in Gårdsjön, a 30-year nitrogen fertilization experiment that is still active. Data from the experiment will form the basis for parameterization and tests of the models for the C and N dynamics.