| Summary (abstract)
Climate change is an ongoing process and the release of greenhouse gases today is a major contribution to this. Methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases that come from both natural and anthropogenic sources. Freshwater systems are a source of methane but it is not included in the terrestrial greenhouse gas balance. Aquatic plants have often a well developed gas transport system to support their roots with oxygen. This system can also transport methane from the roots into the atmosphere. The research proposed here focuses on the importance of aquatic macrophytes in freshwater systems to better understand their contribution to the overall methane emissions to the atmosphere. Here I investigate 1) diel and seasonal variation in methane emission from two emergent macrophytes in lake Erssjön and 2) how the methane emission from aquatic plants will depend on factors like biomass, solar radiation, wind, temperature and humidity. To achieve this, plastic chambers will be used in lake Erssjön to collect the methane emission from the plants, in situ. The project will provide better knowledge about aquatic macrophytes contribution to the methane emission to the atmosphere and the possibility to make a better model of the natural sources of methane.
This study will take place in Skogaryd near of Vänersborg. The largest cost in this project is the long travel back and forth to the sudy area. |