Cited by 155Bioenergy crop production and managementSoil Carbon and Nitrogen DynamicsSoil erosion and sediment transport

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 191 of the 191 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 5 of the 469 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out?

Open access
Agostini, Francesco, Gregory, Andrew S., Richter, Goetz M.·2015·BioEnergy Research

Abstract

Soil organic carbon (SOC) changes associated with land conversion to energy crops are central to the debate on bioenergy and their potential carbon neutrality. Here, the experimental evidence on SOC under perennial energy crops (PECs) is synthesised to parameterise a whole systems model and to identify uncertainties and knowledge gaps determining PECs being a sink or source of greenhouse gas (GHG). For Miscanthus and willow ( Salix spp.) and their analogues (switchgrass, poplar), we examine carbon (C) allocation to above- and belowground residue inputs, turnover rates and retention in the soil. A meta-analysis showed that studies on dry matter partitioning and C inputs to soils are plentiful, whilst data on turnover are rare and rely on few isotopic C tracer studies. Comprehensive studies on SOC dynamics and GHG emissions under PECs are limited and subsoil processes and C losses through leaching remain unknown. Data showed dynamic changes of gross C inputs and SOC stocks depending on stand age. C inputs and turnover can now be specifically parameterised in whole PEC system models, whilst dependencies on soil texture, moisture and temperature remain empirical. In conclusion, the annual net SOC storage change exceeds the minimum mitigation requirement (0.25 Mg C ha −1 year −1 ) under herbaceous and woody perennials by far (1.14 to 1.88 and 0.63 to 0.72 Mg C ha −1 year −1 , respectively). However, long-term time series of field data are needed to verify sustainable SOC enrichment, as the physical and chemical stabilities of SOC pools remain uncertain, although they are essential in defining the sustainability of C sequestration (half-life >25 years).

Overview

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

This review synthesises experimental evidence on soil organic carbon (SOC) under perennial energy crops (PECs) and parameterises a whole-systems model to assess whether PECs are a carbon sink or source. It concludes that annual net SOC storage exceeds the minimum mitigation requirement, but long-term SOC stability and key turnover, subsoil and leaching processes remain uncertain.

Key findings

  • Annual net SOC storage change exceeds the minimum mitigation requirement of 0.25 Mg C ha−1 year−1 under herbaceous and woody perennials by far: 1.14–1.88 and 0.63–0.72 Mg C ha−1 year−1, respectively.
  • Both herbaceous crops/grasses and short-rotation woody crops can deliver up to 40–50 % of captured C to soil as litter and belowground biomass, varying from <1 to >4 Mg C ha−1 year−1.
  • Switchgrass showed an overall 25 % higher average stock change than Miscanthus (1.59 vs. 1.21 Mg C ha−1 year−1), likely due to lower root inputs from Miscanthus; willow and poplar averaged 0.56 and 0.63 Mg C ha−1 year−1, respectively.
  • C retention was higher in herbaceous systems (30–55 %) than in woody systems (19–33 %), but data on turnover are rare and rely on few isotopic C tracer studies, while subsoil processes and C losses through leaching remain unknown.

Methods

  • Literature search used ISI Web of Knowledge and Google Scholar for 1994–2014, refined by key genera; papers were grouped into global inventory/GIS/LCA, process-based modelling, and experimental evidence. Experimental evidence was reported in 85 papers, including 44 specific field trials and 57 studies with data useful for parameterising C sequestration; 25 modelling papers from 2000–2013 used RothC, CENTURY/DayCENT, or both.
  • Data were extracted from tables and figures and scaled to Mg C ha−1 year−1; C inputs were measured directly or estimated from dry biomass assuming 45 % C unless stated otherwise. Mean residence time was calculated from mass loss assuming zero-order kinetics, with first-order laboratory rates scaled for temperature using a Q10 of 2.
  • RothC was expanded to accept disaggregated C inputs (litter, rhizomes, roots, root exudates) and calibrated using a 14-year-old Miscanthus experiment at Rothamsted, UK, followed by sensitivity analysis of SOC response to input and turnover rates.

Limitations

  • The paper states that long-term time series of field data are needed to verify sustainable SOC enrichment, as the physical and chemical stabilities of SOC pools remain uncertain; a half-life >25 years is considered essential for sustainable C sequestration.
  • The paper states that severe restrictions apply to the validity of current in situ residue turnover rates due to technical limitations (litter bags) and steady-state assumptions, and that alternative methods described dynamics in young plantations that may not be extrapolated to mature stands.
  • The paper states that environmental, fertility and management effects (e.g. harvest intensity) are not covered in dose–response experiments, and evidence for target ecosystems such as marginal land is underrepresented; the text also notes that the synthesis did not account for differences in temperature or other experimental variables.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1007/s12155-014-9571-0

Cites

191 of 191 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Figures

Fig. 1 Conceptual model and components of carbon (C) dynamics under perennial energy crops (PECs): soil C pool/continuum; C source pools representing residues dispersed into the soil and their mean residence time (MRT), linked process-based models (1) soil–plant water dynamic, (2) soil biomass dynamic and (3) N limitation effect
Fig. 1 Conceptual model and components of carbon (C) dynamics under perennial energy crops (PECs): soil C pool/continuum; C source pools representing residues dispersed into the soil and their mean residence time (MRT), linked process-based models (1) soil–plant water dynamic, (2) soil biomass dynamic and (3) N limitation effectCC BY · PubMed Central
Fig. 2 Bar graph describing the meta-analysis of the papers on herbaceous crop/grass (HCG) and short-rotation woody crop (SRWC) perennial energy crop systems selected and reviewed for the present work. Each paper was assigned to one or more of 12 classes defining its main objective and then further allocated into one of four classes defining the main methodology used
Fig. 2 Bar graph describing the meta-analysis of the papers on herbaceous crop/grass (HCG) and short-rotation woody crop (SRWC) perennial energy crop systems selected and reviewed for the present work. Each paper was assigned to one or more of 12 classes defining its main objective and then further allocated into one of four classes defining the main methodology usedCC BY · PubMed Central
Fig. 3 Mean C input and mean residence time (MRT) from a leaf litter and b roots of perennial energy crops as derived from the data in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. The bars show the maximum and minimum values in the range
Fig. 3 Mean C input and mean residence time (MRT) from a leaf litter and b roots of perennial energy crops as derived from the data in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. The bars show the maximum and minimum values in the rangeCC BY · PubMed Central
Fig. 4 The mean input of carbon (C) (stacked column) and the mean change in soil organic C (ΔSOC) (single column) from perennial energy crops as derived from the data in Tables 1 and 3, respectively. The bars on the ΔSOC column show the maximum and minimum values in the range, and the numbers above all the columns give the numbers of references considered
Fig. 4 The mean input of carbon (C) (stacked column) and the mean change in soil organic C (ΔSOC) (single column) from perennial energy crops as derived from the data in Tables 1 and 3, respectively. The bars on the ΔSOC column show the maximum and minimum values in the range, and the numbers above all the columns give the numbers of references consideredCC BY · PubMed Central
Fig. 5 Sensitivity analysis showing the response of soil organic carbon (SOC) modelled under a 14-year Miscanthus crop using disaggregated inputs in terms of the change from the observed (Obs) value of a gross input of C and b mean residence time (MRT) of litter (LT), rhizome (RZ) and root (RT)
Fig. 5 Sensitivity analysis showing the response of soil organic carbon (SOC) modelled under a 14-year Miscanthus crop using disaggregated inputs in terms of the change from the observed (Obs) value of a gross input of C and b mean residence time (MRT) of litter (LT), rhizome (RZ) and root (RT)CC BY · PubMed Central

Verification

Claims the paper makes

207 Not checked yet · 44 Own interpretation · 26 No basis given · 20 Own result · 1 Supported so far · 1 Mixed support · 1 Own method · accuracy not yet measured

Verify all 464 references — free account

Show all 162 claims

  • Probably not a substantial claim. 50
  • It may state two separate claims as one. 103
138 of 138
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The carbon cycle of perennial energy crops can be divided into qualitatively different inputs from aboveground biomass and belowground biomass.

    “The C cycle of PECs is assumed to be divided into qualitatively different inputs from AGB and BGB (Fig. 1).”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Data from switchgrass and poplar are appropriate proxies for Miscanthus and willow.

    “due to the scarcity of some direct experimental evidence in these crops, data from two proxy crops, switchgrass and poplar, have also been used.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Inputs and turnover rates are the critical components affecting carbon sequestration rate.

    “The critical components that affect C sequestration rate are inputs and turnover rates”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The area of land devoted to perennial energy crops is likely to increase.

    “The area of land devoted to PECs is likely to increase as countries seek to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for climate change mitigation.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The physical and chemical stabilities of soil organic carbon pools are essential in defining the sustainability of carbon sequestration, with a half-life greater than 25 years.

    “although they are essential in defining the sustainability of C sequestration (half-life >25 years).”
5 of 5

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

2 of 2

Citations

Cites

Show all 191 references

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Kollas CP, Lasch JR, Suckow F (2009) Bioenergy potential in Germany—assessing spatial patterns of biomass production. Int Agrophysics 23:343–352
  2. Drewer J, Finch J, Lloyd R, Baggs E, Skiba U (2011) How do soil emission of N20, CH4 and CO2 from perennial bioenergy crops differ from arable annual crops? GCB Bioenergy. doi: 10.1111/j.1757-1707.2011.01136 · DOI

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Items 101–154 of 154

Metadata

Authors
Agostini, F., Gregory, A. S., & Richter, G. M.
Affiliations
Rothamsted Research (GB)
Corresponding author
Richter, Goetz M.
Venue
BioEnergy Research
Published
2015-01-15
Volume
8
Issue
3
Pages
1057-1080
ISSN
  • 1939-1234 (ISSN-L)
  • 1939-1242
OpenAlex
W2026172647
Cited by
155
References
191
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 18 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 11
FWCI
2.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • BioEnergy Research (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Rothamsted Repository (Rothamsted Repository) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Directorate for Biological Sciences
  • Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/K036734/1)
  • Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBS/E/C/00005214, BBS/E/C/00005201)
  • Natural Environment Research Council (NE/H010718/1, NE/H010742/1)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Agronomy and Crop Science › Bioenergy crop production and management
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil erosion and sediment transport
Keywords
carbon sequestration, perennial energy crops, soil organic carbon, bioenergy, Miscanthus, willow, switchgrass, poplar, carbon allocation, carbon turnover, greenhouse gas emissions, land conversion, carbon leaching, stand age, carbon neutrality

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

A language model drew the claims from the paper on 2026-10-10, under version 3 of the claim definition (model deepseek-v4.1-flash, prompt extract-v3).

A second model labelled each claim on 2026-10-10 (model jev-1.13-20260917, definition revision gold-guideline-v0.2).

Cited sources are checked with a language model’s help (gpt-6-sol).

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review