South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere

As part of the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes‐2 (RECCAP‐2) project of the Global Carbon Project, here we estimate the GHG budgets (anthropogenic and natural sources and sinks) for the South Asia (SA) region as a whole and each country (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, P...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Jain, A. K., Seshadri, S., Anand, J., Chandra, N., Patra, P. K., Canadell, J. G., Chhabra, A., Ciais, P., Gilani, Hammad, Gumma, M. K., Kondo, M., Lokupitiya, E., Pan, N., Shrestha, H. L., Siddiqui, B. N., Tian, H., Tiwari, Y. K.
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174896
_version_ 1855523862976921600
author Jain, A. K.
Seshadri, S.
Anand, J.
Chandra, N.
Patra, P. K.
Canadell, J. G.
Chhabra, A.
Ciais, P.
Gilani, Hammad
Gumma, M. K.
Kondo, M.
Lokupitiya, E.
Pan, N.
Shrestha, H. L.
Siddiqui, B. N.
Tian, H.
Tiwari, Y. K.
author_browse Anand, J.
Canadell, J. G.
Chandra, N.
Chhabra, A.
Ciais, P.
Gilani, Hammad
Gumma, M. K.
Jain, A. K.
Kondo, M.
Lokupitiya, E.
Pan, N.
Patra, P. K.
Seshadri, S.
Shrestha, H. L.
Siddiqui, B. N.
Tian, H.
Tiwari, Y. K.
author_facet Jain, A. K.
Seshadri, S.
Anand, J.
Chandra, N.
Patra, P. K.
Canadell, J. G.
Chhabra, A.
Ciais, P.
Gilani, Hammad
Gumma, M. K.
Kondo, M.
Lokupitiya, E.
Pan, N.
Shrestha, H. L.
Siddiqui, B. N.
Tian, H.
Tiwari, Y. K.
author_sort Jain, A. K.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description As part of the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes‐2 (RECCAP‐2) project of the Global Carbon Project, here we estimate the GHG budgets (anthropogenic and natural sources and sinks) for the South Asia (SA) region as a whole and each country (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) for the decade of 2010–2019 (2010s). Countries in the region are experiencing a rapid rise in fossil fuel consumption and demand for agricultural land, leading to increased deforestation and higher greenhouse gas emissions. This study synthesizes top‐down (TD) and bottom‐up (BU) dynamic global vegetation model results, BU GHG inventories, ground‐based observation upscaling, and direct emissions for major GHGs. The fluxes for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) analyzed include fossil fuel emissions, net biome productivity, land use change, inland waters, wetlands, and upland and submerged soils. Our analysis shows that the overall total GHG emissions contributed to a net increase of 34%– 43% during the 2010s compared to the 2000s, primarily driven by industrial activities. However, terrestrial ecosystems acted as a notable exception by serving as a CO2 sink in the 2010s, effectively sequestering atmospheric carbon. The sink was significantly smaller than overall carbon emissions. Overall, the 2010s GHG emissions based on BU and TD were 4,517 ± 639.8 and 4,532 ± 807.5 Tg CO2 eq, with CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions of 2165.2 ± 297.1, 1,404 ± 95.9, and 712 ± 466 Tg CO2 eq based on BU models 2,125 ± 515.1, 1,531 ± 205.2, and 876 ± 446.0 Tg CO2 eq based on TD models. Total emissions from SA in the 2010s accounted for approximately 8% of the global share. The terrestrial CO2 sinks estimated by the BU and TD models were 462.9 ± 195.5 and 210.0 ± 630.4 Tg CO2, respectively. Among the SA countries, India was the largest emitter contributing to 80% of the region's total GHG emissions, followed by Pakistan (10%) and Bangladesh (7%).
format Journal Article
id CGSpace174896
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2025
publishDateRange 2025
publishDateSort 2025
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1748962025-10-26T12:52:26Z South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere Jain, A. K. Seshadri, S. Anand, J. Chandra, N. Patra, P. K. Canadell, J. G. Chhabra, A. Ciais, P. Gilani, Hammad Gumma, M. K. Kondo, M. Lokupitiya, E. Pan, N. Shrestha, H. L. Siddiqui, B. N. Tian, H. Tiwari, Y. K. greenhouse gas emissions climate change ecosystems carbon dioxide models As part of the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes‐2 (RECCAP‐2) project of the Global Carbon Project, here we estimate the GHG budgets (anthropogenic and natural sources and sinks) for the South Asia (SA) region as a whole and each country (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) for the decade of 2010–2019 (2010s). Countries in the region are experiencing a rapid rise in fossil fuel consumption and demand for agricultural land, leading to increased deforestation and higher greenhouse gas emissions. This study synthesizes top‐down (TD) and bottom‐up (BU) dynamic global vegetation model results, BU GHG inventories, ground‐based observation upscaling, and direct emissions for major GHGs. The fluxes for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) analyzed include fossil fuel emissions, net biome productivity, land use change, inland waters, wetlands, and upland and submerged soils. Our analysis shows that the overall total GHG emissions contributed to a net increase of 34%– 43% during the 2010s compared to the 2000s, primarily driven by industrial activities. However, terrestrial ecosystems acted as a notable exception by serving as a CO2 sink in the 2010s, effectively sequestering atmospheric carbon. The sink was significantly smaller than overall carbon emissions. Overall, the 2010s GHG emissions based on BU and TD were 4,517 ± 639.8 and 4,532 ± 807.5 Tg CO2 eq, with CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions of 2165.2 ± 297.1, 1,404 ± 95.9, and 712 ± 466 Tg CO2 eq based on BU models 2,125 ± 515.1, 1,531 ± 205.2, and 876 ± 446.0 Tg CO2 eq based on TD models. Total emissions from SA in the 2010s accounted for approximately 8% of the global share. The terrestrial CO2 sinks estimated by the BU and TD models were 462.9 ± 195.5 and 210.0 ± 630.4 Tg CO2, respectively. Among the SA countries, India was the largest emitter contributing to 80% of the region's total GHG emissions, followed by Pakistan (10%) and Bangladesh (7%). 2025-04 2025-05-31T19:25:48Z 2025-05-31T19:25:48Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174896 en Open Access Jain, A. K.; Seshadri, S.; Anand, J.; Chandra, N.; Patra, P. K.; Canadell, J. G.; Chhabra, A.; Ciais, P.; Gilani, Hammad; Gumma, M. K.; Kondo, M.; Lokupitiya, E.; Pan, N.; Shrestha, H. L.; Siddiqui, B. N.; Tian, H.; Tiwari, Y. K. 2025. South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 39,(4):e2024GB008261. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GB008261
spellingShingle greenhouse gas emissions
climate change
ecosystems
carbon dioxide
models
Jain, A. K.
Seshadri, S.
Anand, J.
Chandra, N.
Patra, P. K.
Canadell, J. G.
Chhabra, A.
Ciais, P.
Gilani, Hammad
Gumma, M. K.
Kondo, M.
Lokupitiya, E.
Pan, N.
Shrestha, H. L.
Siddiqui, B. N.
Tian, H.
Tiwari, Y. K.
South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title_full South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title_fullStr South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title_full_unstemmed South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title_short South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
title_sort south asia s ecosystems are a net carbon sink but the region is a major net ghg source to the atmosphere
topic greenhouse gas emissions
climate change
ecosystems
carbon dioxide
models
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174896
work_keys_str_mv AT jainak southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT seshadris southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT anandj southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT chandran southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT patrapk southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT canadelljg southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT chhabraa southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT ciaisp southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT gilanihammad southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT gummamk southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT kondom southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT lokupitiyae southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT pann southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT shresthahl southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT siddiquibn southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT tianh southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere
AT tiwariyk southasiasecosystemsareanetcarbonsinkbuttheregionisamajornetghgsourcetotheatmosphere