Edwin C Rowe

• Senior Environmental Modeller at UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology

Increased plant productivity due to nitrogen pollution increases the strength of the global carbon sink, but is implicated in plant diversity loss. However, modelling and experimental studies have suggested that these effects are constrained by availability of other nutrients. In a survey of element concentrations in Calluna vulgaris across an N de...

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has had detrimental effects on species composition in a range of sensitive habitats, although N deposition can also increase agricultural productivity and carbon storage, and favours a few species considered of importance for conservation. Conservation targets are multiple, and increasingly incorporate services d...

The transport of dissolved organic matter (DOM) across the land-ocean-aquatic-continuum (LOAC), from freshwater to the ocean, is an important yet poorly understood component of the global carbon budget. Exploring and quantifying this flux is a significant challenge given the complexities of DOM cycling across these contrasting environments. We deve...

Carbon sequestration (Cseq) in soils and plant biomass is viewed as an important means of mitigating climate change. Recent global assessments have estimated considerable potential for terrestrial Cseq, but generally lack sensitivity to climate warming, nutrient limitations and perspective on local land use. These are important factors since higher...

Past emission controls in the UK have substantially reduced precursor emissions of health‐hazardous fine particles (PM 2.5 ) and nitrogen pollution detrimental to ecosystems. Still, 79% of the UK exceeds the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline for annual mean PM 2.5 of 5 μg m ⁻³ and there is no enforcement of controls on agricultural sources...

Past emission controls in the UK have substantially reduced precursor emissions of health-hazardous fine particles (PM) and nitrogen pollution detrimental to ecosystems. Still, 79% of the UK exceeds the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline for annual mean PM of 5 μg m and there is no enforcement of controls on agricultural sources of ammonia (...

Large areas of nitrogen-sensitive habitats are currently estimated to be in exceedance of their critical loads (CLs) as indicators for protection from nitrogen deposition. In the UK, deposition estimates from the semi-empirical Concentration Based Estimated Deposition (CBED) model are used for official reporting of current exceedances. The UK Integ...

Ecosystem degradation represents one of today’s major global challenges, threatening human well-being and livelihoods worldwide. To reverse continuing degradation, we need to understand its socio-economic consequences so that these can be incorporated into ecosystem management decisions. This requires links to be made between our understanding of h...

One of the most essential ecosystem services provided by high-Andean páramos is streamflow buffering. A combination of soil, vegetation and climate characteristics provides páramos with an exceptional ability to store, regulate and supply water, particularly in their natural state. However, páramo catchments are seldom pristine. Agriculture is one...

Throughout the Anthropocene, the conversion of land to agriculture and atmospheric deposition of nitrogen have resulted in significant changes to biogeochemical cycling, including soil carbon stocks. Quantifying these changes is complex due to a number of influential factors (including climate, land use management, soil type) and their interactions...

The FRAME atmospheric chemistry transport model was applied to calculate the concentration of NH3 at a 1 km resolution over the UK. The results showed that the 1 μg m⁻³ critical level for NH3 was exceeded for 60% of the UK land area and the 3 μg m⁻³ critical level was exceeded for 3% of the land area. Model simulations using historical emissions su...

Phosphorus is a critical nutrient in sustaining food production. In agricultural systems, application of P fertilizers has significantly increased since the green revolution to become common practice globally, contributing to increased productivity. However, excess use of P fertilizer does not only pose a cost to farmers, but costs for society in t...

The cycling of carbon within the earth system is intrinsically linked with major nutrients, notably nitrogen and phosphorus, due to the tendency of these elements to limit the productivity of terrestrial ecosystems. To understand the response of the carbon cycle to global change pressures, models must integrate Carbon-Nitrogen-Phosphorus cycles. Wh...

Soil organic matter (SOM) is an indicator of sustainable land management as stated in the global indicator framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG Indicator 15.3.1). Improved forecasting of future changes in SOM is needed to support the development of more sustainable land management under a changing climate. Current mode...

Plant growth in nitrogen (N)-limited, unfertilised terrestrial ecosystems should respond to additional N inputs from atmospheric deposition (Ndep). We investigated this for sites in Great Britain (GB) by compiling 796 estimates of net primary productivity (NPP) from measured biomass production over the period 1932–2014, although the great majority...

Soil organic matter (SOM) is a major ecosystem component, central to soil fertility, carbon balance and other soil functions. To advance SOM modelling, we devised a steady‐state model of topsoil SOM, with explicit descriptions of physical states and properties, and used it to simulate SOM concentration, carbon:nitrogen:phosphorus (C:N:P) stoichiome...

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) pollution is considered responsible for a substantial decline in plant species richness and for altered community structures in terrestrial habitats worldwide. Nitrogen affects habitats through direct toxicity, soil acidification, and in particular by favoring fast-growing species. Pressure from N pollution is decreasing in...

Current climate warming is expected to continue in coming decades, whereas high N deposition may stabilize, in contrast to the clear decrease in S deposition. These pressures have distinctive regional patterns and their resulting impact on soil conditions is modified by local site characteristics. We have applied the VSD+ soil dynamic model to stud...

Conversion of uncultivated land to arable has been observed to result in declines in soil organic carbon stocks. Arable management practices also drastically change biogeochemical cycling of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. These changes to soil processes have implications for long-term productivity and global food security. Timescales of...

Reactive nitrogen (N) deposition can affect ecosystem processes, particularly in oligotrophic upland habitats. Phosphorus (P) addition has been proposed to reduce the effects of N enrichment on N leaching and acidification, since P limitation can reduce biomass production and consequent sequestration of reactive N. However, biodiversity is often re...

Reactive nitrogen (N) deposition can affect many ecosystem processes, particularly in oligotrophic habitats, and is expected to affect soil C storage potential through increases in microbial decomposition rate as a consequence of greater N availability. Increased N availability may also result in changes in the principal limitations on ecosystem pr...

This study assessed the short-term impacts of ditch blocking on water table depth and vegetation community structure in a historically drained blanket bog. A chronosequence approach was used to compare vegetation near ditches blocked 5 years, 4 years and 1 year prior to the study with vegetation near unblocked ditches. Plots adjacent to and 3 m awa...

In the next four decades, humanity needs to double food and energy production and increase the supply of clean water by over 50% while mitigating and adapting to climate change. A central element in the strategy of addressing these major environmental challenges is to maintain the central role of Earth's essential soil functions and related ecosyst...

Society requires rapid, most-probable predictions for specific and/or multifaceted questions related to environmental and geological science. In principle, models that encapsulate disciplinary knowledge are useful tools for making predictions and testing theory, but academic rewards favour disciplinary specialism and a proliferation of often insuff...

Food security should be addressed in relation to soil sustainability and sustainable land care, and examined within the science framework of Earth's critical zone as an integrated system that includes Earth surface interactions, connected to soil functions, and ecosystem services. There is a great need to develop critical zone mathematical models t...

Atmospheric pollution by reactive nitrogen (N) can have profound effects on ecosystem functioning and biodiversity. Numerous mechanisms are involved, and response times vary among habitats and species. This complex picture can make it difficult to convey the benefits of controlling N pollution to policy developers and the public. In this study we e...

MADOC model was used to analyse historical and future trends in DOC. • Data from six sites across two UK monitoring networks ranged from 1993 to 2010. • Acid deposition appeared to be a predominant control in soils other than peatland. It is increasingly recognised that widespread and substantial increases in Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentr...

Extensive summary of interviews. (DOCX)

Indicator species. (DOCX)

Nitrogen (N) deposition is a major cause of plant biodiversity loss, with serious implications for appropriate management of protected sites. Reducing N emissions is the only long-term solution. However, on-site management has the potential to mitigate some of the adverse effects of N deposition. In this paper we review how management activities su...

The remarkable complexity of soil and its importance to a wide range of ecosystem services presents 133 major challenges to the modeling of soil processes. Although major progress in soil models has 134 occurred in the last decades, models of soil processes remain disjointed between disciplines or 135 ecosystem services, with considerable uncertain...

Core Ideas A community effort is needed to move soil modeling forward. Establishing an international soil modeling consortium is key in this respect. There is a need to better integrate existing knowledge in soil models. Integration of data and models is a key challenge in soil modeling. The remarkable complexity of soil and its importance to a wi...

We reviewed soil modeling and the role of soil processes in quantifying ecosystem services. Key challenges were identified and the establishment of a soil modeling consortium to advance soil modeling activities, provide a data-model platform, perform model intercomparison and foster communication amongst Earth science disciplines is proposed.

Improved understanding and prediction of the fundamental environmental controls on ecosystem service supply across the landscape will help to inform decisions made by policy makers and land-water managers. To evaluate this issue for a local catchment case study, we explored metrics and spatial patterns of service supply for water quality regulation...

Coastal environments host plant taxa adapted to a wide range of salinity conditions. Salinity, along with other abiotic variables, constrains the distribution of coastal plants in predictable ways, with relatively few taxa adapted to the most saline conditions. However, few attempts have been made to quantify these relationships to create niche mod...

Summary The UK’s semi-natural habitats exceed their atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition critical load ranges across much of their area, and survey data suggests there are adverse impacts of this excess N deposition. However, information from Common Standards Monitoring (CSM) of protected sites does not appear to identify N deposition as a potentia...

To predict ecosystem responses to anthropogenic change it is important to understand how and where plant productivity is limited by macronutrient availability. Nitrogen (N) is required in large quantities for plant growth, and is readily lost through leaching or gas fluxes, but reactive nitrogen can be obtained through dinitrogen fixation, and phos...

Models are needed to understand how plant-soil nutrient stores and fluxes have responded to the last two centuries of widespread anthropogenic nutrient pollution and predict future change. These models need to integrate across carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus (C, N, & P) cycles and simulate changes over suitable timescales using available driving da...

Table of model coefficients for 132 niche models of coastal plant species

Receiver operator characteristic plots for all coastal plant niche models a) with the full model b) without the salinity term.

p>The remarkable complexity of soil and its importance to a wide range of ecosystem services presents major challenges to the modeling of soil processes. Although major progress in soil models has occurred in the last decades, models of soil processes remain disjointed between disciplines or ecosystem services, with considerable uncertainty remaini...

The monitoring of soil natural capital and ecosystem services (ES) is a vital tool for the sustainable use of soils. Without knowing the status and trajectory of the "health" of our soil ecosystems we are unable to make informed decisions about soil and land management. Long-term and large-scale monitoring programs provide a useful source of data f...

Reactive nitrogen (N) deposition can significantly affect ecosystem processes, particularly in the oligotrophic upland ecosystem. Phosphorus (P) limitation may significantly constrain ecosystem productivity, yet ecosystem responses to P availability in instances of high N deposition are poorly understood. The release from P limitation can increase...

To unravel the potential effects of climate warming on soil N availability in a high Arctic tundra ecosystem we studied temperature effects on soil mineralization, and N uptake from different soil depths (-3, -10 and -30 cm) by tundra plants. Uptake was assessed using 15N tracer injected directly into mineral soil as 15NH4Cl solution to specificall...

Site-occupancy models that predict habitat suitability for plant species in relation to measurable environmental factors can be useful for conservation planning. Such models can be derived from large-scale presence-absence datasets on the basis of environmental observations or, where only floristic data are available, using plant trait values avera...

Empirical critical loads are based on current evidence for relationships between the rate of pollutant deposition and changes to ecosystems observed in experiments and surveys. When considering longer-term change and effects of changes in deposition rate after periods of deposition in excess of the critical load, dynamic modelling approaches are us...

This book provides a unique overview of research methods over the past 25 years assessing critical loads and temporal effects of the deposition of air pollutants. It includes critical load methods and applications addressing acidification, eutrophication and heavy metal pollution of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Applications include examples...

Plant production is a key process in semi-natural ecosystems, affecting resource provision, carbon storage, and habitat suitability for species of conservation concern. There is debate over whether nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) limits productivity more widely, and whether the pattern of limitation has been affected by widespread atmospheric N poll...

Society requires rapid, most-probable predictions for specific and/or multifaceted questions related to environmental and geological science. In principle, models that encapsulate disciplinary knowledge are useful tools for making predictions and testing theory, but academic rewards favour disciplinary specialism and a proliferation of often insuff...

We compiled published and newly-obtained data on the directly-measured atmospheric deposition of total phosphorus (TP), filtered total phosphorus (FTP), and inorganic phosphorus (PO4-P) to open land, lakes, and marine coasts. The resulting global data base includes data for c. 250 sites, covering the period 1954 to 2012. Most (82%) of the measureme...

The North York Moors National Park, in Northeast England, is one of the few upland areas of the United Kingdom located immediately downwind of major sulphur and nitrogen emission sources. Despite this, few studies of air pollution impacts have been undertaken, and there is no formal long-term upland water quality monitoring site. We examined the co...

Understanding "soil change" at the national scale, in addition to soil status, is a key challenge for national scale soil monitoring programs and is essential if more sustainable use of this finite resource is to be achieved. We present results from the first national scale survey of soil change to be reported three times within Europe and perhaps...

In recent centuries pools and fluxes of C, N and P in natural and semi-natural UK ecosystems have been transformed by atmospheric pollution leading to: acidification; eutrophication of surface waters; loss of biodiversity; and increased greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, climate change now threatens to perturb these systems further. Understandi...

The dynamic model N14C simulates changes in the plant–soil dynamics of nitrogen and carbon, brought about by the anthropogenic deposition of nitrogen. The model operates with four plant functional types; broadleaved and coniferous trees, herbs and dwarf shrubs. It simulates net primary production (NPP), C and N pools, leaching of dissolved organic...

Large areas of Great Britain currently receive nitrogen (N) deposition at rates which exceed the thresholds above which there is risk of damage to sensitive components of the ecosystem (critical loads for nutrient nitrogen and critical levels for ammonia), and are predicted to continue to do so. Excess N can damage semi-natural ecosystems. Lichens...

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition is a global and increasing threat to biodiversity and ecosystem function. Much of our current understanding of N deposition impacts comes from field manipulation studies, although interpretation may need caution where simulations of N deposition (in terms of dose, application rate and N form) have limited realism...

The amount of plant-available nitrogen (N) in soil is an important indicator of eutrophication of semi-natural habitats, but previous studies have shown contrasting effects of N deposition on mineralisable N in different habitats. The stock of readily mineralisable N (N(rm)) was measured in 665 locations across Britain from a range of intensively a...

Large areas of Great Britain currently have nitrogen (N) deposition at rates which exceed the thresholds above which there is risk of damage to sensitive components of the ecosystem (critical loads). Previous studies have focussed primarily on the relationship of species richness to nitrogen, whereas here we look at individual species. We used data...

Large areas of the United Kingdom currently have nitrogen (N) deposition at rates which exceed the thresholds above which there is risk of damage to sensitive components of the ecosystem (critical loads), and are predicted to continue to do so. Previous studies have shown that this excess N can be very damaging to semi-natural ecosystems. However,...

Question: Can a simple measurement of nitrogen (N) availability be related to an ecologically relevant response, i.e. mean Ellenberg N indicator value (EN)? Location: UK (England, Wales and Scotland). Methods: Soil cores from a stratified sample of UK habitats were analysed for mineralizable N with a conventional incubation and a new flushing metho...

African farming systems are highly heterogeneous: between agroecological and socioeconomic environments, in the wide variability in farmers’ resource endowments and in farm management. This means that single solutions (or ‘silver bullets’) for improving farm productivity do not exist. Yet to date few approaches to understand constraints and explore...

Question: Can a simple measurement of nitrogen (N) availability be related to an ecologically relevant response, i.e. mean Ellenberg N indicator value (E N )? Location: UK (England, Wales and Scotland). Methods: Soil cores from a stratified sample of UK habitats were analysed for mineralizable Í with a conventional incubation and a new flushing met...

A soils monitoring programme which uses an ecosystem approach has been in place in Great Britain for 30 years.The findings from the latest survey in 2007 has been interpreted within a natural capital and ecosystem services context to assess the outcome of a range of policies to protect the natural environment and increase sustainability. Issues of...

A significant challenge in the prediction of climate change impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity is quantifying the sources of uncertainty that emerge within and between different models. Statistical species niche models have grown in popularity, yet no single best technique has been identified reflecting differing performance in different situat...

Data from long-term monitoring sites are vital for biogeochemical process understanding, and for model development. Implicitly or explicitly, information provided by both monitoring and modelling must be extrapolated in order to have wider scientific and policy utility. In many cases, large-scale modelling utilises little of the data available from...

Question: Can useful realised niche models be constructed for British plant species using climate, canopy height and mean Ellenberg indices as explanatory variables?Location: Great Britain.Methods: Generalised linear models were constructed using occurrence data covering all major natural and semi-natural vegetation types (n=40 683 quadrat samples)...

Field observations and experimental data of effects of nitrogen (N) deposition on plant species diversity have been used to derive empirical critical N loads for various ecosystems. The great advantage of such an approach is the inclusion of field evidence, but there are also restrictions, such as the absence of explicit criteria regarding signific...

Hard rock quarries are commonly located close to national parks and special areas of conservation and are generally regarded as visually intrusive. Consequently, restoration strategies that effectively accelerate natural plant regeneration processes are required. Slate waste tips present extreme conditions for plant establishment with multiple pote...

Nitrate (NO3-) is often observed in surface waters draining terrestrial ecosystems that remain strongly nitrogen (N) limited. It has been suggested that this occurs due to hydrological bypassing of soil or vegetation N retention, particularly during high flows. To test this hypothesis, artificial rain events were applied to 12 replicate soil blocks...

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY For the first time, this project has produced national-scale dynamic model predictions of the effect of sulphur (S) and nitrogen (N) deposition on the acidification and eutrophication of sensitive terrestrial ecosystems at a 1km resolution (over 230,000 individual model simulations). The model applications build directly on, and a...

Trees in cropped fields may improve nitrogen (N) use efficiency by intercepting leached N, but crop yield will be reduced if the trees compete strongly with crops for N. Ideal trees for intercropping will take up N from deeper soil layers not accessed by the crop species. Spatiotemporal aspects of tree nitrogen capture niches were investigated with...

Nitrate leaching occurs when the soil's nitrogen immobilisation and plant uptake capacity has been saturated. Several widely-used models of nitrogen saturation incorporate a breakthrough function in which N begins to be leached at C/N values below an upper threshold, and is completely leached at C/N values below a lower threshold. In a survey of de...

Trees in cropped fields may improve nitrogen (N) use efficiency by intercepting leached N, but crop yield will be reduced if the trees compete strongly with crops for N. Ideal trees for intercropping will take up N from deeper soil layers not accessed by the crop species. Spatiotemporal aspects of tree nitrogen capture niches were investigated with...

Fertilization of secondary successional communities generally increases biomass but reduces diversity; its impact on primary successional communities is less well understood. Following applications of a balanced fertilizer to naturally established vegetation on slate quarry waste, effects on tree growth, ground flora species and foliar invertebrate...

In smallholder farms throughout subSaharan Africa, it is a common pattern for some fields to receive substantial inputs of fertilisers and manure, but others to receive nutrient inputs infrequently or never. A soil and crop model, SCAN, based on annual summary of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics was calibrated against chronosequences on coa...

Success in long-term agricultural production in resource-poor farming systems relies on the efficiency with which nutrients are conserved and recycled. Each transfer of nutrients across the farming system provides a risk of inefficiency, and how much is lost at each step depends on the type of farming system, its management practices and site condi...

We discuss the temporal and spatial dynamics of nutrient resources and water within cropping and livestock systems, their interactions and those with other resources such as labour. Short-term dynamics (within season) revolve around nutrient availability and losses as a function of soil moisture dynamics. Longer-term effects (multiple seasons and y...

We discuss the temporal and spatial dynamics of nutrient resources and water within cropping and livestock systems, their interactions and those with other resources such as labour. Short-term dynamics (within season) revolve around nutrient availability and losses as a function of soil moisture dynamics. Longer-term effects (multiple seasons and y...

An integrated modelling framework is an extension of a modelling framework, which supports multiple modelling domains and paradigms. The number of integrated modelling frameworks is considerably more limited, especially if we restrain to the intersection of social, economic and environmental modelling. We list some of the most notable initiatives i...

The processes of nutrient depletion and soil degradation that limit productivity of smallholder African farms are spatially heterogeneous. Causes of variability in soil fertility management at different scales of analysis are both biophysical and socio-economic. Such heterogeneity is categorised in this study, which quantifies its impact on nutrien...

Pocket planting reclamation techniques developed in the 1970s for revegetating blocky quarrying waste have met with very limited success, often because the low water-holding capacity of the waste and limited root development within a small volume of planting pocket material result in severe drought mortality. We tested pocket planting approaches fo...

The design of productive and efficient intercropping systems depends on achieving complementarity between component species resource capture niches. Spatiotemporal patterns of capture and use of pruning and urea nitrogen (N) by trees and intercrops were elucidated by isotopic tracing, and consequences for nitrogen use efficiency were examined. Duri...