CLIMATE CHANGE AND TERRESTRIAL CARBON SEQUESTRATION IN CENTRAL ASIA BALKEMA – Proceedings and Monographs in Engineering, Water and Earth Sciences Climate Change and Terrestrial Carbon Sequestration in Central Asia Editors R. Lal The Ohio State University, Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, Columbus, Ohio, USA M. Suleimenov International Center for Agriculture Research in Dryland Areas-Central Asia Caucasus, Tashkent, Uzbekistan B.A. Stewart Department of Agricultural Sciences, West Texas A&M University, Canyon, Texas, USA D.O. Hansen The Ohio State University, International Programs in Agriculture, Columbus, Ohio, USA P. Doraiswamy USDA-ARS Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland, USA LONDON / LEIDEN / NEW YORK / PHILADELPHIA / SINGAPORE This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2007. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” Taylor & Francis is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2007 Taylor & Francis Group, London, UK All rights reserved. No part of this publication or the information contained herein may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, by photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written prior permission from the publishers. Although all care is taken to ensure integrity and the quality of this publication and the information herein, no responsibility is assumed by the publishers nor the author for any damage to the property or persons as a result of operation or use of this publication and/or the information contained herein. Published by: Taylor & Francis/Balkema P.O. Box 447, 2300 AK Leiden, The Netherlands e-mail: [email protected] www.balkema.nl, www.taylorandfrancis.co.uk, www.crcpress.com British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Climate change and terrestrial carbon sequestration in Central Asia/R. Lal ... [et al.], editors. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-415-42235-2 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Carbon sequestration—Asia, Central. 2. Climatic changes—Asia, Central. I. Lal, R. SD387.C37C58 2007 368.700958—dc22 2007009819 ISBN 0-203-93269-2 Master e-book ISBN ISBN13 978-0-415-42235-2 (hbk) Table of Contents Foreword IX Preface XI Contributors XV Biophysical Environment 1 1. Principal biomes of Central Asia 3 E. De Pauw 2. Forests in Central Asia: Current status and constraints 25 M. Turdieva, E. Aleksandrovskiy, A. Kayimov, S. Djumabaeva, B. Mukanov, A. Saparmyradov & K. Akmadov 3. C3/C4 plants in the vegetation of Central Asia, geographical distribution and environmental adaptation in relation to climate 33 K. Toderich, C.C. Black, E. Juylova, O. Kozan, T. Mukimov & N. Matsuo Water Resources of Central Asia 65 4. Water resources of the Central Asia under conditions of climate change 67 V.E. Chub 5. Climate change and water resource alteration in Central Asia: The case of Uzbekistan 75 N. Hakimov, A. Lines, P. Elmuratov & R. Hakimov 6. Problems and management of the efficient use of soil-water resources in Central Asia with specific reference to Uzbekistan 83 R. Khusanov & M. Kosimov 7. Underground and surface water resources of Central Asia, and impact of irrigation on their balance and quality 97 R.K. Ikramov Agricultural and Soil and Enviromental Degradation 107 8. Addressing the challenges for sustainable agriculture in Central Asia 109 R. Paroda 9. Soil and environmental degradation in Central Asia 127 R. Lal 10. Land degradation by agricultural activities in Central Asia 137 B. Qushimov, I.M. Ganiev, I. Rustamova, B. Haitov & K.R. Islam 11. Salinity effects on irrigated soil chemical and biological properties in the Aral Sea basin of Uzbekistan 147 D. Egamberdiyeva, I. Garfurova & K.R. Islam VI Table of Contents Soil Management and Carbon Dynamics 163 12. Central Asia: Ecosystems and carbon sequestration challenges 165 M. Suleimenov & R.J. Thomas 13. Dynamics of soil carbon and recommendations on effective sequestration of carbon in the steppe zone of Kazakhstan 177 A. Saparov, K. Pachikin, O. Erokhina & R. Nasyrov 14. Carbon dynamics in Saskatchewan soils: Implications for the global carbon cycle 189 A. Landi & A.R. Memut 15. Conservation agriculture: Environmental benefits of reduced tillage and soil carbon management in water-limited areas of Central Asia 199 D.C. Reicosky 16. Conservation agriculture for irrigated agriculture in Asia 211 K. Sayre 17. Syria’s long-term rotation and tillage trials: Potential relevance to carbon sequestration in Central Asia 223 J. Ryan & M. Pala 18. Potential for carbon sequestration in the soils of Afghanistan and Pakistan 235 A.U.H. Khan & R. Lal 19. Improvement of soil physical and chemical conditions to promote sustainable crop production in agricultural areas of Kazakhstan 251 W. Busscher, J. Novak, F. Kozybaeva, T. Jalankuzov & B. Suleymenov 20. Technological options to enhance humus content and conserve water in soils of the Zarafshan valley, Uzbekistan 257 Sh. T. Holikulov & T.K. Ortikov 21. Eliminating summer fallow on black soils of Northern Kazakhstan 267 M. Suleimenov & K. Akshalov 22. Dynamics of water and soil organic matter under grain farming in Northern Kazakhstan – Toward sustainable land use both from the agronomic and environmental viewpoints 279 S. Funakawa, J. Yanai, Y. Takata, E. Karbozova-Saljnikov, K. Akshalov & T. Kosaki 23. Conservation agriculture in the steppes of Northern Kazakhstan: The potential for adoption and carbon sequestration 333 P.C. Wall, N. Yushenko, M. Karabayev, A. Morgounov & A. Akramhanov 24. Cover crops impacts on irrigated soil quality and potato production in Uzbekistan 349 A.X. Hamzaev, T.E. Astanakulov, I.M. Ganiev, G.A. Ibragimov, M.A. Oripov & K.R. Islam Forest Management and Carbon Dynamics 361 25. Forest carbon sequestration and storage of the Kargasoksy Leshoz of the Tomsk Oblast, Russia – Current status and the investment potential 363 R.A. Williams & S.E. Schafer Table of Contents VII 26. Soil and vegetation management strategies for improved carbon sequestration in Pamir mountain ecosystems 371 S. Sanginov & U. Akramov Economic Analysis 381 27. An economic comparison of conventional tillage and conservation tillage for spring wheat production in Northern Kazakhstan 383 P.E. Patterson & L.D. Makus Methodological and Technological Challenges 399 28. An assessment of the potential use of SRTM DEMs in terrain analysis for the efficient mapping of soils in the drylands region of Kazakhstan 401 E.R. Venteris, K.M. Pachikin, G.W. McCarty & P.C. Doraiswamy 29. Potential for soil carbon sequestration in Central Kazakhstan 413 G. McCarty, P. Doraiswamy, B. Akhmedou & K. Pachikin 30. Application of GIS technology for water quality control in the Zarafshan river basin 419 T.M. Khujanazarov & T. Tsukatani 31. Remote sensing application for mapping terrestrial carbon sequestration in Kazakhstan 429 U. Sultangazin, N. Muratova & A. Terekhov 32. Possible changes in the carbon budget of arid and semi-arid Central Asia inferred from landuse/landcover analyses during 1981 to 2001 441 E. Lioubimtseva 33. Western-Siberian peatlands: Indicators of climate change and their role in global carbon balance 453 S.N. Kirpotin, A.V. Naumov, S.N. Vorobiov, N.P. Mironycheva-Tokareva, N.P. Kosych, E.D. Lapshina, J. Marquand, S.P. Kulizhski & W. Bleuten Research and Development Priorities 473 34. Researchable priorities in terrestrial carbon sequestration in Central Asia 475 R. Lal Subject index 485 Author index 493 Foreword The countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus (CAC), which were a part of the former Soviet Union, represent a vast area of some 416 million hectares. This area has great potential for carbon sequestration through better land management. Since the CAC countries are now “economies in transition,” they offer an opportunity to examine the role of land use change in both reducing poverty and in ensuring long-term sustainability of natural resources. Agriculture in CAC occupies around 70% of the land area and is characterized by relatively low productivity and increasing land degradation. After independence, all CAC countries dismantled the former large state-run farms and are now facing the challenge of addressing the problems of smaller leased or privately owned land. During this period of transition, crop and livestock production has declined markedly as inputs have become scarcer and unaffordable. Recovery has been slow, putting enormous pressure on rural populations as they struggle to come to terms with these profound changes. Some areas have been abandoned because of land degradation, lack of resources and low returns. Management of the production systems and of the natural resource base that they depend on remains less than satisfactory in many areas. A Collaborative Research Program for Sustainable Agricultural Production in Central Asia and the Caucasus was established in 1998, involving nine CGIAR Centers and eight CAC NARS, with ICARDA as the lead Center. The Consortium has helped the region to halt the erosion of its genetic resources, organize joint research on improved crop and livestock production, and on efficient control of pests and diseases. Many conservation agriculture technologies including zero tillage, crop diversification and reduction of summer fallow area, as well as improved