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Climate warming in the Arctic region is thawing previously frozen soil (permafrost). Permafrost thaw alters landscape hydrology, increases weathering rates, and thus increases the delivery of solutes to adjacent waters. Long-term monitoring of the Kuparuk River (North Slope, Alaska) confirms significant increases in many solutes that are indicative of thawing permafrost. However, there is no evidence of an increase in phosphorus (P), the nutrient that most often limits primary production in tundra streams. Here, we show that soils in the upper Kuparuk River watershed have a high biogeochemical sorption capacity that can limit P mobility and use published data to show that this may be a pan-Arctic characteristic. While P bioavailability is restricted by vegetative cycling, we found that concentrations of Mehlich-3 extractable iron (Fe) and aluminum (Al) also impart a very high P geochemical sorption capacity across our study sites. Analysis of a pan-Arctic soils database suggests that this high P sorption capacity could be a ubiquitous feature of Arctic soils. Therefore, we conclude that while warming-induced permafrost thaw may increase P mobility, simultaneous increases in pedogenic secondary Fe/Al minerals will continue to retain P in tundra soils and limit biological productivity in adjacent aquatic systems.
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This content will become publicly available on February 6, 2026
Biogeochemical phosphorus sequestration in tundra soils impedes delivery of bioavailable phosphorus to an Arctic headwater river: Implications for the broader Arctic region
Climate warming in the Arctic is thawing previously frozen soil (permafrost). Permafrost thaw alters landscape hydrology and increases weathering rates, which can increase the delivery of solutes to adjacent waters. Long-term river monitoring of the Kuparuk River (North Slope, Alaska, USA) confirms significant increases in solutes that are indicative of thawing permafrost. However, there is no evidence of an increase in total phosphorus (TP) or soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), the nutrient that limits primary production in this and similar rivers in the region. Here, we show that Mehlich-3 extractable iron (Fe) and aluminum (Al) impart high P biogeochemical sorption capacities across a range of landscape features that we would expect to promote lateral movement of water and solutes to headwater streams in our study watershed. Reanalysis of a recently published pan-Arctic soils database suggests that this high P sorption capacity could be common in other parts of the Arctic region. We conclude that while warming-induced permafrost thaw may increase the potential for P mobility in our watershed, simultaneous increases in pedogenic secondary Fe and Al minerals may continue to retain P in these soils and limit biological productivity in the adjacent river. We suggest that similar interactions may occur in other areas of the Arctic where comparable biogeochemical conditions prevail.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1754379
- PAR ID:
- 10571312
- Publisher / Repository:
- ESS Open Archive
- Date Published:
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- Alaska Arctic tundra river stream iron phosphorus biogeochemistry
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Institution:
- ESS Open Archive
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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