Climate change research needs

Concerns about global climate change have led to extensive research and high-level international debates about the need for targets and timetables to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Some policymakers believe that current uncertainties in how to approach the issue do notjustify an all-out effort to reduce carbon dioxide emission, while others feel that this is a crisis needing immediate attention. 

Research is needed to quantify and assess data sets on pools and fluxes of subfossil carbon for North America, Scandinavia, and the Soviet Union where large amounts of such material exists and is vulnerable to accelerated decomposition with expected C02-induced climate change 66-69). Billings et al. 70, 71) performed fleld experiments that mimicked the changes expected to occur in the tundra as a result of climatic change. The direction of CO2 flux was reversed from a net storage of 150 g C02 m -season to a net release of 300-400 g C02 m" season . Annual liberation of as little as 1% per year of either the 300 Pg C stored in the top meter of soils above the 60° latitude band or... 

Research is needed to evaluate the interactions of all cultivation variables that influence plant product composition. Climate induces a large variation in levels of phytochemicals and so data from more than one year are needed. This is reinforced by the global climatic changes we are currently facing and also based on future predictions of climate shifts. 

Only very scarce research is available on the interrelationships with climate (change) and air pollution. Studies are needed which analyse CO emissions and accumulations of different farming systems in a net balance approach. 

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