---
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: hybrid
_id: '22463'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'Glacier retreat as a consequence of climate change creates new ice-free terrain
    and soil development that prompt plant colonization and ecological succession.
    These processes impact terrestrial ecosystems with profound ecological and societal
    consequences. However, quantification of how the carbon cycle evolves in deglaciated
    areas in response to these processes remains limited. We examined the impacts
    of forest expansion and soil development on the carbon cycle under climate change
    in a deglaciated area in the Swiss Alps. Using the mechanistic ecohydrological
    T&C model, we computed the changes in vegetation, soil, and carbon from 1981 to
    2099 under climate change, revealing complex carbon cycle responses in deglaciating
    ecosystems. Vegetation growth, soil organic matter, and plant nutrient uptake
    are projected to increase by mid-century and then stabilize, indicating that plant
    growth is relatively limited by nutrient availability. The amount of carbon stored
    in plant biomass will increase toward the end of the century at a faster rate
    than that of carbon stored in soil and litter. The carbon cycle is projected to
    continue its current accelerating trend characterized by enhanced vegetation photosynthesis,
    increased plant and soil respiration, and higher net ecosystem production (NEP)
    by mid-century. Alpine ecosystems have already been serving as carbon sinks and
    have the potential to increase their carbon sink capacity, but at varying rates
    depending on how climate will evolve: NEP will stabilize around 24 gC m^−2 y^−1
    in RCP4.5 or might elevate to 55 gC m^−2 y^−1 by end-century in RCP8.5. Even under
    the most extreme scenario, this increase in stored carbon in the proglacial areas
    of the Swiss Alps is still a drop in the ocean, as it represents only 0.9% of
    overall Swiss carbon emissions, thus highlighting the need for additional carbon
    management and mitigation efforts.'
article_number: '110682'
article_processing_charge: No
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Fuxiao
  full_name: Jiang, Fuxiao
  last_name: Jiang
- first_name: Simone
  full_name: Fatichi, Simone
  id: cf8e546b-a9b0-11f0-a43b-aa89ed1b56d6
  last_name: Fatichi
- first_name: Gianalberto
  full_name: Losapio, Gianalberto
  last_name: Losapio
- first_name: Nadav
  full_name: Peleg, Nadav
  last_name: Peleg
citation:
  ama: Jiang F, Fatichi S, Losapio G, Peleg N. Future glacier retreat and forest expansion
    in the Swiss Alps provide limited benefits for carbon sinks. <i>Agricultural and
    Forest Meteorology</i>. 2025;372. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682">10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682</a>
  apa: Jiang, F., Fatichi, S., Losapio, G., &#38; Peleg, N. (2025). Future glacier
    retreat and forest expansion in the Swiss Alps provide limited benefits for carbon
    sinks. <i>Agricultural and Forest Meteorology</i>. Elsevier. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682">https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682</a>
  chicago: Jiang, Fuxiao, Simone Fatichi, Gianalberto Losapio, and Nadav Peleg. “Future
    Glacier Retreat and Forest Expansion in the Swiss Alps Provide Limited Benefits
    for Carbon Sinks.” <i>Agricultural and Forest Meteorology</i>. Elsevier, 2025.
    <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682">https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682</a>.
  ieee: F. Jiang, S. Fatichi, G. Losapio, and N. Peleg, “Future glacier retreat and
    forest expansion in the Swiss Alps provide limited benefits for carbon sinks,”
    <i>Agricultural and Forest Meteorology</i>, vol. 372. Elsevier, 2025.
  ista: Jiang F, Fatichi S, Losapio G, Peleg N. 2025. Future glacier retreat and forest
    expansion in the Swiss Alps provide limited benefits for carbon sinks. Agricultural
    and Forest Meteorology. 372, 110682.
  mla: Jiang, Fuxiao, et al. “Future Glacier Retreat and Forest Expansion in the Swiss
    Alps Provide Limited Benefits for Carbon Sinks.” <i>Agricultural and Forest Meteorology</i>,
    vol. 372, 110682, Elsevier, 2025, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682">10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682</a>.
  short: F. Jiang, S. Fatichi, G. Losapio, N. Peleg, Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
    372 (2025).
das_tickbox: '1'
date_created: 2026-07-27T12:30:23Z
date_published: 2025-09-15T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-07-30T11:52:23Z
day: '15'
ddc:
- '550'
doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682
extern: '1'
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '       372'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110682
month: '09'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
publication: Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1873-2240
  issn:
  - 0168-1923
publication_status: published
publisher: Elsevier
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Future glacier retreat and forest expansion in the Swiss Alps provide limited
  benefits for carbon sinks
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 372
year: '2025'
...