{"type": "FeatureCollection", "features": [{"id": "10.1038/ngeo844", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-25T16:17:36Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2010-04-25", "title": "Reduction of forest soil respiration in response to nitrogen deposition", "description": "The use of fossil fuels and fertilizers has increased the amount of biologically reactive nitrogen in the atmosphere over the past century. As a consequence, forests in industrialized regions have experienced greater rates of nitrogen deposition in recent decades. This unintended fertilization has stimulated forest growth, but has also affected soil microbial activity, and thus the recycling of soil carbon and nutrients. A meta-analysis suggests that nitrogen deposition impedes organic matter decomposition, and thus stimulates carbon sequestration, in temperate forest soils where nitrogen is not limiting microbial growth. The concomitant reduction in soil carbon emissions is substantial, and equivalent in magnitude to the amount of carbon taken up by trees owing to nitrogen fertilization. As atmospheric nitrogen levels continue to rise, increased nitrogen deposition could spread to older, more weathered soils, as found in the tropics; however, soil carbon cycling in tropical forests cannot yet be assessed", "keywords": ["[SDE] Environmental Sciences", "2. Zero hunger", "570", "EUROPEAN FORESTS", "NORTHERN HARDWOOD FORESTS", "ORGANIC-MATTER DECOMPOSITION", "MICROBIAL BIOMASS", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "15. Life on land", "LITTER DECOMPOSITION", "BOREAL FOREST", "TEMPERATE FOREST", "Soils Nitrogen content", "CARBON SEQUESTRATION", "13. Climate action", "[SDE]Environmental Sciences", "SDG 13 - Climate Action", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "Soil aeration Environmental aspects", "HUMIC SUBSTANCES", "Forest ecology", "ATMOSPHERIC NITRATE DEPOSITION"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo844"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Nature%20Geoscience", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1038/ngeo844", "name": "item", "description": "10.1038/ngeo844", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1038/ngeo844"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2010-04-25T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1111/gcb.15218", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-25T16:18:39Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2020-06-12", "title": "Long\u2010term nitrogen loading alleviates phosphorus limitation in terrestrial ecosystems", "description": "Abstract

Increased human\uffe2\uff80\uff90derived nitrogen (N) deposition to terrestrial ecosystems has resulted in widespread phosphorus (P) limitation of net primary productivity. However, it remains unclear if and how N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation varies over time. Soil extracellular phosphatases catalyze the hydrolysis of P from soil organic matter, an important adaptive mechanism for ecosystems to cope with N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation. Here we show, using a meta\uffe2\uff80\uff90analysis of 140 studies and 668 observations worldwide, that N stimulation of soil phosphatase activity diminishes over time. Whereas short\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading (\uffe2\uff89\uffa45\uffc2\uffa0years) significantly increased soil phosphatase activity by 28%, long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading had no significant effect. Nitrogen loading did not affect soil available P and total P content in either short\uffe2\uff80\uff90 or long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term studies. Together, these results suggest that N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation in ecosystems is alleviated in the long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term through the initial stimulation of soil phosphatase activity, thereby securing P supply to support plant growth. Our results suggest that increases in terrestrial carbon uptake due to ongoing anthropogenic N loading may be greater than previously thought.Increased human\uffe2\uff80\uff90derived nitrogen (N) deposition to terrestrial ecosystems has resulted in widespread phosphorus (P) limitation of net primary productivity. However, it remains unclear if and how N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation varies over time. Soil extracellular phosphatases catalyze the hydrolysis of P from soil organic matter, an important adaptive mechanism for ecosystems to cope with N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation. Here we show, using a meta\uffe2\uff80\uff90analysis of 140 studies and 668 observations worldwide, that N stimulation of soil phosphatase activity diminishes over time. Whereas short\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading (\uffe2\uff89\uffa45\uffc2\uffa0years) significantly increased soil phosphatase activity by 28%, long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading had no significant effect. Nitrogen loading did not affect soil available P and total P content in either short\uffe2\uff80\uff90 or long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term studies. Together, these results suggest that N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation in ecosystems is alleviated in the long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term through the initial stimulation of soil phosphatase activity, thereby securing P supply to support plant growth. Our results suggest that increases in terrestrial carbon uptake due to ongoing anthropogenic N loading may be greater than previously thought.Increased human\uffe2\uff80\uff90derived nitrogen (N) deposition to terrestrial ecosystems has resulted in widespread phosphorus (P) limitation of net primary productivity. However, it remains unclear if and how N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation varies over time. Soil extracellular phosphatases catalyze the hydrolysis of P from soil organic matter, an important adaptive mechanism for ecosystems to cope with N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation. Here we show, using a meta\uffe2\uff80\uff90analysis of 140 studies and 668 observations worldwide, that N stimulation of soil phosphatase activity diminishes over time. Whereas short\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading (\uffe2\uff89\uffa45\uffc2\uffa0years) significantly increased soil phosphatase activity by 28%, long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term N loading had no significant effect. Nitrogen loading did not affect soil available P and total P content in either short\uffe2\uff80\uff90 or long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term studies. Together, these results suggest that N\uffe2\uff80\uff90induced P limitation in ecosystems is alleviated in the long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term through the initial stimulation of soil phosphatase activity, thereby securing P supply to support plant growth. Our results suggest that increases in terrestrial carbon uptake due to ongoing anthropogenic N loading may be greater than previously thought.