9520594 OSWOOD The boreal forests of interior Alaska are an important global carbon sink, a significant forest and land resource, and are threaded by a large network of streams and rivers. Permafrost has a profound influence on the ecology and hydrology of these forests and streams. The PI's propose to study the influence of permafrost on exports of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus in soil and stream water in a boreal forest watershed. Samples collected over a two year period will be analyzed for both organic and inorganic components. These data will be combined with permafrost distribution, temperature and precipitation data to predict nutrient exports. The development of this model will increase our understanding of the influence of discontinuous permafrost on carbon and nutrient flows between upland, wetland, and aquatic ecosystems in boreal forests.
