Ecosystem Biogeochemistry

This textbook presents a comprehensive process-oriented approach to biogeochemistry that is intended to appeal to readers who want to go beyond a general exposure to topics in biogeochemistry, and instead are seeking a holistic understanding of the interplay of biotic and environmental drivers in the cycling of elements in forested watersheds. The book is organized around a core set of ecosystem processes and attributes that collectively help to generate the whole-system structure and function of a terrestrial ecosystem. In the first nine chapters, a conceptual framework is developed based on distinct soil, microbial, plant, atmospheric, hydrologic, and geochemical processes that are integrated in the element cycling behavior of watershed ecosystems. With that conceptual foundation in place, students then proceed to the final three chapters where they are challenged to think critically about integrated element cycling patterns; roles for biogeochemical models; the likely impacts of disturbance, stress, and management on watershed biogeochemistry; and linkages among patterns and processes in watersheds experiencing novel environmental changes.

Preface.- Chapter 1. General Chemical Concepts.- Chapter 2. Soil Biogeochemistry.- Chapter 3. Microbial Biogeochemistry.- Chapter 4. Plant Biogeochemistry.- Chapter 5. Cycling of Organic Matter.- Chapter 6. Atmospheric Deposition.- Chapter 7. Mineral Weathering.- Chapter 8. Watershed Hydrology.- Chapter 9. Aqueous Chemistry.- Chapter 10. Integrated Element Cycling.- Chapter 11. Biogeochemical Modeling.- Chapter 12. Ecosystem Disturbance and Stress.- Epilogue.- Problem Sets in Biogeochemistry.- Problem set answers.- Glossary.- Index.