ICOS will monitor Europe’s carbon emissions

The goal is to monitor and understand the exchange of greenhouse gases between the Earth’s surface and the atmosphere by continuous, long-term and coordinated measurements.

‘Society needs a basis for decision-making and for taking actions. Through ICOS, we can for instance measure individual countries’ contribution of greenhouse gas emissions and emissions from specific human activities such as agriculture and transport,’ says Professor Mats Nilsson at SLU.

Six stations in Sweden

The network is an EU initiative and 17 countries participate. Each country is responsible for their part of the network’s infrastructure. Within ICOS Sweden, SLU, the Polar Research Secretariat and the universities in Lund, Gothenburg and Stockholm* collaborate.

Six stations, the most southern located in Perstorp (Skåne County) and the most northern located in Abisko (Norrbotten County), will cover typical Swedish ecosystems. Three of the stations are situated in forests, two on wetlands and one on agricultural land.

‘ICOS’ stations can be compared to weather stations of,  for instance, the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI), but instead of collecting meteorological data, we will collect data on greenhouse gas emissions’, says Professor Mats Nilsson.

Ecosystem and atmosphere

All six stations will host an ecosystem station measuring the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Some of the stations will also measure the concentration of methane and nitrogen dioxide. In addition, a number of other factors in the ecosystem will be registered, such as wind direction, wind speed, soil temperature and quantity of biomass. Depending on how high above the vegetation the instruments are positioned, an area with a radius of between 200 and 600 meters is covered.

Three of the stations will also host an atmospheric station, measuring the concentration of greenhouse gases 150 meters up in the air. Using data from the atmospheric stations, it will be possible to estimate emissions and removals of greenhouse gases from different sources, for example fossil fuels. Partly by following an air mass, to see over which land areas it passes and how the concentration of gases varies, and partly by analysing the composition of different sorts (isotopes) of carbon molecules.

‘At least as important as the actual instruments, is technically competent staff, who knows how to operate the instruments and how to take care of them, and who has the main responsibility for measurements and quality control of data,’ says Professor Mats Nilsson.

Apart from national stations, there will be thematic centres common to all participating countries. They will, for instance, assist with the calibration of instruments and training of personnel. Access to stations and to data collected will be open to all researchers. The stations within ICOS Sweden are expected to become fully operational during 2012.

*Lund University is the principal for ICOS Sweden. The Swedish Research Council (VR) is the main financier, but the partner universities and the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat co-finance.