Summer soil CH4 emission and uptake in taiga forest near Yakutsk, Eastern Siberia

Summer CH4 emission and uptake was measured in three contrasting environments (eutrophic lake bank, hummocky mesotrophic fen, forest floor) in taiga forest near the Spasskaya Pad field station (north of Yakutsk, Eastern Siberia). Wet eutrophic lake bank sites showed locally high emission rates (up to 49 mg CH4 m−2 h−1, average 11.9 mg m−2 h−1). By contrast, fen emissions were an order of magnitude lower despite high water tables. Emission did not exceed 4.2 mg m−2 h−1 (average 1.3 mg m−2 h−1). The emission was highly dependent on water table, slight differences in water table could turn a soil from a source into a sink of CH4.