Eddy Covariance data from ICOS-associated station IT-NIV – August-November 2019

Data stored here refer to Eddy Covariance (EC) data measured in 2019 between August and November at the Alpine CZO (Critical Zone Observatory, hereafter CZO@Nivolet) which was established at the Nivolet Plain (Piani del Nivolet) in the Gran Paradiso National Park (GPNP), located in the western Italian Alps. The EC site (IT-NIV) is an ICOS-associated station.

CZO@Nivolet is aimed at investigating the cross-scale interactions between climatic shifts and ecosystem functions multiple scales, involving multidisciplinary studies. The main research questions that we aim to answer are concerning: (a) the effect of bedrock lithology, soil physics and chemisty, topographic hetereogenity, biotic components and meteo-climatic parameters in modulating CO2 flux in alpine grassland; and (b) what are the controlling factors of organic C and weathering under geologic substrates and different topographic positions. The investigations started in 2017. In 2019, the EC tower was added to deeply study CO2, H20, latent and sensible heat exchanges between soil, vegetation, and atmosphere. 

Carbon dioxide fluxes and environmental variables are recorded during the snow-free season to estimate carbon storage and explore CO2 fluxes drivers in high-altitude grasslands.

Further developments will regard the integration of different techniques (Eddy Covariance, Remote Sensing, Flux chambers) to improve both spatial and temporal extent of carbon fluxes estimates to finally assess grasslands' productivity.