Spatial variability of greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in tropical systems of East Africa: Effects of land use and topography

Studies of the soil-atmosphere trace gas exchange in tropical ecosystems are still scarce, especially for Africa. The lack of evidence-based data translates into considerable uncertainty about the direction and extent of the impact of land use change on soil trace gas emissions. The high uncertainty is increased by the high temporal and spatial variability of soil greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes, which are known to vary due to micro site-specific soil properties and soil environmental conditions. Thus, quantifying and understanding the small-scale variability of soil GHG emissions is essential for improving the reporting of GHG budgets from ecosystems, to regional and national scale.