AFTER EXAMINING INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS FOR TERRESTRIAL CARBON AND THE PRESENT STATUS AND CAPABILITIES IN PROVIDING THIS INFORMATION, THE WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS REACHED THE FOLLOWING CONCLUSIONS:
1. Information on the global distribution of terrestrial carbon sinks and sources is essential for policy and scientific purposes in four areas: reporting for multilateral environmental agreements; understanding of the carbon cycle; assessment of the trends and impact of global change; and the management of ecosystem resources at local to regional levels.
2. The proposed dual constraint strategy, based on a) ecosystem modelling employing satellite and in situ measurements and b) atmospheric inversion modelling based on in situ gas concentration measurements, offers the best potential for accurate and consistent information on terrestrial carbon at local to global scales.
3. A coordinated approach is necessary to implement global terrestrial carbon observations. The concept of a TCO system, coordinated internationally and implemented through national means, fulfils this need.
4. Many components needed for such a system are well understood. Some are in place, others need to be augmented, and all need to be placed in a consistent, functioning framework.
The following recommendations are made to IGOS-P:
1) Seek endorsement for the TCO system concept.
2) If adopted, modify the proposed evolution strategy as appropriate and take steps to its implementation. These should include an integrated approach to data distribution, quality control, archiving; arrangements for the generation of core products; clarifications regarding the responsibilities of agencies in the planning, development, and performance assessment of these activities.
3) Ensure continuation of existing satellite observations important to TCO into the foreseeable future. Accelerate the development and deployment of new satellite observation technology, including lidars for vegetation biomass, canopy structure, and atmospheric CO2 concentration.
4) Expand the system of flux networks and ensure adequate geographic coverage, continuity of observations, and coordination.
5) Improve the access and use of existing (non-flux) sites and national data sets for TCO purposes.
6) Review and further refine the strategy for dual constraint development and ensure active participation of the hydrological community in this process.
7) Give high funding priority to research and development of instruments, observation methods and models related to carbon cycle observations.
8) In the evolution of the global terrestrial carbon observations, maintain close linkages with the ocean carbon cycle observation community.
9) Issues relating to scaling, gridded data sets, emissions, and others identified at this workshop should be examined by a broader scientific community in order to understand the implications for global terrestrial carbon observations.
