Cheryl Poon

Cheryl Poon's picture
Associate Student - PhD

Cheryl is a Bushfire CRC Associate Student, completing her PhD at the University of Sydney. Her PhD topic is 'The influence of black carbon from forest fires on soil organic matter'.

Black carbon encompasses charcoal, partially charred biomass, ash and soot, produced during combustion or burning of plant matter and leaf litter. Black carbon is considered to be a stable pool of carbon that may remain in the soil for hundreds of years. However, recent studies have shown that black carbon  may be decomposed within decades and may enhance decomposition of soil organic matter releasing carbon to the atmosphere.

The aim of this project was to study the effects of black carbon produced during fires (bushfire and prescribed fire) on the decomposition of soil organic matter. The project used a combination of field and laboratory work, with field sites located in Victoria. Cheryl incubated soil (both long-term and short-term) after the addition of different size fractions of black carbon, using both different amounts of soil and soil with different moisture content. During soil incubations, the physical (e.g. pH), chemical (e.g. total C and N) and biological properties (e.gheterotrophic soil respiration and microbial biomass) will be measured.

In addition, Cheryl also studied the properties of soils collected before and after prescribed burning (e.g. particle size analysis, bulk density). The results of this project will provide a better understanding of the role of Australian forests as a source or sink for carbon and how fire may modify this pool.

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