Contribution of CO2 emission from litter decomposition in an oil palm plantation on tropical peatland

Soil carbon dioxide (CO2) emission consists of peat decomposition, root respiration, and litter decomposition. Although there are some publications on soil respiration in oil palm plantations, information of CO2 emission from palm litter (frond) decomposition is still limited. Therefore, our objective was to estimate the CO2 emission from frond decomposition in an oil palm plantation on tropical peat. The study was conducted in a smallholder oil palm plantation with two different cultivars (M and S) on peat in Jambi, Indonesia, using meshed litter bags of 40 cm x 80 cm. The temporal pattern of carbon loss was similar to that of dry weight loss, following a negative exponential. Annual carbon inputs through pruned fronds into the plantation were 189 and 281g C m−2 year−1, respectively, for M and S cultivars. Annual CO2 emissions through oxidative frond decomposition were estimated to be 98 and 153 g C m−2 year−1 for M and S cultivars, respectively. The annual CO2 emission from oil palm litter decomposition accounted for about 13% of soil heterotrophic respiration of oil palm plantations on tropical peatland.