Widespread ancient bedrock landslide deposits facilitate deep weathering for storage and access of organic carbon

). However, sparse field data and soil databases that do not account for geomorphic controls on soil properties hinder accurate quantification of soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics at the watershed scale. In mountainous terrain, relict landslide deposits are common and feature thick (>5 m), weathered profiles with substantial SOC below the typically measured top 30 cm of soil. We generated a SOC-age relationship using a landslide chronosequence in Western Oregon where these landforms are abundant. We applied our relationships to an inventory of nearly 10,000 previously dated landslides and show that deep SOC stocks constitute ~70% of the total stock for landslides >41.8 thousand years. Our findings also show that SOC stocks associated with deep-seated landslides are >2× larger than estimates from a global model that does not account for geomorphic controls. These results suggest that geomorphology can improve our ability to quantify SOC stocks and could inform watershed management.

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Publication Details

Journal
Science Advances
Published
2026-06-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adz1644
Primary Topic
Landslides and related hazards
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Widespread ancient bedrock landslide deposits facilitate deep weathering for storage and access of organic carbon

Lucas C. R. Silva, Sean Richard LaHusen, Brooke D. Hunter, Joshua J. Roering et al.
Science Advances
Landslides and related hazards
article

Widespread ancient bedrock landslide deposits facilitate deep weathering for storage and access of organic carbon

Lucas C. R. Silva, Sean Richard LaHusen, Brooke D. Hunter, Joshua J. Roering, Logan R. Wetherell
article en

Abstract

). However, sparse field data and soil databases that do not account for geomorphic controls on soil properties hinder accurate quantification of soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics at the watershed scale. In mountainous terrain, relict landslide deposits are common and feature thick (>5 m), weathered profiles with substantial SOC below the typically measured top 30 cm of soil. We generated a SOC-age relationship using a landslide chronosequence in Western Oregon where these landforms are abundant. We applied our relationships to an inventory of nearly 10,000 previously dated landslides and show that deep SOC stocks constitute ~70% of the total stock for landslides >41.8 thousand years. Our findings also show that SOC stocks associated with deep-seated landslides are >2× larger than estimates from a global model that does not account for geomorphic controls. These results suggest that geomorphology can improve our ability to quantify SOC stocks and could inform watershed management.

Science AdvancesVol. 12(24)
United States Geological Survey (US), University of Oregon (US), Central Washington University (US), Appalachian State University (US)
Division of Earth Sciences
Life in Land
Openalex Percentile: Top 3%
Landslides and related hazards
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