Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 20, 2026

Design and Construction of an Urban Runoff Research Facility
Published on: August 8, 2014
Nitrogen and carbon export from urban areas through removal and export of litterfall
Pamela H Templer1, Jonathan W Toll1, Lucy R Hutyra2
1Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Abstract:
We found that up to 52 ± 17% of residential litterfall carbon (C) and nitrogen (N; 390.6 kg C and 6.5 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1)) is exported through yard waste removed from the City of Boston, which is equivalent to more than half of annual N outputs as gas loss (i.e. denitrification) or leaching. Our results show that removing yard waste results in a substantial decrease in N inputs to urban areas, which may offset excess N inputs from atmospheric deposition, fertilizer application and pet waste. However, export of C and N via yard waste removal may create nutrient limitation for some vegetation due to diminished recycling of nutrients. Removal of leaf litter from residential areas disrupts nutrient cycling and residential yard management practices are an important modification to urban biogeochemical cycling, which could contribute to spatial heterogeneity of ecosystems that are either N limited or saturated within urban ecosystems.
More Related Videos
10:16Design and Operation of a Continuous 13C and 15N Labeling Chamber for Uniform or Differential, Metabolic and Structural, Plant Isotope Labeling
Published on: January 16, 2014
07:14Automated, High-resolution Mobile Collection System for the Nitrogen Isotopic Analysis of NOx
Published on: December 20, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Overview of Nitrogen Metabolism
The largest pool of nitrogen available in the terrestrial ecosystem is gaseous nitrogen (N2) from the air, but this...
The Nitrogen Cycle
Freshwater Microbial Ecology
The Carbon Cycle
The Sulfur Cycle
Bioremediation