Soil respiration is the primary path by which CO2 fixed by land plants retu
rns to the atmosphere. Estimated at approximately 75 x 10(15) gC/yr, this l
arge natural flux is likely to increase due changes in the Earth's conditio
n. The objective of this paper is to provide a brief scientific review for
policymakers who are concerned that changes in soil respiration may contrib
ute to the rise in CO2 in Earth's atmosphere. Rising concentrations of CO2
in the atmosphere will increase the flux of CO2 from soils, while simultane
ously leaving a greater store of carbon in the soil. Traditional tillage cu
ltivation and rising temperature increase the flux of CO2 from soils withou
t increasing the stock of soil organic matter. Increasing deposition of nit
rogen from the atmosphere may lead to the sequestration of carbon in vegeta
tion and soils. The response of the land biosphere to simultaneous changes
in all of these factors is unknown, but a large increase in the soil carbon
pool seems unlikely to moderate the rise in atmospheric CO2 during the nex
t century.