Dear All,

I've been checking through the definitions of some of the land variables used 
in CMIP5 and the CMIP6 request, and there may be some ambiguity in the concept 
of "litter".

Two terms (litter_carbon_flux, litter_carbon_content) have definitions which 
include the phrase  '"Litter carbon" is dead inorganic material .....', which 
surely should be "dead organic", though "dead plant material", as used in the 
definitions of carbon_mass_flux_into_soil_from_vegetation_excluding_litter, 
carbon_mass_flux_into_soil_from_litter appears to be the more common and 
accurate definition.

There is a further problem in that the above terms are defined as if "litter" 
inlcuded all plant debris, but the definition of "wood_debris_carbon_content " 
asserts, to the contrary, that 'dead organic matter composed of coarse wood .. 
is distinct from litter'.  Do we really want wood debris to be distinct from 
litter, rather than a component of litter?

regards,
Martin


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