Check dams are small engineering structures. They are used worldwide for soil and water conservation, gully rehabilitation, hydrological regulation, and food supply. Eroded materials trapped and buried in check dams constitute an important carbon (C) sink. However, as a typical deposition site, systematic information about C cycling processes in check dams is relatively unknown, despite its crucial role in estimating the fate of buried C and elucidating the ongoing C sink/source debate on soil erosion. This study reviewed the stock, source, enrichment, distribution, stability, and underlying mechanisms of sediment C in check dams. Current studies have found a large amount of C stored in check dams (approximately 1–30 Mg C km⁻² yr⁻¹), and have demonstrated that C retention ability relied more on factors governing sediment production and trapping at larger scales than on check dam trapping efficiency at smaller scales. Stable isotopes, radiocarbon, geochemical properties, biomarkers, and spectroscopy methods have proven to be practical in identifying the sources of sediment C but can only be used in certain situations because of their intrinsic limitations. Both enrichment and impoverishment of sediment C compared with source soils have been reported, and have depended on soil erosion type, land-use type, sediment connectivity, and the loss of C during transportation. Sediment C generally increases from the back of the check dam to the front along the flow pathway and fluctuates vertically, depending on the clay and sand layers of the deposition couplets. Information about C mineralization and sequestration is relatively limited, and the existing studies have shown reduced C mineralization and promoted C-fixing potential in check dam sediments. Given the specific benefits of deposition couplets in reflecting information about burial period, erosion intensity, and historical land use, further studies should integrate C stability with soil erosion and deposition information for the deposit profiles. The responses of C cycling to climate change and human disturbances, such as warming, dam-break, tillage, and fertilization for check dam sediments require further research.

拦河坝是小型工程结构。它们在世界范围内用于水土保持、沟渠修复、水文调节和食品供应。被截留和掩埋在止回坝中的侵蚀材料构成了重要的碳 (C) 汇。然而，作为一个典型的沉积地点，关于检查坝中碳循环过程的系统信息相对未知，尽管它在估计埋藏碳的命运和阐明正在进行的关于土壤侵蚀的碳汇/源辩论中起着至关重要的作用。本研究综述了淤地坝中沉积物C的存量、来源、富集、分布、稳定性和潜在机制。目前的研究发现，检查坝中储存了大量的 C（大约 1-30 Mg C km ^-2  yr ^-1)，并且已经证明 C 保留能力更多地依赖于控制沉积物产生和更大尺度的捕集因素，而不是较小尺度的止回坝截留效率。稳定同位素、放射性碳、地球化学特性、生物标志物和光谱方法已被证明在识别沉积物 C 的来源方面是实用的，但由于其固有的局限性，只能在某些情况下使用。与源土壤相比，沉积物 C 的富集和贫化都有报道，并且取决于土壤侵蚀类型、土地利用类型、沉积物连通性和运输过程中 C 的损失。沉积物C一般沿流道从止回坝后部向前部增加并垂直波动，这取决于沉积对联的粘土和砂层。关于 C 矿化和封存的信息相对有限，现有研究表明，在检查坝沉积物中减少了 C 矿化并提高了固碳潜力。鉴于沉积对联在反映有关埋藏期、侵蚀强度和历史土地利用信息方面的特定优势，进一步的研究应将 C 稳定性与沉积剖面的土壤侵蚀和沉积信息相结合。C 循环对气候变化和人为干扰的响应，如变暖、溃坝、耕作和检查坝沉积物的施肥，需要进一步研究。鉴于沉积对联在反映有关埋藏期、侵蚀强度和历史土地利用信息方面的特定优势，进一步的研究应将 C 稳定性与沉积剖面的土壤侵蚀和沉积信息相结合。C 循环对气候变化和人为干扰的响应，如变暖、溃坝、耕作和检查坝沉积物的施肥，需要进一步研究。鉴于沉积对联在反映有关埋藏期、侵蚀强度和历史土地利用信息方面的特定优势，进一步的研究应将 C 稳定性与沉积剖面的土壤侵蚀和沉积信息相结合。C 循环对气候变化和人为干扰的响应，如变暖、溃坝、耕作和检查坝沉积物的施肥，需要进一步研究。