Journal article
Ocean acidification may mitigate negative effects of warming on carbon burial potential in subtidal unvegetated estuarine sediments
Limnology and Oceanography, Vol.66, pp.2953-2966
2021
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Abstract
Estuarine sediments make an important contribution to the global carbon cycle, but we do not know how this will change under a future climate, which is expected to have lower pH oceans and frequent high-temperature days. Six combinations of warming and partial pressures of CO2 (pCO2) were chosen to investigate the combined and individual effects of short-term pressures on the diel metabolic response of shallow unvegetated sediments ex-situ. Whereas warming significantly increased respiration, making sediments more heterotrophic, high-pCO2 increased net primary productivity, resulting in less heterotrophic sediments. As a result, warming decreased the carbon burial potential of estuarine sediments and high-pCO2 had the opposite effect. High-pCO2 mitigates the negative effects of warming on benthic metabolism under the combined scenario, with carbon burial similar to that expected under high-pCO2 conditions alone. Climate scenarios also changed the diurnal pCO2 variation, with ranges increasing by 33% with warming, and almost doubling under high-pCO2 conditions. An additive response in pCO2 variability was observed under the combined scenario, increasing to 2.3× the current diel-pCO2 range, highlighting the reduced buffering capacity of the water associated with a high CO2 climate. Future carbon burial and export under increased frequencies of unseasonably warm days projected for mid and end of century (30% and 50% of days-per-year, respectively) were estimated with and without ocean acidification. By 2100, warming alone could decrease annual estuarine sediment burial potential by 25%. However, ocean acidification could mitigate the negative effects of more frequent high-temperature days and increase carbon burial potential over current conditions by ~18%.
Details
- Title
- Ocean acidification may mitigate negative effects of warming on carbon burial potential in subtidal unvegetated estuarine sediments
- Creators
- Michelle N Simone (Author) - Auckland University of TechnologyKai G Schulz (Author) - Southern Cross UniversityBradley D Eyre (Author) - Southern Cross UniversityJoanne M Oakes (Author) - Southern Cross University
- Publication Details
- Limnology and Oceanography, Vol.66, pp.2953-2966
- Publisher
- John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
- Identifiers
- 991012948580402368
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Science and Engineering; School of Environment, Science and Engineering; Centre for Coastal Biogeochemistry; Science
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article