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Published (Version of record)CC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open Access
Published (Version of record)CC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open
Journal article
Small wetland-fringed estuaries deliver disproportionately large carbon loads to the ocean
Limnology and oceanography, Vol.69(9), pp.2229-2242
09/2024
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Abstract
Previous estimates of dissolved carbon export from estuaries focused on larger systems in the Northern Hemisphere, with little data for smaller tropical estuaries often fringed by intertidal wetlands. We investigated lateral export (outwelling) and transformation rates of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), and total alkalinity (TA) as well as CO2 emissions from 18 diverse Australian estuaries. Most estuaries acted as net sources for DOC (72%), DIC (83%), and TA (50%). On average, estuaries exported 120 ± 55 and 344 ± 150 mmol m−2 catchment yr−1 DOC and DIC, respectively. Estuarine CO2 emissions (33 ± 20 mmol m−2 estuary d−1) equalled 13% ± 16% of the dissolved lateral carbon export. Carbon export positively correlated with runoff, rain, and intertidal wetland cover, and negatively correlated with estuary and catchment area. Mangroves and saltmarshes cover < 1% of all catchments but can contribute 46% ± 11% of the DOC and 67% ± 13% of the DIC exported to the ocean. Upscaling our observations, Australian estuaries export 2.8 ± 2.2 TgC yr−1 DOC, 8.1 ± 6.2 TgC yr−1 DIC, and 0.7 ± 0.6 Tmol yr−1 TA. Small catchments (< 10 ha) making up 70% of all estuaries and accounting for 18% of the total freshwater flow provided 27% to the total dissolved carbon export. Overall, small tropical estuaries fringed by highly productive intertidal wetlands are hotspots of carbon exports and should be considered in marine carbon budgets.
Details
- Title
- Small wetland-fringed estuaries deliver disproportionately large carbon loads to the ocean
- Creators
- Gloria M. S. Reithmaier - University of GothenburgDamien T. Maher - Southern Cross UniversityCeylena Holloway - Southern Cross UniversityRogger E. Correa - Coporacion Merceditas Medellin Antioquia ColombiaIsaac R. Santos - University of Gothenburg
- Publication Details
- Limnology and oceanography, Vol.69(9), pp.2229-2242
- Publisher
- John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
- Number of pages
- 14
- Grants
- Unravelling the legacy of groundwater pollution to coastal waters, FT170100327, Australian Research CouncilAre subterranean estuaries a source or sink of greenhouse gases?, DP120101645, Australian Research Council
- Grant note
- Australian Research Council. Grant Numbers: DE140101733, DP120101645, FT170100327, LE170100007
- Identifiers
- 991013219713602368
- Copyright
- © 2024 The Author(s). Limnology and Oceanography published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License.
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Science and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article