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Tropical river discharge dominates riverine carbon export to Australia's coastal waters
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Tropical river discharge dominates riverine carbon export to Australia's coastal waters

Francesco Ulloa-Cedamanos, Adam T. Rexroade, Anna Lintern, Marcus B. Wallin, Yihan Li, Dylan J. Irvine, Lindsay B. Hutley, Josep G. Canadell, Judith A. Rosentreter, Jacob Z.Q. Yeo, …
Limnology and oceanography letters, Vol.11(2), pp.1-12
03/2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/lol2.70098
Appears in  Recent Faculty of Science and Engineering Publications
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Abstract

Rivers play a crucial role in the transformation and export of carbon (C) to coastal waters, yet limited observations in Australia have hindered accurate C flux estimates. We compiled 27,696 dissolved inorganic C (DIC), 15,012 dissolved organic C (DOC), and 226 particulate organic C (POC) measurements in Australian rivers and combined these with modeled discharge to estimate Australian-scale C export. Annual riverine C export was 19.1 (6.1–47.9) × 103 Gg C yr−1, with DIC and DOC exports 2.9 and 2.7 times higher than previous estimates, while POC was 2.6 times lower. The Australian tropics contributed 65%, 39%, and 66% of national DIC, DOC, and POC exports, respectively, despite covering only 11% of exorheic Australia. Within tropical basins, wet-season C export was 158–423 times higher than dry-season C export. These findings underscore the dominant influence of tropical rivers and their strong seasonal pulse on Australia's riverine C export.

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