Selective Sorting and Degradation of Permafrost Organic Matter in the Nearshore Zone of Herschel Island (Yukon, Canada) ...
Erosion of permafrost coasts due to climate warming releases large quantities of organic carbon (OC) into the Arctic Ocean. While burial of permafrost OC in marine sediments potentially limits degradation, resuspension of sediments in the nearshore zone potentially enhances degradation and greenhous...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
ETH Zurich
2024
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000655484 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/655484 |
| Summary: | Erosion of permafrost coasts due to climate warming releases large quantities of organic carbon (OC) into the Arctic Ocean. While burial of permafrost OC in marine sediments potentially limits degradation, resuspension of sediments in the nearshore zone potentially enhances degradation and greenhouse gas production, adding to the “permafrost carbon feedback.” Recent studies, focusing on bulk sediments, suggest that permafrost OC derived from coastal erosion is predominantly deposited close to shore. However, bulk approaches disregard sorting processes in the coastal zone, which strongly influence the OC distribution and fate. We studied soils and sediments along a transect from the fast-eroding shoreline of Herschel Island—Qikiqtaruk (Yukon, Canada) to a depositional basin offshore. Sample material was fractionated by density (1.8 g cm−3) and size (63 μm), separating loose OC from mineral-associated OC. Each fraction was analyzed for element content (TOC, TN), carbon isotopes (δ13C, Δ14C), molecular ... : Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 129 (1) ... |
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