Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA
Abstract Increasing the protection of coastal vegetated ecosystems has been suggested as one strategy to compensate for increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere as the capacity of these habitats to sequester and store carbon exceeds that of terrestrial habitats. Seagrasses are a group of fo...
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ftmit:oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/131604 2023-10-29T02:39:00+01:00 Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA Novak, A. B Pelletier, M. C Colarusso, P. Simpson, J. Gutierrez, M. N Arias-Ortiz, A. Charpentier, M. Masque, P. Vella, P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Sea Grant College Program 2020-06-26T13:31:17Z application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/131604 en eng Springer US https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00754-9 https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/131604 PUBLISHER_CC Creative Commons Attribution https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ The Author(s) Springer US Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 2020 ftmit https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00754-9 2023-10-02T18:05:01Z Abstract Increasing the protection of coastal vegetated ecosystems has been suggested as one strategy to compensate for increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere as the capacity of these habitats to sequester and store carbon exceeds that of terrestrial habitats. Seagrasses are a group of foundation species that grow in shallow coastal and estuarine systems and have an exceptional ability to sequester and store large quantities of carbon in biomass and, particularly, in sediments. However, carbon stocks (Corg stocks) and carbon accumulation rates (Corg accumulation) in seagrass meadows are highly variable both spatially and temporally, making it difficult to extrapolate this strategy to areas where information is lacking. In this study, Corg stocks and Corg accumulation were determined at 11 eelgrass meadows across New England, representing a range of eutrophication and exposure conditions. In addition, the environmental factors and structural characteristics of meadows related to variation in Corg stocks were identified. The objectives were accomplished by assessing stable isotopes of δ13C and δ15N as well as %C and %N in plant tissues and sediments, measuring grain size and 210Pb of sediment cores, and through assessing site exposure. Variability in Corg stocks in seagrass meadows is well predicted using commonly measured environmental variables such as grain size distribution. This study allows incorporation of data and insights for the northwest Atlantic, where few studies on carbon sequestration by seagrasses have been conducted. Article in Journal/Newspaper Northwest Atlantic DSpace@MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Estuaries and Coasts 43 8 2076 2091 |
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Open Polar |
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DSpace@MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) |
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ftmit |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Increasing the protection of coastal vegetated ecosystems has been suggested as one strategy to compensate for increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere as the capacity of these habitats to sequester and store carbon exceeds that of terrestrial habitats. Seagrasses are a group of foundation species that grow in shallow coastal and estuarine systems and have an exceptional ability to sequester and store large quantities of carbon in biomass and, particularly, in sediments. However, carbon stocks (Corg stocks) and carbon accumulation rates (Corg accumulation) in seagrass meadows are highly variable both spatially and temporally, making it difficult to extrapolate this strategy to areas where information is lacking. In this study, Corg stocks and Corg accumulation were determined at 11 eelgrass meadows across New England, representing a range of eutrophication and exposure conditions. In addition, the environmental factors and structural characteristics of meadows related to variation in Corg stocks were identified. The objectives were accomplished by assessing stable isotopes of δ13C and δ15N as well as %C and %N in plant tissues and sediments, measuring grain size and 210Pb of sediment cores, and through assessing site exposure. Variability in Corg stocks in seagrass meadows is well predicted using commonly measured environmental variables such as grain size distribution. This study allows incorporation of data and insights for the northwest Atlantic, where few studies on carbon sequestration by seagrasses have been conducted. |
author2 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Sea Grant College Program |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Novak, A. B Pelletier, M. C Colarusso, P. Simpson, J. Gutierrez, M. N Arias-Ortiz, A. Charpentier, M. Masque, P. Vella, P. |
spellingShingle |
Novak, A. B Pelletier, M. C Colarusso, P. Simpson, J. Gutierrez, M. N Arias-Ortiz, A. Charpentier, M. Masque, P. Vella, P. Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
author_facet |
Novak, A. B Pelletier, M. C Colarusso, P. Simpson, J. Gutierrez, M. N Arias-Ortiz, A. Charpentier, M. Masque, P. Vella, P. |
author_sort |
Novak, A. B |
title |
Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
title_short |
Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
title_full |
Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
title_fullStr |
Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
title_full_unstemmed |
Factors Influencing Carbon Stocks and Accumulation Rates in Eelgrass Meadows Across New England, USA |
title_sort |
factors influencing carbon stocks and accumulation rates in eelgrass meadows across new england, usa |
publisher |
Springer US |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/131604 |
genre |
Northwest Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Northwest Atlantic |
op_source |
Springer US |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00754-9 https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/131604 PUBLISHER_CC |
op_rights |
Creative Commons Attribution https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ The Author(s) |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00754-9 |
container_title |
Estuaries and Coasts |
container_volume |
43 |
container_issue |
8 |
container_start_page |
2076 |
op_container_end_page |
2091 |
_version_ |
1781065526557016064 |