Resolving Carbon Contributions in a Mangrove Estuary
Resolving Carbon Contributions in a Mangrove Estuary
Date
2017
Authors
Dionne, Elizabeth
Contributor
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Dulai, Henrietta
Ho, David
Ho, David
Department
Oceanography
Global Environmental Science
Global Environmental Science
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Abstract
The global carbon cycle describes the flux of carbon between the atmosphere, terrestrial
biosphere, and hydrosphere. Of this, the movement and storage of carbon dioxide is of great
interest with the rapid changing of the climate. Mangrove forests act as a sink by removing
CO2 at a rate higher than other forests. Carbon becomes trapped in sediments, where it can
be exported into aquatic estuarine environments. The aim of this study was to determine
whether or not tidal pumping was a significant driver of carbon movement in an attempt to
help a larger study quantify the flux of carbon flow along a mangrove lined estuary in
Florida Everglades National Park. This site is located in the largest protected mangrove
forest in the northern hemisphere. To accomplish this, we used the naturally occurring
geochemical tracers radon and radium, and discrete measurements of dissolved inorganic
carbon (DIC). Isotopic equilibrium values of Rn and Ra produced by the sediments were
initially established to compare in situ measurements with. Multiple measurements of these
isotopes in pore water were taken at four sites, varying in distance from tidal effects, in a
mangrove lined estuary. This was done for both rising and falling tides, and during the dry
and wet seasons. Our data suggest that water infiltrates and resides in sediments for about
1-4 tidal cycles. DIC was present in greater amounts during falling tides in the wet season
but no well-defined link between the amounts of time water resides in pore spaces and DIC
content could be established in both seasons. This could be because DIC enrichment of pore
water due to in situ remineralization happens on time scales much shorter than what our
method was able to capture.
Description
Keywords
mangroves,
estuarine ecosystem,
carbon dioxide
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40 pages
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