Salt marsh plants carbon storage in a temperate Atlantic estuary illustrated by a stable isotopic analysis based approach

Couto, T.; Duarte, Bernardo; Baeta, Alexandra; Marques, João Carlos

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2013.04.004

Cited by 29 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The model results followed the same pattern as the observed values (Fig. 2), with plant aboveground biomass values usually higher in the warm seasons than in the cold seasons, as also shown by several other studies (Caçador et al, 2004;Couto et al, 2013;Duarte et al 2012;Lillebø et al, 2003). Because the observed values in the spring of 2010 for S. maritimus and Z. noltei were unusually high, they were excluded from the linear regression calculations.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 51%

“…In fact, the findings of previous studies have indicated that lower biomass values are associated with high salinity, showing that the survival of this species could be threatened by high salinity. Couto et al (2013) showed that S. maritimus accumulated approximately 21 tons of carbon in the tissues in 21 months, compared with 1.9 tons of carbon accumulated in the tissues by S. maritima and 0.9 ton by Z. noltei. If the species that accumulates the highest amount of carbon of the three species disappears, the carbon sequestration ability of the Mondego estuary may decrease.…”

Section: Temperature Increasementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Modelling the effects of global temperature increase on the growth of salt marsh plants

Couto

Martins²,

Duarte³

et al. 2014

Appl Ecol Env Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract.Gradual increases in temperature and atmospheric CO 2 concentrations have resulted from the increased human use of fossil fuels since the beginning of industrial activity. In coastal wetland ecosystems, salt marshes constitute important habitats because they play important ecological roles, acting as carbon sinks by capturing atmospheric CO 2 and storing it in living plant tissue. Ecological models are important tools for understanding the results of anthropogenic impacts on a global scale. Global warming poses threats to salt marshes through different effects, e.g., increases in sea level. The objectives of this study were i) to assess how temperature increases will influence the growth of salt marsh plants, ii) to infer the carbon budget of salt marshes under temperature increase scenarios and iii) to predict how salt marsh plants will keep pace with increases in sea level. These goals were achieved by developing growth models of three different plants (Spartina maritima, Scirpus maritimus and Zostera noltei) found in the Mondego estuary. Models were developed for C 3 and C 4 plant species. The results suggest that a temperature increase enhances the aboveground biomass of salt marsh plants. According to the predictions of the models, the sedimentation rate of S. maritima and Z. noltei can keep pace with increases in sea level, but this is apparently not the case for S. maritimus. If S. maritimus disappears from the Mondego estuary, the carbon sequestration ability of the system should decrease due to the loss of active plant tissue. This conclusion is based on the fact that S. maritimus accumulated more than 80% of the total carbon sequestered in the tissues by the three studied species.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 51%

Section: Temperature Increasementioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling the effects of global temperature increase on the growth of salt marsh plants

Couto

Martins²,

Duarte³

et al. 2014

Appl Ecol Env Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…2012) but stimulate CH 4 production (King and Reeburgh, 2002) compared to natural wetlands. However, carbon emissions and accumulation in wetlands are complicated by site-specific conditions such as salinity, plant type, productivity, and the water table (Weston et al, 2014;Couto et al, 2013;Drexler et al, 2013). Therefore, optimizing the construction of coastal wetlands to reduce carbon release and promote carbon absorption is essential in the context of global climate warming.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vegetation alters the effects of salinity on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in a newly created wetland

Sheng

Wang

2015

Ecological Engineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Increases in anthropogenic nutrient supply can alter coastal intertidal and subtidal plant communities by increasing aboveground biomass, lowering belowground biomass, or both (Deegan et al, 2012;Darby and Turner, 2008;Herbert and Fourqurean, 2009;Turner et al, 2009). Such changes in plant community structure are closely linked to the carbon storage potential of vegetated coastal ecosystems -a topic of key interest in emerging carbon markets (Russell et al, 2013;Couto et al, 2013;Alongi, 2014). Coastal ecosystems provide valuable "blue carbon" sequestration capacity, and may partially mitigate for or offset future climate change (Fourqurean et al, 2012a;Saintilan et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon storage in seagrass soils: long-term nutrient history exceeds the effects of near-term nutrient enrichment

Armitage

Fourqurean

2016

Biogeosciences

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The carbon sequestration potential in coastal soils is linked to aboveground and belowground plant productivity and biomass, which in turn, is directly and indirectly influenced by nutrient input. We evaluated the influence of long-term and near-term nutrient input on aboveground and belowground carbon accumulation in seagrass beds, using a nutrient enrichment (nitrogen and phosphorus) experiment embedded within a naturally occurring, long-term gradient of phosphorus availability within Florida Bay (USA). We measured organic carbon stocks in soils and above- and belowground seagrass biomass after 17 months of experimental nutrient addition. At the nutrient-limited sites, phosphorus addition increased the carbon stock in aboveground seagrass biomass by more than 300 %; belowground seagrass carbon stock increased by 50–100 %. Soil carbon content slightly decreased ( ∼  10 %) in response to phosphorus addition. There was a strong but non-linear relationship between soil carbon and Thalassia testudinum leaf nitrogen : phosphorus (N : P) or belowground seagrass carbon stock. When seagrass leaf N : P exceeded an approximate threshold of 75 : 1, or when belowground seagrass carbon stock was less than 100 g m−2, there was less than 3 % organic carbon in the sediment. Despite the marked difference in soil carbon between phosphorus-limited and phosphorus-replete areas of Florida Bay, all areas of the bay had relatively high soil carbon stocks near or above the global median of 1.8 % organic carbon. The relatively high carbon content in the soils indicates that seagrass beds have extremely high carbon storage potential, even in nutrient-limited areas with low biomass or productivity.

show abstract

Salt marsh plants carbon storage in a temperate Atlantic estuary illustrated by a stable isotopic analysis based approach

Cited by 29 publications

References 25 publications

Modelling the effects of global temperature increase on the growth of salt marsh plants

Modelling the effects of global temperature increase on the growth of salt marsh plants

Vegetation alters the effects of salinity on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in a newly created wetland

Carbon storage in seagrass soils: long-term nutrient history exceeds the effects of near-term nutrient enrichment

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About