Carbon dioxide and methane dynamics in estuaries
In: Wolanski, E. et al. (2011). Treatise on Estuarine and Coastal Science: 5. Biogeochemistry. Elsevier: Amsterdam. ISBN 978-0-12-387745-1. 362 pp., more |
Keywords | Marine/Coastal; Brackish water; Fresh water | Author keywords | Atmospheric fluxes; Carbon cycle; Carbon dioxide; Community respiration; Estuaries; Gross primary production; Intertidal areas; Methane; Net ecosystem production; Nitrification; Oxygen; pH; Rivers; Sediments; Total alkalinity |
Abstract | Estuaries profoundly transform the large amounts of carbon delivered from rivers before their transfer to the adjacent coastal zone. As a consequence of the complex biogeochemical reworking of allochthonous carbon in the sediments and the water column, CO2 and CH4 are emitted into the atmosphere. We attempt to synthesize available knowledge on biogeochemical cycling of CO2 and CH4 in estuarine environments, with a particular emphasis on the exchange with the atmosphere. Unlike CH4, the global emission of CO2 to the atmosphere from estuaries is significant compared to other components of the global carbon cycle. |
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