Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York
Constraining uncertainty in the global carbon cycle requires valid assessment of both surface and stored carbon in marine and coastal ecosystems (Blue Carbon) as well as terrestrial carbon (forests, peatlands, and soils) [Pendleton et al., 2012]. Quantifying the global carbon stock of coastal salt m...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2021-12-01
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| Series: | City and Environment Interactions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590252021000180 |
| _version_ | 1818701092311007232 |
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| author | Grant Pace Dorothy Peteet Molly Dunton Carol Wang-Mondaca Syed Ismail John Supino Jonathan Nichols |
| author_facet | Grant Pace Dorothy Peteet Molly Dunton Carol Wang-Mondaca Syed Ismail John Supino Jonathan Nichols |
| author_sort | Grant Pace |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Constraining uncertainty in the global carbon cycle requires valid assessment of both surface and stored carbon in marine and coastal ecosystems (Blue Carbon) as well as terrestrial carbon (forests, peatlands, and soils) [Pendleton et al., 2012]. Quantifying the global carbon stock of coastal salt marshes, potentially the most efficient carbon-burying ecosystems in the world per area, is a key area of further research in both of these fields Pendleton et al., 2012. One of the largest challenges is that despite the fact that salt marshes often sequester carbon several meters deep, nearly all estimates of salt marsh carbon stocks consider only the upper 1 m of sediment (Windham-Myers et al., 2015) [54]. This is particularly concerning because coastal wetlands are increasingly at risk due to climate change, sea level rise, and anthropogenic disturbance and destruction (Deegan et al., 2012) [15]. Using full-depth measurements from marsh cores, we estimate the carbon stock of five salt marshes in the highly urbanized estuary of Jamaica Bay, New York and argue that partial-depth measurements can underestimate carbon stocks. These estimates use calculated carbon content and probe depth data of these marshes collected between 2000 and 2019, applying this data across the full area of the marsh obtained from satellite imagery. Carbon density measurements are then multiplied by the full-depth volume of the marshes to create an estimate of total carbon stock. In addition to calculating present-day estimates, we compare our carbon stock estimates to historical Jamaica Bay imagery to calculate historical carbon stocks and carbon loss. The carbon stock estimates presented here show a 95% carbon stock loss between 1885 and 2019 in Jamaica Bay and highlight the severe underestimation of carbon stocks without full-depth calculations. These findings have important implications for disappearing salt marshes with regard to the global carbon cycle and the incorporation of belowground carbon into global climate models. The findings are increasingly relevant for advocacy efforts aiming to conserve these marshes with sea level rise. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T15:15:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bf995be58f164fc5bdb381d5e5d04a45 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2590-2520 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T15:15:20Z |
| publishDate | 2021-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | City and Environment Interactions |
| spelling | doaj.art-bf995be58f164fc5bdb381d5e5d04a452022-12-21T21:43:33ZengElsevierCity and Environment Interactions2590-25202021-12-0112100073Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New YorkGrant Pace0Dorothy Peteet1Molly Dunton2Carol Wang-Mondaca3Syed Ismail4John Supino5Jonathan Nichols6NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United States; Division of Biology and Paleoenvironment, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Palisades, NY 10964, United StatesNASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United States; Division of Biology and Paleoenvironment, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Palisades, NY 10964, United StatesNASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United StatesNASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United StatesNASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United StatesNASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY 10025, United StatesDivision of Biology and Paleoenvironment, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Palisades, NY 10964, United StatesConstraining uncertainty in the global carbon cycle requires valid assessment of both surface and stored carbon in marine and coastal ecosystems (Blue Carbon) as well as terrestrial carbon (forests, peatlands, and soils) [Pendleton et al., 2012]. Quantifying the global carbon stock of coastal salt marshes, potentially the most efficient carbon-burying ecosystems in the world per area, is a key area of further research in both of these fields Pendleton et al., 2012. One of the largest challenges is that despite the fact that salt marshes often sequester carbon several meters deep, nearly all estimates of salt marsh carbon stocks consider only the upper 1 m of sediment (Windham-Myers et al., 2015) [54]. This is particularly concerning because coastal wetlands are increasingly at risk due to climate change, sea level rise, and anthropogenic disturbance and destruction (Deegan et al., 2012) [15]. Using full-depth measurements from marsh cores, we estimate the carbon stock of five salt marshes in the highly urbanized estuary of Jamaica Bay, New York and argue that partial-depth measurements can underestimate carbon stocks. These estimates use calculated carbon content and probe depth data of these marshes collected between 2000 and 2019, applying this data across the full area of the marsh obtained from satellite imagery. Carbon density measurements are then multiplied by the full-depth volume of the marshes to create an estimate of total carbon stock. In addition to calculating present-day estimates, we compare our carbon stock estimates to historical Jamaica Bay imagery to calculate historical carbon stocks and carbon loss. The carbon stock estimates presented here show a 95% carbon stock loss between 1885 and 2019 in Jamaica Bay and highlight the severe underestimation of carbon stocks without full-depth calculations. These findings have important implications for disappearing salt marshes with regard to the global carbon cycle and the incorporation of belowground carbon into global climate models. The findings are increasingly relevant for advocacy efforts aiming to conserve these marshes with sea level rise.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590252021000180Tidal wetlandsCarbon storageClimate changeMarsh lossJamaica BayMarsh depth |
| spellingShingle | Grant Pace Dorothy Peteet Molly Dunton Carol Wang-Mondaca Syed Ismail John Supino Jonathan Nichols Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York City and Environment Interactions Tidal wetlands Carbon storage Climate change Marsh loss Jamaica Bay Marsh depth |
| title | Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York |
| title_full | Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York |
| title_fullStr | Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York |
| title_full_unstemmed | Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York |
| title_short | Importance of quantifying the full-depth carbon reservoir of Jamaica Bay salt Marshes, New York |
| title_sort | importance of quantifying the full depth carbon reservoir of jamaica bay salt marshes new york |
| topic | Tidal wetlands Carbon storage Climate change Marsh loss Jamaica Bay Marsh depth |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590252021000180 |
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