Sources of sediment carbon sequestered in restored seagrass meadows

Carbon storage in the seagrass meadows of Gazi Bay, Kenya

Vegetated marine habitats are globally important carbon sinks, making a significant contribution towards mitigating climate change, and they provide a wide range of other ecosystem services. However, large gaps in knowledge remain, particularly for seagrass meadows in Africa. The present study estimated biomass and sediment organic carbon (Corg) stocks of four dominant seagrass species in Gazi ...

Refining Carbon Sequestration Estimates of Seagrass Meadows in Tampa Bay

As of 2012, there were an estimated 14,243 ha of seagrass meadows in Tampa Bay. Seagrass meadows are the dominant blue carbon habitat in Tampa Bay, compared to the estimated 6,127 ha of mangroves and 1,779 ha of saltmarsh. However, and unlike mangroves and saltmarshes, the entirety of carbon fixation, growth and decay in seagrass meadows occurs in a submerged environment. While rates of primary...

Impact of mooring activities on carbon stocks in seagrass meadows

Boating activities are one of the causes that threaten seagrass meadows and the ecosystem services they provide. Mechanical destruction of seagrass habitats may also trigger the erosion of sedimentary organic carbon (Corg) stocks, which may contribute to increasing atmospheric CO2. This study presents the first estimates of loss of Corg stocks in seagrass meadows due to mooring activities in Ro...

Natural and Human-induced Carbon Storage Variability in Seagrass Meadows

Export from Seagrass Meadows Contributes to Marine Carbon Sequestration

Seagrasses export a substantial portion of their primary production, both in particulate and dissolved organic form, but the fate of this export production remains unaccounted for in terms of seagrass carbon sequestration. Here we review available evidence on the fate of seagrass carbon export to conclude that this represents a significant contribution to carbon sequestration, both in sediments...