Collaborative Research: Outwelling of Dissolved Organic Carbon from Salt Marshes

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"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."A key, transformative, but often overlooked, variable to understanding the coupled terrestrial and marine carbon cycles lies in the transfer of carbon from land to ocean. The Gulf of Mexico is a major source of uncertainty in the North American carbon budget, and is characterized by a significant land-ocean boundary, coastal wetlands, intertidal salt marshes, shallow estuaries and dynamic carbon exchange across short distances. Very little is known about the magnitude and fate of organic matter that originates in intertidal marshes and enters the coastal ocean due the complexity of the tidal creek-marsh system, the dynamic nature of intertidal and freshwater-driven fluxes, and the limitation of terrestrial organic matter tracers. In a collaborative effort between the University of Massachusetts-Boston, the University of Georgia, Louisiana State University, and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University scientists will utilize high spatial and temporal resolution observations along with discrete biogeochemical sampling and spatially explicit modeling to assess the role of salt marshes in the global carbon cycle. This research will allow scientists to identify the transport and transformation mechanisms behind the carbon outwelling, and by quantifying its bioavailability, assess the relative impact of outwelled salt marsh dissolved organic carbon on coastal and marine food webs.The results from this research will provide a broad range of interdisciplinary (hydrology, biogeochemistry, modeling) learning opportunities for both the graduate and undergraduate students from all of the participating universities. The PIs will also develop an educational outreach module for K-12 students through the COSEE-Florida, COSEE New England, and Watershed-Integrated Sciences Partnership programs.