Collaborative Research: Outwelling of Dissolved Organic Carbon from Salt Marshes

这个奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏和再投资法案》(公法111-5)资助的。要理解陆地和海洋碳循环耦合的一个关键的、具有变革性的、但经常被忽视的变量，就是碳从陆地到海洋的转移。墨西哥湾是北美碳收支不确定的一个主要来源，其特点是陆地-海洋边界明显，沿海湿地、潮间带盐沼、浅水河口和短距离动态碳交换。由于潮沟-沼泽系统的复杂性、潮间带和淡水驱动通量的动态性质以及陆地有机物质示踪剂的限制，人们对起源于潮间带沼泽并进入沿海海洋的有机质的规模和命运知之甚少。在马萨诸塞大学波士顿分校、乔治亚大学、路易斯安那州立大学和佛罗里达农业与机械大学的一项合作努力中，科学家们将利用高空间和时间分辨率的观测以及离散的生物地球化学采样和空间显式建模来评估盐沼在全球碳循环中的作用。这项研究将使科学家能够确定碳外流背后的传输和转化机制，并通过量化其生物有效性，评估外流盐沼溶解有机碳对沿海和海洋食物链的相对影响。这项研究的结果将为所有参与研究的大学的研究生和本科生提供广泛的跨学科(水文学、生物地球化学、建模)学习机会。PIS还将通过COSEE-佛罗里达、COSEE新英格兰和分水岭-综合科学伙伴关系计划为K-12学生开发一个教育推广模块。

"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.