Coastal Connections: Mapping the Extent, Health and Connectivity of Northern Ireland's Blue Carbon Ecosystems

人类活动使大气中的二氧化碳浓度增加到过去16万年来最高的水平。蓝碳生态系统（包括盐沼、红树林、海草草甸、大型藻类）在水生碳汇和储存方面发挥着重要作用，是生物圈中最强的碳汇之一，对减缓全球气候变化做出了重要贡献1。然而，由于气候变化和人类活动的影响，这些生境在范围、质量和连通性方面正在发生迅速和加速的变化。在英国，海草和盐沼提供了一系列宝贵的生态系统服务，除了碳储存，如增加生物多样性，沉积物稳定，海岸保护，渔业增强，提高水质。然而，虽然这些生态系统是至关重要的碳汇，但它们在英国正在大幅下降，特别是在北方爱尔兰，缺乏知识是其保护面临的主要问题之一。最近对英国沃茨中Zostera marina（英国最丰富的海草物种）的研究发现，健康状况不佳2和空间下降3。这些研究还强调了缺乏基线知识，因为尽管NI拥有英国Zostera草地的15%，但这是由单一样本代表的。同样，对于盐沼，虽然在英国和爱尔兰共和国进行了研究，但缺乏NI的栖息地数据。因此，了解当前海草和盐沼生境的遗传学和生态学对于未来的保护工作和基于自然的气候变化解决方案至关重要。1）利用新型无人机和传感器技术，编制北方爱尔兰海草和盐沼生境基线清单（例如，高分辨率无人机（UAV）/传感器数据集，图像处理，软拷贝摄影测量和GIS，以生成多维地理视觉表示）。2）地面实况栖息地位置和范围，并确定每个站点的本地压力和栖息地条件。包括当地碳固存率的测量和总碳储量的估算。3）确定种群遗传结构，以便能够预测蓝碳生境对气候变化的可能反应（重点是种群的连通性、地方适应性和表型可塑性）。4）理解和评估恢复的共同效益，如生物多样性的增益，加强生态系统服务，如防洪、水质改善和社区购买/所有权。5)根据特定地点的碳固存、储存潜力和恢复行动的实用性启动生境恢复，创造适合当地的遗传多样性种群。您将获得一系列遥感，基因组学，生物信息学的综合经验，并推动当地的恢复计划。QUADRAT DTP还提供广泛的培训计划，以培养可转移的专业技能。您将成为QUB和UOA充满活力的研究生社区的一部分。该项目提供了一个令人兴奋的机会，利用尖端的遥感和基因组学来解决英国主要蓝碳栖息地的基本知识差距，并将有助于我们对这些生态系统的理解，并对其进行实际评估。M.，米德尔堡，J. & Caraco，N.海洋植被在海洋碳循环中的主要作用。Biogeosciences 2，1-8（2005）2 Jones BL，Unsworth RKF. 2016年《不列颠群岛海草的危险状态》。Soc. open sci.3：150596.3绿色AE，Unsworth RKF，Chadwick MA和Jones PJS（2021）历史分析揭示了英国的灾难性海草损失。前面植物科学12：629962。

Human actions have increased carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere to levels higher than any measured in the past 160,000 years. Blue carbon ecosystems (including saltmarsh, mangrove, seagrass meadows, macroalgae) play a valuable role in aquatic carbon sequestration and storage, ranking among the most intense carbon sinks in the biosphere, and contribute significantly to global climate change mitigation1. However, these habitats are undergoing rapid and accelerating shifts in extent, quality and connectivity due to climate change and anthropogenic impacts. Within the UK, seagrass and saltmarsh provide a range of invaluable ecosystem services in addition to carbon storage, such as increasing biodiversity, sediment stabilization, coastal protection, fisheries enhancement, and increased water quality. However, while these ecosystems are vital carbon sinks, they are in huge decline in the UK, and a lack of knowledge particularly in Northern Ireland, is one of the major issues facing their conservation. Recent work on Zostera marina (the most abundant UK seagrass species) in UK waters, identified both poor health2 and spatial decline3. These studies also highlighted a lack of baseline knowledge as although NI has 15% of the UK's Zostera meadows, this was represented by a single sample. Similarly, for salt marsh, although studies have been carried out in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, there is a lack of habitat data for NI. Therefore, an understanding of the current genetics and ecology of seagrass and saltmarsh habitats are crucial for future conservation efforts and for nature-based solutions to climate change.This study will address this lack of data by;1) Developing a baseline inventory of seagrass and salt marsh habitats in Northern Ireland using novel drone and sensor technology (e.g. high-resolution Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) /sensor datasets, image processing, soft-copy photogrammetry, and GIS to generate multidimensional geo-visual representations).2) Ground-truth habitat locations and extent, and identify local pressures and habitat condition at each site. Include local measurements of carbon sequestration rates (CSRs) and estimating total carbon storage.3) Identify the population genetic structure to enable forecasting of the likely response of blue carbon habitats to climate change (with a focus on population connectivity, local adaptation and phenotypic plasticity).4) Understand and evaluate the co-benefits of restoration, such as biodiversity gains, enhancement of ecosystem services such as flood protection, water quality improvement, and community buy-in/ownership. 5) Initiating habitat restoration based on site specific carbon sequestration, storage potential and practicality of restoration actions, creating locally appropriate and genetically diverse populations.This project will build on work already being carried out by DAERA, UW and the PIs. You will gain comprehensive experience in a range of remote sensing, genomics, bioinformatics and drive local restoration programs. The QUADRAT DTP further provides an extensive training programme for developing transferable professional skills. You will be part of vibrant postgraduate communities at the QUB and UoA. The project provides an exciting opportunity to address fundamental knowledge gaps in key UK blue carbon habitats, using cutting edge remote sensing and genomics, and will contribute both to our understanding of these ecosystems, and to their practical restoration.1 Duarte, C. M., Middelburg, J. & Caraco, N. Major role of marine vegetation on the oceanic carbon cycle. Biogeosciences 2, 1-8 (2005)2 Jones BL, Unsworth RKF. 2016 The perilous state of seagrass in the British Isles.R. Soc. open sci.3: 150596.3 Green AE, Unsworth RKF, Chadwick MA and Jones PJS (2021) Historical Analysis Exposes Catastrophic Seagrass Loss for the United Kingdom. Front. Plant Sci. 12:629962.