Search results for "Blue carbon"
showing 8 items of 8 documents
Bright spots as climate‐smart marine spatial planning tools for conservation and blue growth
2021
Marine spatial planning that addresses ocean climate-driven change (‘climate-smart MSP’) is a global aspiration to support economic growth, food security and ecosystem sustainability. Ocean climate change (‘CC’) modelling may become a key decision-support tool for MSP, but traditional modelling analysis and communication challenges prevent their broad uptake. We employed MSP-specific ocean climate modelling analyses to inform a real-life MSP process; addressing how nature conservation and fisheries could be adapted to CC. We found that the currently planned distribution of these activities may become unsustainable during the policy's implementation due to CC, leading to a shortfall in its s…
Effect of the conversion of mangroves into shrimp farms on carbon stock in the sediment along the southern Red Sea coast, Saudi Arabia
2019
The conservation of coastal ecosystems and specially mangroves ‘‘blue carbon’’ is receiving more attention as consequence of their recognition as high ecosystem carbon stocks and for the fact that these areas are undergoing land conversion. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the impact of land use changes due to conversion of mangroves to shrimp farms on the bulk density (SBD), organic carbon (SOC) concentration, and SOC stock in the sediments along the southern Saudi Arabian Red Sea coast. Shrimp farms and mangrove locations showed significant (P < 0.001) differences in SBD with high mean values in the sediments of shrimp farms. Shrimp farms and mangrove locations showed significa…
Seaweed fails to prevent ocean acidification impact on foraminifera along a shallow-water CO2 gradient
2014
Ocean acidification causes biodiversity loss, alters ecosystems, and may impact food security, as shells of small organisms dissolve easily in corrosive waters. There is a suggestion that photosynthetic organisms could mitigate ocean acidification on a local scale, through seagrass protection or seaweed cultivation, as net ecosystem organic production raises the saturation state of calcium carbonate making seawater less corrosive. Here, we used a natural gradient in calcium carbonate saturation, caused by shallow-water CO2 seeps in the Mediterranean Sea, to assess whether seaweed that is resistant to acidification (Padina pavonica) could prevent adverse effects of acidification on epiphytic…
The importance of dead seagrass (Posidonia oceanica)matte as a biogeochemical sink
2022
We assessed the potential of dead seagrass Posidonia oceanica matte to act as a biogeochemical sink and provide a coherent archive of environmental change in a degraded area of the Mediterranean Sea (Augusta Bay, Italy). Change in sediment properties (dry bulk density, grain size), concentration of elements (Corg, Cinorg, N, Hg) and stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ 15N) with sediment depth were measured in dead P. oceanica matte and unvegetated (bare) sediments in the polluted area, and an adjacent P. oceanica meadow. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed a clear clustering by habitat, which explained 72% of variability in our samples and was driven mainly by the accumulation of N and H…
3D-Reconstruction of a Giant Posidonia oceanica Beach Wrack (Banquette): Sizing Biomass, Carbon and Nutrient Stocks by Combining Field Data With High…
2022
Beach wracks are temporary accumulations of vegetal detritus that can be found along coastlines all over the world. Although beach wracks are often perceived as a nuisance for beach users, they play a crucial ecological role in carbon and nutrient connectivity across ecosystem boundaries, especially when they reach a relevant size, as in the case of the wedge-shaped seagrass accumulations called banquette. In this study, three-dimensional mapping of a giant Posidonia oceanica banquette was carried out for the first time using high-resolution UAV photogrammetry combined with field sampling and compositional and chemical analysis. The combined approach allowed a reliable estimation of the amo…
Detection and mapping of "blue carbon" reservoir storage in Posidonia oceanica dead matte in front of an extensive industrial area
2015
The endemic Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica is the only marine phanerogam able to form matte, a biogenic structure representing important long-term “blue carbon” reservoir. Natural and/or anthropogenic factors can lead to the formation of a regressive structure, called “dead matte”, resulting from the disappearance of living shoots in the upper part of the matte. In the framework of TETIDE project (PON01_03112, www.progettotetide.it) a multiple sensors acoustic survey -multibeam sonar (MBS), side scan sonar (SSS), sub-bottom profiler (SBP) -was carried out in a portion of the Gulf of Augusta (Sicily, Southern Ionian Sea). The aim of investigation was to estimate the extent of dead…
Plant and sediment properties in seagrass meadows from two Mediterranean CO2 vents: Implications for carbon storage capacity of acidified oceans
2019
Abstract Assessing the status of important carbon sinks such as seagrass meadows is of primary importance when dealing with potential climate change mitigation strategies. This study examined plant and sediment properties in seagrass meadows (Cymodocea nodosa (Ucria) Asch.) from two high pCO2–low pH Mediterranean vent systems, located at Milos (Greece) and Vulcano (Italy) Islands, providing insights on carbon storage potential in future acidified oceans. Contrary to what has been suggested, carbon content (both inorganic and organic) and its surficial accumulation decreased at high pCO2–low pH in comparison with controls. The decrease in inorganic carbon may result from the higher solubilit…