Marshes & “Blue Carbon”

Groundwater-surface water exchange in tidal wetlands mediates the transport of dissolved carbon to estuarine and shelf waters. This lateral export of “blue carbon”, or carbon “outwelling”, represents a major sink of TA, DIC, and DOC in the coastal ocean. With funds from NSF Chemical Oceanography, we are studying the driving forces of groundwater-surface water exchange in salt marsh habitats and how dissolved carbon is transformed and exported along groundwater flowpaths.