OCG 301 Lecture Notes - Lecture 17: Blue Carbon, Salt Marsh, Urban Runoff
Document Summary
Estuaries are the nursery for many fish and shellfish. Oxygen poor environments lead to slow degradation of carbon. Salt marsh, mangrove and seagrass have extremely high carbon burial rates relative to terrestrial environments. Noaa working to include protocols for inclusion of blue carbon habitats in carbon markets. Ecosystem services: benefits the natural ecosystem provide to the people. Mangroves, timber, algae = minerals + health products. Regulation services: benefits ecosystem in regulation our environment. Coastal protection, erosion prevention, water purification, carbon storage. Cultural services : the many non-material benefits derived from nature. Recreation, beauty, spiritual, intellectual and cultural benefits. Estuary: a semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and within which sea water is measurably diluted with fresh water derived from land drainage. Large salinity and density difference between river and ocean. Drowned river mouths: chesapeake bay + narragansett bay. Glacial valleys flooded by rising sea level. Drowned river valleys with high sedimentation rates.
