Rising Seas Could Turn Mangroves From Climate Heroes Into Carbon Sources
->SciTechDaily | More on "Mangroves sea level carbon emissions" at BigEarthData.ai | #ClimateChange #RisingSea #Mangrove
Rising seas could turn mangroves from carbon-storing climate allies into unexpected carbon emitters. Mangroves are among the most effective natural systems for capturing and storing carbon, but new research suggests that rising sea levels could significantly reduce that benefit and may even cause these coastal forests to release carbon in the future. Made up of salt-tolerant plants that thrive along coastlines, mangroves occupy less than 1% of Earth’s surface. Despite their relatively small footprint, they hold roughly 15% of all carbon stored in the ocean, with most of that carbon locked away in the soils beneath them. Because of this remarkable capacity, mangroves play an important role in efforts to slow climate change. Earlier studies have suggested that higher sea levels might actually increase carbon storage in mangrove ecosystems. However, new findings indicate the overall picture may be far more complex. New Model Examines Entire Mangrove Forests Researchers led by the University of Exeter, working with collaborators in Colombia and the United States, created a new modeling approach to explore how rising seas could affect carbon storage across whole mangrove forests rather than at individual locations. Their analysis found that while some areas may temporarily accumulate more carbon as sea...
