Chesapeake Bay Inorganic Carbon: Spatial Distribution and Seasonal Variability

Few estuaries have inorganic carbon datasets with sufficient spatial and temporal coverage for identifying acidification baselines, seasonal cycles and trends. The Chesapeake Bay, though one of the most well-studied estuarine systems in the world, is no exception. To date, there have only been obser...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in Marine Science 2019-03, Vol.6
Main Authors: Brodeur, Jean R., Chen, Baoshan, Su, Jianzhong, Xu, Yuan-Yuan, Hussain, Najid, Scaboo, K. Michael, Zhang, Yafeng, Testa, Jeremy M., Cai, Wei-Jun
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acidification
Alkalinity
Aquatic ecosystems
Bottom water
Brackishwater environment
Calcium carbonate
carbon budget
Carbon dioxide
Chesapeake Bay
Coastal ecosystems
Cruises
Dissolved inorganic carbon
Distribution
Environmental science
Estuaries
estuarine acidification
Estuarine dynamics
Eutrophication
export flux
Hypoxia
inorganic carbon
Laboratories
Metabolism
Nutrients
Observational studies
Organic matter
pH effects
Remineralization
Removal
Respiration
River discharge
River flow
Rivers
Salinity
Seasonal distribution
Seasonal variation
Seasonal variations
Seasons
Spatial distribution
Trends
Water quality
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Summary:Few estuaries have inorganic carbon datasets with sufficient spatial and temporal coverage for identifying acidification baselines, seasonal cycles and trends. The Chesapeake Bay, though one of the most well-studied estuarine systems in the world, is no exception. To date, there have only been observational studies of inorganic carbon distribution and flux in lower bay sub-estuaries. Here, we address this knowledge gap with results from the first complete observational study of inorganic carbon along the main stem. Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) increased from surface to bottom and north to south over the course of 2016, mainly driven by seasonal changes in river discharge, mixing, and biological carbon dioxide (CO2) removal at the surface and release in the subsurface. Upper, mid- and lower bay DIC and TA ranged from 1000-1300, 1300-1800, and 1700-1900 µmol kg-1. The pH range was large, with maximum values of 8.5 at the surface and minimums as low as 7.1 in bottom water in the upper and mid-bay. Seasonally, the upper bay was the most variable for DIC and TA, but pH was more variable in the mid-bay. Our results reveal that low pH is a continuing concern, despite reductions in nutrient inputs. There was active internal recycling of DIC and TA, with a large inorganic carbon removal in the upper bay and at salinities
ISSN:2296-7745
2296-7745
DOI:10.3389/fmars.2019.00099