Controls on Surface and Downcore Sedimentary Organic Matter in a Constructed Oyster Reef

Melissa Southwell (), Jessica Veenstra, Christopher Blanco, SavannahLynne Bowen, Taryn Chaya, Tyler Cooper-Kolb, Pamela Marcum and Patricia McCaul
Additional contact information
Melissa Southwell: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
Jessica Veenstra: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
Christopher Blanco: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
SavannahLynne Bowen: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
Taryn Chaya: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
Tyler Cooper-Kolb: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA
Pamela Marcum: Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082, USA
Patricia McCaul: Department of Natural Sciences, Flagler College, St. Augustine, FL 32084, USA

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 16, 1-13

Abstract: Oysters provide a suite of important ecosystem services, and recent research shows that oyster restoration rapidly enhances sedimentary organic carbon deposition. In 2012, an oyster reef enhancement project began in the GTM National Estuarine Research Reserve in Northeast FL, USA. We analyzed the spatial and downcore variability in sedimentary organic matter (OM) and particle sizes in the intertidal zone between the reefs and the marsh, along with oyster reef characteristics, to better understand physical and/or biological influences on sediment. Our data indicate that OM in the top 20 cm of sediment cores was negatively correlated with reef age. Similar decreases in particles <63 μm suggest remobilization of sediment, likely driven by the degradation of the reef structure over its approximately 9-year lifetime. Likewise, a survey of surface sediments showed that adjacent reef structural metrics were the best predictor of sediment OM and particle size. These results highlight the importance of reef structure as a control on sedimentary organic carbon deposition and stability in areas where physical energy is relatively high. This result is discussed in the context of implications for carbon budgets and biogeochemical ecosystem services of oysters as a part of living shorelines.

Keywords: oyster restoration; sediment; organic carbon; living shoreline; Crassostrea virginica; sediment deposition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/16/12584/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/16/12584/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:16:p:12584-:d:1220516

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().