Old carbon routed from land to the atmosphere by global river systems

Joshua F. Dean (), Gemma Coxon, Yanchen Zheng, Jack Bishop, Mark H. Garnett, David Bastviken, Valier Galy, Robert G. M. Spencer, Suzanne E. Tank, Edward T. Tipper, Jorien E. Vonk, Marcus B. Wallin, Liwei Zhang, Chris D. Evans and Robert G. Hilton ()
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Joshua F. Dean: University of Bristol
Gemma Coxon: University of Bristol
Yanchen Zheng: University of Bristol
Jack Bishop: University of Bristol
Mark H. Garnett: Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre
David Bastviken: Linköping University
Valier Galy: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Robert G. M. Spencer: Florida State University
Suzanne E. Tank: University of Alberta
Edward T. Tipper: University of Cambridge
Jorien E. Vonk: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Marcus B. Wallin: Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Liwei Zhang: East China Normal University
Chris D. Evans: UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Robert G. Hilton: University of Oxford

Nature, 2025, vol. 642, issue 8066, 105-111

Abstract: Abstract Rivers and streams are an important pathway in the global carbon cycle, releasing carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) from their water surfaces to the atmosphere1,2. Until now, CO2 and CH4 emitted from rivers were thought to be predominantly derived from recent (sub-decadal) biomass production and, thus, part of ecosystem respiration3–6. Here we combine new and published measurements to create a global database of the radiocarbon content of river dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), CO2 and CH4. Isotopic mass balance of our database suggests that 59 ± 17% of global river CO2 emissions are derived from old carbon (millennial or older), the release of which is linked to river catchment lithology and biome. This previously unrecognized release of old, pre-industrial-aged carbon to the atmosphere from long-term soil, sediment and geologic carbon stores through lateral hydrological routing equates to 1.2 ± 0.3 Pg C year−1, similar in magnitude to terrestrial net ecosystem exchange. A consequence of this flux is a greater than expected net loss of carbon from aged organic matter stores on land. This requires a reassessment of the fate of anthropogenic carbon in terrestrial systems and in global carbon cycle budgets and models.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09023-w

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