Budgets for Selected Estuaries

Estuaries and the mouths of large river systems are located at an important interface between land and ocean where terrestrially derived materials can be altered before entering continental shelves. Continental shelves provide an estimated net CO2 sink of 0.1 Pg C y 1 (lPg = 1015g), with an export that may be as much as 20% of the oceanic biological pump (Liu et al., 2000). Unfortunately, ocean margins have only recently started to receive the appropriate attention they deserve in the context of their importance in the global C budget (Bauer and Druffel, 1998 Liu et al., 2000) (more details on this in chapter 16). 

Region/reserve/ site Mean SE Mean SE Mean SE 

North Inlet—Winyah Bay, Thousand Acre Creek 4.7 0.3 5.6 0.3 -3.0 0.2 

Regression analysis average for all of Hudson River Model result average for all land uses Model result forest lands only Model result agricultural lands only Model result urban and suburban lands only 

Calculated by difference ranges are set by combinations of the low and high denitrification estimates (which lead to high or low estimates of autochthonous organic C) and upper and lower estimates of burial. Values have been rounded to two or three significant figures. 

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