Global hotspots of salt marsh change and carbon emissions

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https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05355-z

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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05355-z
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/26533

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UMBC GESTAR II
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2022-11-30

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journal articles
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Campbell, A.D., Fatoyinbo, L., Goldberg, L. et al. Global hotspots of salt marsh change and carbon emissions. Nature (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05355-z

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This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
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Abstract

Salt marshes provide ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration1 , coastal protection2 , sea-level-rise (SLR) adaptation3 and recreation4 . SLR5 , storm events6 , drainage7 and mangrove encroachment8 are known drivers of salt marsh loss. However, the global magnitude and location of changes in salt marsh extent remains uncertain. Here we conduct a global and systematic change analysis of Landsat satellite imagery from the years 2000–2019 to quantify the loss, gain and recovery of salt marsh ecosystems and then estimate the impact of these changes on blue carbon stocks. We show a net salt marsh loss globally, equivalent to an area double the size of Singapore (719 km2 ), with a loss rate of 0.28% year−1 from 2000 to 2019. Net global losses resulted in 16.3 (0.4–33.2, 90% confdence interval) Tg CO2e year−1 emissions from 2000 to 2019 and a 0.045 (−0.14–0.115) Tg CO2e year−1 reduction of carbon burial. Russia and the USA accounted for 64% of salt marsh losses, driven by hurricanes and coastal erosion. Our fndings highlight the vulnerability of salt marsh systems to climatic changes such as SLR and intensifcation of storms and cyclones.