Seasonal Variability of Calcium Carbonate Precipitation and Dissolution in Shallow Coral Reef Sediments

Shallow, permeable calcium carbonate (CaCO3) sediments make up a large proportion of the benthic cover on coral reefs and account for a large fraction of the standing stock of CaCO3. There have been a number of laboratory, mesocosm, and in situ studies examining shallow sediment metabolism and dissolution, but none of these have considered seasonal variability. Advective benthic chambers were used to measure in situ net community calcification (NCC) rates of CaCO3 sediments on Heron Island, Australia (Great Barrier Reef) over an annual cycle. Sediments were, on average, net precipitating during the day and net dissolving at night throughout the year. Night dissolution rates (−NCCNIGHT) were highest in the austral autumn and lowest in the austral winter driven by changes in respiration (R) and to a lesser extent temperature and Ωarag/pH. Similarly, precipitation during the day (+NCCDAY) was highest in March and lowest in winter, driven primarily by benthic net primary production (NPP) and temperature. On average, sediments were net precipitating over a diel cycle (NCC24h) but shifted to net dissolving in July and December. This shift was largely caused by the differential effects of seasonal cycles in organic metabolism and carbonate chemistry on NCCDAY and NCCNIGHT. The results from this study highlight the large variability in sediment CaCO3 dynamics and the need to include repeated measurements over different months and seasons, particularly in shallow reef systems that can experience large swings in light, temperature, and carbonate chemistry

Hysteresis Between Coral Reef Calcification and the Seawater Aragonite Saturation State

Some predictions of how ocean acidification (OA) will affect coral reefs assume a linear functional relationship between the ambient seawater aragonite saturation state (Ωa) and net ecosystem calcification (NEC). We quantified NEC in a healthy coral reef lagoon in the Great Barrier Reef during different times of the day. Our observations revealed a diel hysteresis pattern in the NEC versus Ωa relationship, with peak NEC rates occurring before the Ωa peak and relatively steady nighttime NEC in spite of variable Ωa. Net ecosystem production had stronger correlations with NEC than light, temperature, nutrients, pH, and Ωa. The observed hysteresis may represent an overlooked challenge for predicting the effects of OA on coral reefs. If widespread, the hysteresis could prevent the use of a linear extrapolation to determine critical Ωa threshold levels required to shift coral reefs from a net calcifying to a net dissolving state

Groundwater and Porewater as Major Sources of Alkalinity to a Fringing Coral Reef Lagoon (Muri Lagoon, Cook Islands)

To better predict how ocean acidification will affect coral reefs, it is important to understand how biogeochemical cycles on reefs alter carbonate chemistry over various temporal and spatial scales. This study quantifies the contribution of shallow porewater exchange (as quantified from advective chamber incubations) and fresh groundwater discharge (as traced by 222Rn) to total alkalinity (TA) dynamics on a fringing coral reef lagoon along the southern Pacific island of Rarotonga over a tidal and diel cycle. Benthic alkalinity fluxes were affected by the advective circulation of water through permeable sediments, with net daily flux rates of carbonate alkalinity ranging from −1.55 to 7.76 mmol m−2 d−1, depending on the advection rate. Submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) was a source of TA to the lagoon, with the highest flux rates measured at low tide, and an average daily TA flux of 1080 mmol m−2 d−1 at the sampling site. Both sources of TA were important on a reef-wide basis, although SGD acted solely as a delivery mechanism of TA to the lagoon, while porewater advection was either a sink or source of TA dependent on the time of day. This study describes overlooked sources of TA to coral reef ecosystems that can potentially alter water column carbonate chemistry. We suggest that porewater and groundwater fluxes of TA should be taken into account in ocean acidification models in order to properly address changing carbonate chemistry within coral reef ecosystems

Carbon Cycling Hysteresis in Permeable Carbonate Sands over a Diel Cycle: Implications for Ocean Acidification

Dissolved inorganic carbon, dissolved oxygen, H+, and alkalinity fluxes from permeable carbonate sediments at Heron Island (Great Barrier Reef) were measured over one diel cycle using benthic chambers designed to induce advective pore‐water exchange. A complex hysteretic pattern between carbonate precipitation and dissolution in sands and the aragonite saturation state (ΩAr) of the overlying chamber water was observed throughout the incubations. During the day, precipitation followed a hysteretic pattern based on the incidence of photosynthetically active radiation with lower precipitation rates in the morning than in the afternoon. The observed diel hysteresis seems to reflect a complex interaction between photosynthesis and respiration rather than ΩAr of the overlying water as the main driver of carbonate precipitation and dissolution within these permeable sediments. Changes in flux rates over a diel cycle demonstrate the importance of taking into account the short‐term variability of benthic metabolism when calculating net daily flux rates. Based on one diel cycle, the sediments were a net daily source of alkalinity to the water column (5.13 to 8.84 mmol m−2 d−1, depending on advection rates), and advection had a net stimulatory effect on carbonate dissolution. The enhanced alkalinity release associated with benthic metabolism and pore‐water advection may partially buffer shallow coral reef ecosystems against ocean acidification on a local scale

Drivers of pCO2 Variability in Two Contrasting Coral Reef Lagoons: The Influence of Submarine Groundwater Discharge

The impact of groundwater on pCO2 variability was assessed in two coral reef lagoons with distinct drivers of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD). Diel variability of pCO2 in the two ecosystems was explained by a combination of biological drivers and SGD inputs. In Rarotonga, a South Pacific volcanic island, 222Rn‐derived SGD was driven primarily by a steep terrestrial hydraulic gradient, and the water column was influenced by the high pCO2 (5501 µatm) of the fresh groundwater. In Heron Island, a Great Barrier Reef coral cay, SGD was dominated by seawater recirculation through the sediments (i.e., tidal pumping), and pCO2 was mainly impacted through the stimulation of biological processes. The Rarotonga water column had a higher average pCO2 (549 µatm) than Heron Island (471 µatm). However, pCO2 exhibited a greater diel range in Heron Island (778 µatm) than in Rarotonga (507 µatm). The Rarotonga water column received 29.0 ± 8.2 mmol free‐CO2 m−2 d−1 from SGD, while the Heron Island water column received 12.1 ± 4.2 mmol free‐CO2 m−2 d−1. Over the course of this study, both systems were sources of CO2 to the atmosphere with SGD‐derived free‐CO2 most likely contributing a large portion to the air‐sea CO2 flux. Studies measuring the carbon chemistry of coral reefs (e.g., metabolism and calcification rates) may need to consider the effects of groundwater inputs on water column carbonate chemistry. Local drivers of coral reef carbonate chemistry such as SGD may offer more approachable management solutions to mitigating the effects of ocean acidification on coral reefs

Benthic Carbon Mineralization and Nutrient Turnover in a Scottish Sea Loch: An Integrative In Situ Study

© 2016, The Author(s). Based on in situ microprofiles, chamber incubations and eddy covariance measurements, we investigated the benthic carbon mineralization and nutrient regeneration in a ~65-m-deep sedimentation basin of Loch Etive, UK. The sediment hosted a considerable amount of infauna that was dominated by the brittle star A. filiformis. The numerous burrows were intensively irrigated enhancing the benthic in situ O2 uptake by ~50 %, and inducing highly variable redox conditions and O2 distribution in the surface sediment as also documented by complementary laboratory-based planar optode measurements. The average benthic O2 exchange as derived by chamber incubations and the eddy covariance approach were similar (14.9 ± 2.5 and 13.1 ± 9.0 mmol m−2 day−1) providing confidence in the two measuring approaches. Moreover, the non-invasive eddy approach revealed a flow-dependent benthic O2 flux that was partly ascribed to enhanced ventilation of infauna burrows during periods of elevated flow rates. The ratio in exchange rates of ΣCO2 and O2 was close to unity, confirming that the O2 uptake was a good proxy for the benthic carbon mineralization in this setting. The infauna activity resulted in highly dynamic redox conditions that presumably facilitated an efficient degradation of both terrestrial and marine-derived organic material. The complex O2 dynamics of the burrow environment also concurrently stimulated nitrification and coupled denitrification rates making the sediment an efficient sink for bioavailable nitrogen. Furthermore, bioturbation mediated a high efflux of dissolved phosphorus and silicate. The study documents a high spatial and temporal variation in benthic solute exchange with important implications for benthic turnover of organic carbon and nutrients. However, more long-term in situ investigations with like approaches are required to fully understand how environmental events and spatio-temporal variations interrelate to the overall biogeochemical functioning of coastal sediments

Benthic Carbon Mineralization and Nutrient Turnover in a Scottish Sea Loch: An Integrative In Situ Study

© 2016, The Author(s). Based on in situ microprofiles, chamber incubations and eddy covariance measurements, we investigated the benthic carbon mineralization and nutrient regeneration in a ~65-m-deep sedimentation basin of Loch Etive, UK. The sediment hosted a considerable amount of infauna that was dominated by the brittle star A. filiformis. The numerous burrows were intensively irrigated enhancing the benthic in situ O2 uptake by ~50 %, and inducing highly variable redox conditions and O2 distribution in the surface sediment as also documented by complementary laboratory-based planar optode measurements. The average benthic O2 exchange as derived by chamber incubations and the eddy covariance approach were similar (14.9 ± 2.5 and 13.1 ± 9.0 mmol m−2 day−1) providing confidence in the two measuring approaches. Moreover, the non-invasive eddy approach revealed a flow-dependent benthic O2 flux that was partly ascribed to enhanced ventilation of infauna burrows during periods of elevated flow rates. The ratio in exchange rates of ΣCO2 and O2 was close to unity, confirming that the O2 uptake was a good proxy for the benthic carbon mineralization in this setting. The infauna activity resulted in highly dynamic redox conditions that presumably facilitated an efficient degradation of both terrestrial and marine-derived organic material. The complex O2 dynamics of the burrow environment also concurrently stimulated nitrification and coupled denitrification rates making the sediment an efficient sink for bioavailable nitrogen. Furthermore, bioturbation mediated a high efflux of dissolved phosphorus and silicate. The study documents a high spatial and temporal variation in benthic solute exchange with important implications for benthic turnover of organic carbon and nutrients. However, more long-term in situ investigations with like approaches are required to fully understand how environmental events and spatio-temporal variations interrelate to the overall biogeochemical functioning of coastal sediments

Coral Reefs Will Transition to Net Dissolving Before End of Century

Ocean acidification refers to the lowering of the ocean’s pH due to the uptake of anthropogenic CO2 from the atmosphere. Coral reef calcification is expected to decrease as the oceans become more acidic. Dissolving calcium carbonate (CaCO3) sands could greatly exacerbate reef loss associated with reduced calcification but is presently poorly constrained. Here we show that CaCO3 dissolution in reef sediments across five globally distributed sites is negatively correlated with the aragonite saturation state (Ωar) of overlying seawater and that CaCO3 sediment dissolution is 10-fold more sensitive to ocean acidification than coral calcification. Consequently, reef sediments globally will transition from net precipitation to net dissolution when seawater Ωar reaches 2.92 ± 0.16 (expected circa 2050 CE). Notably, some reefs are already experiencing net sediment dissolution

Carbon amendment stimulates benthic nitrogen cycling during the bioremediation of particulate aquaculture waste

The treatment of organic wastes remains one of the key sustainability challenges facing the growing global aquaculture industry. Bioremediation systems based on coupled bioturbation-microbial processing offer a promising route for waste management. We present, for the first time, a combined biogeochemical-molecular analysis of the short-term performance of one such system that is designed to receive nitrogen-rich particulate aquaculture wastes. Using sea cucumbers (Holothuria scabra) as a model bioturbator we provide evidence that adjusting the waste CgN from 5g1 to 20g1 promoted a shift in nitrogen cycling pathways towards the dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), resulting in net NH4+ efflux from the sediment. The carbon amended treatment exhibited an overall net N2 uptake, whereas the control receiving only aquaculture waste exhibited net N2 production, suggesting that carbon supplementation enhanced nitrogen fixation. The higher NH4+ efflux and N2 uptake was further supported by meta-genome predictions that indicate that organic-carbon addition stimulated DNRA over denitrification. These findings indicate that carbon addition may potentially result in greater retention of nitrogen within the system; however, longer-term trials are necessary to determine whether this nitrogen retention is translated into improved sea cucumber biomass yields. Whether this truly constitutes a remediation process is open for debate as there remains the risk that any increased nitrogen retention may be temporary, with any subsequent release potentially raising the eutrophication risk. Longer and larger-scale trials are required before this approach may be validated with the complexities of the in-system nitrogen cycle being fully understood