How can blue carbon burial in seagrass meadows increase long-term, net sequestration of carbon? A critical review

Abstract

Blue carbon sequestration in seagrass meadows has been proposed as a low-risk, nature-based solution to offset carbon emissions and reduce the effects of climate change. Although the timescale of seagrass carbon burial is too short to offset emissions of ancient fossil fuel carbon, it has a role to play in reaching net zero within the modern carbon cycle. This review documents and discusses recent advances (from 2015 onwards) in the field of seagrass blue carbon. The net burial of carbon is affected by seagrass species, meadow connectivity, sediment bioturbation, grainsize, the energy of the local environment, and calcium carbonate formation. The burial rate of organic carbon can be calculated as the product of the sediment accumulation rate below the mixed layer and the burial concentration of organic carbon attributable to seagrass. A combination of biomarkers can identify seagrass material more precisely than bulk isotopes alone. The main threats related to climate change are sea-level rise, leading to a shoreline squeeze, and temperature rise, particularly during extreme events such as heat domes. In conclusion, some of the disagreement in the literature over methodology and the main controls on organic carbon burial likely results from real, regional differences in seagrasses and their habitat. Inter-regional collaboration could help to resolve the methodological differences and provide a more robust understanding of the global role of blue carbon sequestration in seagrass meadows.