Sponsors: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) NASA New York City Research Initiative (NYCRI) Contributors: Dr. Dorothy Peteet Miriam Jones GS Sanpisa Sritrairat GS Argie Miller HST Tamika Tannis HSS ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION MATERIALS & METHODS Sediment cores were taken from the Swanson Fen, Dark Bank, and Phalarope wetlands in Alaska, as well as from the Jamaica Bay, Yellow Bar, Piermont, and Tivoli wetlands along the Hudson River in New York. They were sub-sampled at intervals of several centimeters. LOI is ratio of organic matter to non-organic matter. (mass of dry sediment – mass of burned sediment(400ºC)) / (mass of dry sediment) LOI was multiplied by bulk density and the depth of the subsample interval to find organic matter accumulation rates for each sample. C-14 dating was used to find sedimentation rates. Analysis of Organic Matter Accumulation in Wetlands Core Sites Phalarope Swanson Fen Dark Bank Piermont Marsh Tivoli Bays Joco & Yellow Bar (Jamaica Bay) DATA & GRAPHS DISCUSSION & CONCLUSION REFERENCES Churma, Gail L., Anisfeld, Shimon C., Cahoon, Donald R., Lynch, James C.(2003): Global carbon sequestration in tidal, saline wetland soils: Global Biogeochemical Cycles, Vol. 17, No. 4, 1111, doi: /2002GB Connor Richard F., Chmura, Gail L., and C. Beth Beecher, C. Beth (December 2001): Carbon accumulation in Bay of Fundy salt marshes: Implications for restoration of reclaimed marshes; Global Biogeochemical Cycles, Vol. 15, No.4, Pages Roulet, Nigel T., Lafleurs, Peter M., Richard, Pierre J.H., Moore, Tim R., Humphreys, Elyn R., Bubier, Jill (2007): Contempory carbon balance and late Holocene carbon accumulation in a northern peatland: Global Change Biology: 13, , doi: /j x Yu, Zicheng, Vitt, Dale H., Campbell, Ian D. Apps, Michael J.(2003): Understanding Holocene peat accumulation pattern of continental fens in western Canada: Canadian Journal of Botany, 81: : dio: /B Paleoecology and paleoclimatology are sciences in which analyses of pollen, spores, fossils, sub fossils, and sediment samples are used to reconstruct ecosystems and climates of the past. This study focuses on analyses of organic matter and carbon accumulation rates in three Alaskan wetlands and four wetlands from New York. This study aims at understanding how differences in vegetation type and climate influence carbon storage both spatially and temporally. This information can help scientists better understand what may happen to wetlands as a result of climate change and how that will affect carbon storage and its role in the global carbon cycle. We conduct this study to answer the following questions: 1. What is the organic matter accumulation rate and carbon storage ability of wetlands in Alaska and New York? How do they compare and contrast? 2. How do organic matter accumulation rates and carbon storage data reflect changes and differences in the climate and ecosystem? Figure 1. Alaskan core sitesFigure 2. New York core sites Figure 3. Graph shows decreasing accumulation rate over time Figure 4. Graph shows increasing accumulation rate over time Figure 6. Roughly constant accumulation rate over time Figure 7. Graph shows increasing accumulation rate over time Figure 8. Graph shows roughly constant accumulation rate over time Figure 10. Piermont Marsh Figure 11. A section of a core Figure 12. Core samples Swanson Fen total peat accumulation is higher than Dark Bank, but the convex shape of the curve at Swanson Fen indicates decreasing rate of peat accumulation through time, while Dark Bank shows an increasing rate of peat accumulation through time. Much higher precipitation and snowfall at Dark Bank may explain this difference. Yellow Bar and Joco marshes have much more organic matter by mass than Tivoli Bays marsh. Yellow Bar and Joco are from the same area, yet Joco’s accumulation rate is concave whereas Yellow Bar’s is linear. This might be due to the differences in vegetation type. Joco is a high marsh with Spartina patens, Yellow Bar is a low marsh with Spartina alterniflora. Salinity influences the vegetation type, which affects the net accumulation rate, and could explain the differences between Tivoli Bays and Jamaica Bay (Joco and Yellow Bar). Climate and vegetation type may cause higher peat accumulation rates in the New York sites than the Alaska sites. Swanson FenDark Bank Mean Annual Precipitation 48 cm244 cm Mean Annual Snowfall 140 cm301 cm Temperature Extremes -43.9ºC to 33.9ºC -34.4ºC to 30ºC TivoliJamaica Bay Mean Annual Precipitation 103 cm106 cm Mean Annual Snowfall 99 cm56 cm Temperature Extremes -30.6ºC to 39.4ºC-18.9ºC to 40ººC SalinityFresh water marshSalt water marsh VegetationSagittariaSpartina alternaflora, Spartina patens This study analyzed the organic matter accumulation rates of wetlands in Alaska and wetlands in New York. A Loss- On-Ignition (LOI) analysis was done to obtain the amount of organic matter in the sediment samples. Using LOI data and sedimentation rates based on radiocarbon dates, organic matter accumulation values were plotted against time. After a comparing the results from Alaskan wetlands to each other, it is evident that annual precipitation and temperatures affect organic matter accumulation. After comparing the results from the wetlands from New York to each other, we see how salinity and vegetation types also affect organic matter accumulation. Results from Alaskan wetland sites shows that Swanson Fen has higher peat accumulation than Dark Bank. From New York wetlands, the salt marshes at Joco and Yellow Bar have accumulation 100 times higher than Tivoli Bays, the freshwater site. The New York sites have higher peat accumulation than the Alaska sites, potentially related to temperature, growing season length, and vegetation type. Figure 5. Swanson Fen climate versus Dark Bank climate Figure 9. Tivoli climate versus Jamaica Bay climate