Background/Question/Methods
Coastal ecosystems comprise a small portion of total land area, but the soils of these ecosystems are rich in carbon and may therefore play a disproportionately large role in ecosystem-climate feedbacks. The role of these ecosystems in continental carbon exchange is largely unclear because they have been underrepresented in flux monitoring networks.

Results/Conclusions
We monitored ecosystem carbon fluxes and pools for three years in two coastal forests in different stages of succession – a 16-year-old loblolly pine plantation (LP), and a new plantation (clearcut, CC), converted from native mixed hardwood stand. The decrease in ecosystem respiration (from 2160 to 1620 g C m^-2 yr^-1) and soil respiration (from 1970 to 1280 g C m^-2 yr^-1) at CC follows the decrease in post-harvest residue (from 2000 to 730 g C m^-2). In LP, on the other hand, both ER and SR have been relatively stable at 2075-2120 g C m^-2 yr^-1 (ER) and 824-845 g C m^-2 yr^-1 (SR). The interannual differences in temperature and precipitation affected primarily productivity, but have had limited effects on respiration.