OOS 24 - Saltwater Intrusion and Carbon Loss: Identifying Biogeochemical Attributes That Drive Differential Responses Among Coastal Wetlands

Wednesday, August 10, 2016: 1:30 PM-5:00 PM
Grand Floridian Blrm G, Ft Lauderdale Convention Center
Organizer:
John S. Kominoski, Florida International University
Moderator:
Sean P. Charles, Florida International University
Coastal wetland ecosystems are increasingly exposed to saltwater intrusion. Resilience to saltwater intrusion among coastal wetlands depends largely on how biogeochemical changes alter net ecosystem carbon (C) balance. Coastal forests and marshes are characterized by high net ecosystem productivity, making these ecosystems a global conservation priority for C storage. These ecosystems store up to 50× more C than terrestrial forests per unit area, yet account for less than 1% of earth’s land area. Manipulative experiments among multiple coastal wetlands in North America that test ecosystem responses to elevated salinity are finding divergent effects on above and belowground C storage, soil biogeochemistry, and microbial processes. The objective of this oral session is to bring together research from across multiple coastal wetland ecosystems to characterize the biogeochemical attributes of saltwater intrusion that most contribute to changes in C fluxes (storage and losses) from multiple ecosystem compartments (e.g., soils, aquatic biofilms, vascular plants). We will specifically address how changes in C storage and losses are driven by variation in saltwater intrusion, sea level rise, and associated biogeochemical changes. Understanding how the magnitude and variance in biogeochemical attributes of saltwater influence ecosystem-level C processes is critical given imminent sea level rise.
1:30 PM
 SALTEx: Seawater Addition Long Term Experiment: Testing the effects of press versu pulse addition of saltwater intrusion using a manipulative, replicated field experiment
Christopher B. Craft, Indiana University; Ellen R. Herbert, Virginia Institute of Marine Science; Fan Li, University of Houston; Sarah Widney, Indiana University; Joseph Schubauer-Berigan, U.S. EPA; Steven C. Pennings, University of Houston; Merryl Alber, University of Georgia; Dontrece Smith, University of Georgia Marine Institute
1:50 PM
 The importance of 'ambient salinity' when predicting the response of coastal wetland biogeochemistry to sea level rise
Lisa G. Chambers, University of Central Florida; Todd Z. Osborne, University of Florida; Chun Wang, Fujian Normal University; Chuan Tong, Fujian Normal University; K Ramesh Reddy, University of Florida; Tiffany G. Troxler, Florida International University; Stephen Davis, Everglades Foundation
2:10 PM
 Testing subsidy-stress effects of saltwater intrusion on microbial processing of carbon and nutrients in freshwater wetland soils
Shelby Servais, Florida International University; Benjamin J. Wilson, Florida International University; Viviana Mazzei, Florida International University; Evelyn E. Gaiser, Florida International University; John S. Kominoski, Florida International University; Tiffany G. Troxler, Florida International University; Sean P. Charles, Florida International University
2:30 PM
 Experimental saltwater intrusion decreases periphyton production in a subtropical freshwater wetland
Viviana Mazzei, Florida International University; Evelyn E. Gaiser, Florida International University; John Kominoski, Florida International University; Benjamin J. Wilson, Florida International University; Shelby Servais, Florida International University; Tiffany G. Troxler, Florida International University
2:50 PM
 Simulated saltwater intrusion decreases net ecosystem exchange in coastal marshes, dampening their capacity to store carbon
Benjamin J. Wilson, Florida International University; Shelby M. Servais, Florida International University; Sean P. Charles, Florida International University; Tiffany G. Troxler, Florida International University; John S. Kominoski, Florida International University; Evelyn E. Gaiser, Florida International University; Fred Sklar, South Florida Water Management District
3:10 PM
3:20 PM
 Assessing environmental drivers of DOC fluxes in the Shark River estuary: Modeling the effects of climate, water management, and salinity
Peter Regier, Florida International University; Henry Briceno, Florida International University; Rudolf Jaffé, Florida International University
3:40 PM
 Novel biogeochemical regimes in a restored coastal wetland: Fertilizer legacies meet saltwater incursion
Marcelo Ardon, East Carolina University; Tori Goehrig, East Carolina University; Eva Gallardo, East Carolina University; Ashley M. Helton, University of Conneticut; Emily S. Bernhardt, Duke University
4:00 PM
 Coastal subsidence as a function of salinity intrusion and peat decomposition in a karst environment
Fred Sklar, South Florida Water Management District; Carlos Coronado, South Florida Water Management District; Tiffany G. Troxler, Florida International University; Joseph Stachelek, South Florida Watermanagement DIstrict; Stephen Kelly, South Florida Water Management District; John S. Kominoski, Florida International University