Anthropogenic-estuarine interactions cause disproportionate greenhouse gas production: a review of the evidence base

Brown, A. M., Bass, A. M. and Pickard, A. E. (2022) Anthropogenic-estuarine interactions cause disproportionate greenhouse gas production: a review of the evidence base. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 174, 113240. (doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.113240) (PMID:35090288)

Abstract

Biologically productive regions such as estuaries and coastal areas, even though they only cover a small percentage of the world's oceans, contribute significantly to methane and nitrous oxide emissions. This paper synthesises greenhouse gas data measured in UK estuary studies, highlighting that urban wastewater loading is significantly correlated with both methane (P < 0.001) and nitrous oxide (P < 0.005) concentrations. It demonstrates that specific estuary typologies render them more sensitive to anthropogenic influences on greenhouse gas production, particularly estuaries that experience low oxygen levels due to reduced mixing and stratification or high sediment oxygen demand. Significantly, we find that estuaries with high urban wastewater loading may be hidden sources of greenhouse gases globally. Synthesising available information, a conceptual model for greenhouse gas concentrations in estuaries with different morphologies and mixing regimes is presented. Applications of this model should help identification of estuaries susceptible to anthropogenic impacts and potential hotspots for greenhouse gas emissions.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This works was funded by a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) studentship through the IAPETUS Doctoral Training Partnership Grant No.: NE/S007431/1. AP's input was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council as part of the LOCATE project. CEH Grant No.: NEC05686, NOC Grant No.: NE/N018087/1.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Bass, Dr Adrian
• Authors: Brown, A. M., Bass, A. M., and Pickard, A. E.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences
• Journal Name: Marine Pollution Bulletin
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0025-326X
• ISSN (Online): 1879-3363
• Published Online: 14 January 2022
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Marine Pollution Bulletin 174: 113240
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License