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The Sources of Organic Matter in Seagrass Sediments and Their Contribution to Carbon Stocks in the Spermonde Islands, Indonesia

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Abstract

Seagrass ecosystems have a potential role in climate change mitigation due to their ability to store high amount of carbon, particularly in the sediment. Studying the factors and mechanisms responsible for this storing capacity is essential to understand seagrass carbon sink function. Therefore, in this study, we identified the sources of organic carbon (Corg) in seagrass sediments and the implication to Corg stocks from four islands in the Spermonde Islands that located at different zones. We used the Bayesian stable isotope mixing model to estimate the proportional contribution of different sources to sediment carbon. Seagrass meadows that located in adjacent to high anthropogenic activities (deforestation and aquacultures) with direct exposure to wave actions, such as on the Bauluang Island, accumulated organic carbon that derived from multiple sources, where phytoplankton contributed the highest, while on the other three islands that are relatively protected from wave actions, the highest contribution (~ 75%) was from autochthonous production (seagrass-derived). Sediment Corg stocks vary spatially, ranging from 11.9 to 32.1 Mg C ha−1 (based on the obtained depth of 20–55 cm), or 40.5 to 83.5 Mg C ha−1 if extrapolated to 1 m depth. The variability of sediment properties and Corg stocks in this study is not solely determined by the geographical differences (inshore, nearshore and offshore islands), but also influenced by other local factors such as hydrodynamics that control the distribution of carbon sources, anthropogenic pressures and species composition. These factors should be taken into account when developing coastal management strategies, as efforts are being undertaken to include coastal ecosystems (including seagrass ecosystems) on the National Green House Gasses Reduction Strategy.

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Data sources: 1—Rozaimi et al. (2017), 2—Phang et al. (2015), 3—Fourqurean et al. (2012a), 4—Fourqurean et al. (2012b), 5—Miyajima et al. (2015)

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by Marine Research Center, Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Republic of Indonesia (DIPA-APBNP) year 2015, in collaboration with the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research, Bremen, Germany, under “The Science for Indonesian Marine Ecosystems and Fisheries (SIMEF) Project 2014.” The authors would like to thank Blue Carbon Indonesia team—Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries for the support during field survey, and Dorothee Dasbach for laboratory assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Marine Research Center, Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Jakarta, Indonesia

    Yusmiana P. Rahayu, Tubagus Solihuddin, Mariska A. Kusumaningtyas, Restu Nur Afi Ati & Hadiwijaya L. Salim

  2. The Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT), Bremen, Germany

    Tim Rixen

  3. Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs, Jakarta, Indonesia

    Andreas A. Hutahaean

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  1. Yusmiana P. Rahayu
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Correspondence to Yusmiana P. Rahayu or Mariska A. Kusumaningtyas.

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Rahayu, Y.P., Solihuddin, T., Kusumaningtyas, M.A. et al. The Sources of Organic Matter in Seagrass Sediments and Their Contribution to Carbon Stocks in the Spermonde Islands, Indonesia. Aquat Geochem 25, 161–178 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10498-019-09358-7

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