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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Shrimp ponds lead to massive loss of soil carbon and greenhouse gas emissions in northeastern Brazilian mangroves

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Author(s):
Kauffman, J. Boone [1] ; Bernardino, Angelo F. [2] ; Ferreira, Tiago O. [3] ; Bolton, Nicholas W. [4, 5] ; Gomes, Luiz Eduardo de O. [2] ; Nobrega, Gabriel Nuto [3]
Total Authors: 6
Affiliation:
[1] Oregon State Univ, Dept Fisheries & Wildlife, Corvallis, OR 97331 - USA
[2] Fed Univ Espirito do Santo, Dept Oceanog, Vitoria, ES - Brazil
[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Soil Sci Dept, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, Piracicaba, SP - Brazil
[4] Univ Georgia, DB Warnell Sch Forestry & Nat Resources, Athens, GA 30602 - USA
[5] Michigan Technol Univ, Sch Forest Resources & Environm Sci, Houghton, MI 49931 - USA
Total Affiliations: 5
Document type: Journal article
Source: ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION; v. 8, n. 11, p. 5530-5540, JUN 2018.
Web of Science Citations: 14
Abstract

Mangroves of the semiarid Caatinga region of northeastern Brazil are being rapidly converted to shrimp pond aquaculture. To determine ecosystem carbon stocks and potential greenhouse gas emissions from this widespread land use, we measured carbon stocks of eight mangrove forests and three shrimp ponds in the Acarau and Jaguaribe watersheds in Ceara state, Brazil. The shrimp ponds were paired with adjacent intact mangroves to ascertain carbon losses and potential emissions from land conversion. The mean total ecosystem carbon stock of mangroves in this semiarid tropical landscape was 413 +/- 94 Mg C/ha. There were highly significant differences in the ecosystem carbon stocks between the two sampled estuaries suggesting caution when extrapolating carbon stock across different estuaries even in the same landscape. Conversion of mangroves to shrimp ponds resulted in losses of 58%-82% of the ecosystem carbon stocks. The mean potential emissions arising from mangrove conversion to shrimp ponds was 1,390 Mg CO(2)e/ha. Carbon losses were largely from soils which accounted for 81% of the total emission. Losses from soils >100cm in depth accounted for 33% of the total ecosystem carbon loss. Soil carbon losses from shrimp pond conversion are equivalent to about 182years of soil carbon accumulation. Losses from mangrove conversion are about 10-fold greater than emissions from conversion of upland tropical dry forest in the Brazilian Caatinga underscoring the potential value for their inclusion in climate change mitigation activities. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 17/08101-1 - Recovery of carbon stock and ecosystemic functions in replanted mangroves
Grantee:Gabriel Nuto Nóbrega
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral