Articles | Volume 23, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-851-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-851-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
30 Jan 2026
Research article |
| 30 Jan 2026
| 30 Jan 2026
Carbon sequestration along a gradient of tidal marsh degradation in response to sea level rise
Mona Huyzentruyt
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
ECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
Maarten Wens
ECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
Gregory S. Fivash
ECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
David Walters
U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Laurel, MD, USA
Steven Bouillon
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Joel Carr
U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Laurel, MD, USA
Glenn Guntenspergen
U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Duluth, MN, USA
Matt L. Kirwan
Virginia Institute of Marine Science, William & Mary, Gloucester Point, Virginia, USA
Stijn Temmerman
ECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
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Short summary
Vegetated environments from forests to peatlands store carbon in the soil, which mitigates climate change. But which environment does this best? In this study, we show how the levees of tidal marshes are one of the most effective carbon sequestering environments in the world. This is because soil water-logging and high salinity inhibits carbon degradation while the levee fosters fast vegetation growth, complimented also by the preferential settlement of carbon-rich sediments on the marsh levee.
Vegetated environments from forests to peatlands store carbon in the soil, which mitigates...
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