Evaluation of the net climate benefits of seagrass meadows at a regional scale

Evaluation of the net climate benefits of seagrass meadows at a regional scale | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Evaluation of the net climate benefits of seagrass meadows at a regional scale Marion Dolivet-Maréchal, Sabine Schmidt, Mathis Cognat, Clara Schübert, and 10 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7184696/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Coastal ecosystems like seagrass meadows play a crucial role in climate regulation by acting as blue carbon sinks with carbon burial rates up to 30–50 times higher than terrestrial forest soils. However, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, such as methane and nitrous oxide, may offset part of these benefits. Comparing seagrass meadows to bare sediments helps identify their specific role as blue carbon ecosystems. By assessing carbon accumulation rates (CAR) and GHG fluxes in Zostera noltei seagrass-covered and bare sediments in the Europe’s largest Zostera noltei meadows (Arcachon bay), we showed that seagrass areas exhibit CAR values that are 2.5 times higher, highlighting their superior carbon burial capacity. However, GHG emissions from seagrass meadows were 3.5 times higher than those from bare sediments, offsetting 29% of the estimated net climate benefit provided by carbon burial across the bay. Hydrodynamic conditions influence this balance: sheltered areas promote organic matter accumulation but also amplify GHG emissions. Despite these trade-offs, Z. noltei meadows still provide a net climate benefit 2.2 times greater than bare sediments, emphasizing their significant contribution to climate regulation. Incorporating GHG flux estimates into blue carbon assessments will improve global model predictions and guide better conservation and restoration strategies. Blue carbon Seagrass meadows Climate regulation Coastal greenhouse gas emissions Carbon burial Carbon cycle Methane fluxes Nitrous oxide fluxes Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7184696","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":489043121,"identity":"e0727b57-56f3-441f-b3e7-72e51c644aca","order_by":0,"name":"Marion Dolivet-Maréchal","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2825-0020","institution":"Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Microbienne, UMR CNRS 5557, UMR INRAE 1418, VetAgro Sup, 69622 Villeurbanne, France","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Marion","middleName":"","lastName":"Dolivet-Maréchal","suffix":""},{"id":489044024,"identity":"cfb99271-fcde-4d2f-a1d2-db51481d02f3","order_by":1,"name":"Sabine Schmidt","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5985-9747","institution":"Univ. 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4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eCoastal ecosystems like seagrass meadows play a crucial role in climate regulation by acting as blue carbon sinks with carbon burial rates up to 30\u0026ndash;50 times higher than terrestrial forest soils. However, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, such as methane and nitrous oxide, may offset part of these benefits. Comparing seagrass meadows to bare sediments helps identify their specific role as blue carbon ecosystems. By assessing carbon accumulation rates (CAR) and GHG fluxes in \u003cem\u003eZostera noltei\u003c/em\u003e seagrass-covered and bare sediments in the Europe\u0026rsquo;s largest \u003cem\u003eZostera noltei\u003c/em\u003e meadows (Arcachon bay), we showed that seagrass areas exhibit CAR values that are 2.5 times higher, highlighting their superior carbon burial capacity. However, GHG emissions from seagrass meadows were 3.5 times higher than those from bare sediments, offsetting 29% of the estimated net climate benefit provided by carbon burial across the bay. Hydrodynamic conditions influence this balance: sheltered areas promote organic matter accumulation but also amplify GHG emissions. Despite these trade-offs, \u003cem\u003eZ. noltei\u003c/em\u003e meadows still provide a net climate benefit 2.2 times greater than bare sediments, emphasizing their significant contribution to climate regulation. 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