Alkalinity generation in eelgrasses – An overlooked carbon sequestration mechanism?

Seagrasses help us to mitigate climate change by taking up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, yet little is known about carbon that is exported from seagrasses as bicarbonate and stored in the ocean.

This project will study the production and export of bicarbonate in Swedish seagrass to investigate whether the potential of seagrass to mitigate climate change may have been underestimated. In the oceans, carbonate and bicarbonate are used up to build shells and coral skeletons. Bicarbonate produced and exported from seagrasses remains in the ocean for thousands of years, and is thus a permanent carbon sink.

The findings will show why carbon credits should consider bicarbonate export as an additional carbon sink in seagrasses, providing more arguments why it’s important to protect and restore seagrass areas.