scholarly journals Biogeochemical processes and buffering capacity concurrently affect acidification in a seasonally hypoxic coastal marine basin

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 15827-15887
Author(s):  
M. Hagens ◽  
C. P. Slomp ◽  
F. J. R. Meysman ◽  
D. Seitaj ◽  
J. Harlay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Acid Base ◽  
Ph Fluctuations

Abstract. Coastal areas are impacted by multiple natural and anthropogenic processes and experience stronger pH fluctuations than the open ocean. These variations can weaken or intensify the ocean acidification signal induced by increasing atmospheric pCO2. The development of eutrophication-induced hypoxia intensifies coastal acidification, since the CO2 produced during respiration decreases the buffering capacity of the hypoxic bottom water. To assess the combined ecosystem impacts of acidification and hypoxia, we quantified the seasonal variation in pH and oxygen dynamics in the water column of a seasonally stratified coastal basin (Lake Grevelingen, the Netherlands). Monthly water column chemistry measurements were complemented with estimates of primary production and respiration using O2 light-dark incubations, in addition to sediment-water fluxes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA). The resulting dataset was used to set up a proton budget on a seasonal scale. Temperature-induced seasonal stratification combined with a high community respiration was responsible for the depletion of oxygen in the bottom water in summer. The surface water showed strong seasonal variation in process rates (primary production, CO2 air–sea exchange), but relatively small seasonal pH fluctuations (0.46 units on the total hydrogen ion scale). In contrast, the bottom water showed less seasonality in biogeochemical rates (respiration, sediment–water exchange), but stronger pH fluctuations (0.60 units). This marked difference in pH dynamics could be attributed to a substantial reduction in the acid-base buffering capacity of the hypoxic bottom water in the summer period. Our results highlight the importance of acid-base buffering in the pH dynamics of coastal systems and illustrate the increasing vulnerability of hypoxic, CO2-rich waters to any acidifying process.

scholarly journals Biogeochemical processes and buffering capacity concurrently affect acidification in a seasonally hypoxic coastal marine basin

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1561-1583 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Hagens ◽  
C. P. Slomp ◽  
F. J. R. Meysman ◽  
D. Seitaj ◽  
J. Harlay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Buffering Capacity ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Acid Base ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Ph Fluctuations

Abstract. Coastal areas are impacted by multiple natural and anthropogenic processes and experience stronger pH fluctuations than the open ocean. These variations can weaken or intensify the ocean acidification signal induced by increasing atmospheric pCO2. The development of eutrophication-induced hypoxia intensifies coastal acidification, since the CO2 produced during respiration decreases the buffering capacity in any hypoxic bottom water. To assess the combined ecosystem impacts of acidification and hypoxia, we quantified the seasonal variation in pH and oxygen dynamics in the water column of a seasonally stratified coastal basin (Lake Grevelingen, the Netherlands). Monthly water-column chemistry measurements were complemented with estimates of primary production and respiration using O2 light–dark incubations, in addition to sediment–water fluxes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA). The resulting data set was used to set up a proton budget on a seasonal scale. Temperature-induced seasonal stratification combined with a high community respiration was responsible for the depletion of oxygen in the bottom water in summer. The surface water showed strong seasonal variation in process rates (primary production, CO2 air–sea exchange), but relatively small seasonal pH fluctuations (0.46 units on the total hydrogen ion scale). In contrast, the bottom water showed less seasonality in biogeochemical rates (respiration, sediment–water exchange), but stronger pH fluctuations (0.60 units). This marked difference in pH dynamics could be attributed to a substantial reduction in the acid–base buffering capacity of the hypoxic bottom water in the summer period. Our results highlight the importance of acid–base buffering in the pH dynamics of coastal systems and illustrate the increasing vulnerability of hypoxic, CO2-rich waters to any acidifying process.

Seasonal variation of water-column light utilization efficiency for primary production in Saroma-ko Lagoon

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Akihiro Shiomoto ◽  
Yushi Kamuro
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Utilization Efficiency ◽  
Commercial Activity ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Light Utilization Efficiency ◽  
Light Utilization ◽  
Sunlight Intensity

Abstract In Saroma-ko Lagoon, where scallop aquaculture is a thriving commercial activity, monitoring primary production is essential for determining the amount of scallops that can be farmed. Using the primary production data obtained so far, we calculated Ψ, an index of water-column light utilization efficiency, and clarified its seasonal variation. Ψ tended to be lower in the spring bloom season (February–April), and higher in the late autumn to winter (October–December). Low chlorophyll-normalized production, an index of growth rate, resulted in lower values, while low daily irradiance resulted in higher values. The values of Ψ from our study had a range of 0.05–1.42 gC gChl-a−1 mol photons−1 m2 (N = 56). These values were within the previously reported range of 0.07–1.92 (gC gChl-a−1 mol photons−1 m2) for seawater and fresh water worldwide. Therefore, it is likely that Ψ varies from 0.05–2 gC gChl-a−1 mol photons−1 m2, being affected by conditions of phytoplankton growth and sunlight intensity, regardless of whether samples are collected from seawater or fresh water. Using the median Ψ value of 0.45 gC gChl-a−1 mol photons−1 m2 obtained in this study, primary production was 0.3–3.5 times the actual production at Saroma-ko Lagoon. Using this method, primary production can be easily and constantly monitored, facilitating the sustainable development of scallop aquaculture.

scholarly journals Early Diagenesis in Sediments of the Venice Lagoon (Italy) and Its Relationship to Hypoxia

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniele Brigolin ◽  
Christophe Rabouille ◽  
Clément Demasy ◽  
Bruno Bombled ◽  
Gaël Monvoisin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Multiple Stressors ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Oxygen Demand ◽  
Sediment Oxygen Demand ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Organic Carbon Content ◽  
Climate Conditions

This work focuses on sediments of a shallow water lagoon, located in a densely populated area undergoing multiple stressors, with the goal of increasing the understanding of the links between diagenetic processes occurring in sediments, the dynamics of dissolved oxygen (DO) in the water column, and potential consequences of hypoxia. Sediment data were collected over three consecutive years, from 2015 to 2017, during spring–summer, at five stations. Measured variables included: sediment porosity, grain size and organic carbon content, porewater microprofiles of O2, pH and H2S, porewater profiles of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), total alkalinity (TA), NH4+, NO3–, dissolved Fe, and SO42–. In addition, long-term time series of oxygen saturations in the water column (years 2005–2017) were utilized in order to identify the occurrence and duration of hypoxic periods. The results show that the median DO saturation value in summer months was below 50% (around 110 μmol L–1), and that saturation values below 25% (below the hypoxic threshold) can persist for more than 1 week. Sediment stations can be divided in two groups based on their diagenetic intensity: intense and moderate. At these two groups of stations, the average DIC net production rates, estimated trough a steady-state model (Profile) were, respectively, of 2.8 and 1.0 mmol m–2 d–1, SO42– consumption rates were respectively 1.6 and 0.4 mmol m–2 d–1, while diffusive oxygen uptake fluxes, calculated from the sediment microprofile data, were of 28.5 and 17.5 mmol m–2 d–1. At the stations characterized by intense diagenesis, total dissolved sulfide accumulated in porewaters close to the sediment-water interface, reaching values of 0.7 mM at 10 cm. Considering the typical physico-chemical summer conditions, the theoretical time required to consume oxygen down to the hypoxic level by sediment oxygen demand ranges between 5 and 18 days, in absence of mixing and re-oxygenation. This estimation highlights that sediment diagenesis may play a crucial role in triggering and maintaining hypoxia of lagoon waters during the summer season in specific high intensity diagenesis zones. This role of the sediment could be enhanced by changes in regional climate conditions, such as the increase in frequency of summer heat waves.

scholarly journals Porewater Carbonate Chemistry Dynamics in a Temperate and a Subtropical Seagrass System

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 375-399
Author(s):  
Theodor Kindeberg ◽  
Nicholas R. Bates ◽  
Travis A. Courtney ◽  
Tyler Cyronak ◽  
Alyssa Griffin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Carbonate Chemistry ◽  
Carbon Cycles ◽  
Mission Bay ◽  
High Concentrations ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Tidal Signal ◽  
Sediment Permeability

Abstract Seagrass systems are integral components of both local and global carbon cycles and can substantially modify seawater biogeochemistry, which has ecological ramifications. However, the influence of seagrass on porewater biogeochemistry has not been fully described, and the exact role of this marine macrophyte and associated microbial communities in the modification of porewater chemistry remains equivocal. In the present study, carbonate chemistry in the water column and porewater was investigated over diel timescales in contrasting, tidally influenced seagrass systems in Southern California and Bermuda, including vegetated (Zostera marina) and unvegetated biomes (0–16 cm) in Mission Bay, San Diego, USA and a vegetated system (Thallasia testudinium) in Mangrove Bay, Ferry Reach, Bermuda. In Mission Bay, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) exhibited strong increasing gradients with sediment depth. Vertical porewater profiles differed between the sites, with almost twice as high concentrations of DIC and TA observed in the vegetated compared to the unvegetated sediments. In Mangrove Bay, both the range and vertical profiles of porewater carbonate parameters such as DIC and TA were much lower and, in contrast to Mission Bay where no distinct temporal signal was observed, biogeochemical parameters followed the semi-diurnal tidal signal in the water column. The observed differences between the study sites most likely reflect a differential influence of biological (biomass, detritus and infauna) and physical processes (e.g., sediment permeability, residence time and mixing) on porewater carbonate chemistry in the different settings.

scholarly journals Dynamics of dissolved inorganic carbon and aquatic metabolism in the Tana River basin, Kenya

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 6911-6928 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Tamooh ◽  
A. V. Borges ◽  
F. J. R. Meysman ◽  
K. Van Den Meersche ◽  
F. Dehairs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Chlorophyll A ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Community Respiration ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Stream Community ◽  
Tana River ◽  
Diurnal Fluctuations

Abstract. A basin-wide study was conducted in the Tana River basin (Kenya) in February 2008 (dry season), September–November 2009 (wet season) and June–July 2010 (end of the wet season) to assess the dynamics and sources of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) as well as to quantify CO2 fluxes, community respiration (R), and primary production (P). Samples were collected along the altitudinal gradient (from 3600 to 8 m) in several headwater streams, reservoirs (Kamburu and Masinga), and the Tana River mainstream. DIC concentrations ranged from 0.2 to 4.8 mmol L−1, with exceptionally high values (3.5 ± 1.6 mmol L−1) in Nyambene Hills tributaries. The wide range of δ13CDIC values (−15.0 to −2.4‰) indicate variable sources of DIC, with headwater streams recording more positive signatures compared to the Tana River mainstream. With with only a few exceptions, the entire riverine network was supersaturated in CO2, implying the system is a net source of CO2 to the atmosphere. pCO2 values were generally higher in the lower Tana River mainstream compared to headwater tributaries, opposite to the pattern typically observed in other river networks. This was attributed to high suspended sediment in the Tana River mainstream fuelling in-stream community respiration and net heterotrophy. This was particularly evident during the 2009 wet season campaign (median pCO2 of 1432 ppm) compared to the 2010 end of the wet season (1002 ppm) and 2008 dry season (579 ppm). First-order estimates show that in-stream community respiration was responsible for the bulk of total CO2 evasion (77 to 114%) in the Tana River mainstream, while in the tributaries, this could only account for 5 to 68% of total CO2 evasion. This suggests that CO2 evasion in the tributaries was to a substantial degree sustained by benthic mineralisation and/or lateral inputs of CO2-oversaturated groundwater. While sediment loads increased downstream and thus light availability decreased in the water column, both chlorophyll a (0.2 to 9.6 μg L−1) and primary production (0.004 to 7.38 μmol C L−1 h−1) increased consistently downstream. Diurnal fluctuations of biogeochemical processes were examined at three different sites along the river continuum (headwater, reservoir and mainstream), and were found to be substantial only in the headwater stream, moderate in the reservoir and not detectable in the Tana River mainstream. The pronounced diurnal fluctuations observed in the headwater stream were largely regulated by periphyton as deduced from the low chlorophyll a in the water column.

scholarly journals Winter measurements of biogeochemical parameters in the Rockall Trough (2009–2012)

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 389-409
Author(s):  
T. McGrath ◽  
C. Kivimäe ◽  
E. McGovern ◽  
R. R. Cave ◽  
E. Joyce
Keyword(s):  
Dissolved Oxygen ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients ◽  
Chemical Signatures ◽  
Rockall Trough ◽  
Biogeochemical Parameters ◽  
Oxidised Nitrogen

Abstract. This paper describes the sampling and analysis of biogeochemical parameters collected in the Rockall Trough in January/February of 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Sampling was carried out across two transects, one southern and one northern transect each year. Samples for dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) were taken alongside salinity, dissolved oxygen and dissolved inorganic nutrients (total-oxidised nitrogen, nitrite, phosphate and silicate) to describe the chemical signatures of the various water masses in the region. These were taken at regular intervals through the water column. The 2009 and 2010 data are available on the CDIAC database.

scholarly journals Estimates of ikaite export from sea ice to the underlying seawater in a sea ice–seawater mesocosm

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 2173-2189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas-Xavier Geilfus ◽  
Ryan J. Galley ◽  
Brent G. T. Else ◽  
Karley Campbell ◽  
Tim Papakyriakou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Water Column ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Carbon Dynamics ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
Main Process ◽  
Saturation State ◽  
Ice Growth ◽  
Ice Melt

Abstract. The precipitation of ikaite and its fate within sea ice is still poorly understood. We quantify temporal inorganic carbon dynamics in sea ice from initial formation to its melt in a sea ice–seawater mesocosm pool from 11 to 29 January 2013. Based on measurements of total alkalinity (TA) and total dissolved inorganic carbon (TCO2), the main processes affecting inorganic carbon dynamics within sea ice were ikaite precipitation and CO2 exchange with the atmosphere. In the underlying seawater, the dissolution of ikaite was the main process affecting inorganic carbon dynamics. Sea ice acted as an active layer, releasing CO2 to the atmosphere during the growth phase, taking up CO2 as it melted and exporting both ikaite and TCO2 into the underlying seawater during the whole experiment. Ikaite precipitation of up to 167 µmolkg−1 within sea ice was estimated, while its export and dissolution into the underlying seawater was responsible for a TA increase of 64–66 µmolkg−1 in the water column. The export of TCO2 from sea ice to the water column increased the underlying seawater TCO2 by 43.5 µmolkg−1, suggesting that almost all of the TCO2 that left the sea ice was exported to the underlying seawater. The export of ikaite from the ice to the underlying seawater was associated with brine rejection during sea ice growth, increased vertical connectivity in sea ice due to the upward percolation of seawater and meltwater flushing during sea ice melt. Based on the change in TA in the water column around the onset of sea ice melt, more than half of the total ikaite precipitated in the ice during sea ice growth was still contained in the ice when the sea ice began to melt. Ikaite crystal dissolution in the water column kept the seawater pCO2 undersaturated with respect to the atmosphere in spite of increased salinity, TA and TCO2 associated with sea ice growth. Results indicate that ikaite export from sea ice and its dissolution in the underlying seawater can potentially hamper the effect of oceanic acidification on the aragonite saturation state (Ωaragonite) in fall and in winter in ice-covered areas, at the time when Ωaragonite is smallest.

scholarly journals Carbonate mineral saturation states in the East China Sea: present conditions and future scenario

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 5555-5590 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.-C. Chou ◽  
G.-C. Gong ◽  
C.-C. Hung ◽  
Y.-H. Wu
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
East China Sea ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Atmospheric Co2 ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
East China ◽  
The East China Sea ◽  
China Sea ◽  
Plume Area ◽  
Bottom Waters

Abstract. To assess the impact of rising atmospheric CO2 and eutrophication on the carbonate chemistry of the East China Sea shelf waters, saturation states (Ω) for two important biologically-relevant carbonate minerals, calcite (Ωc) and aragonite (Ωa) were calculated throughout the water column from dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) data collected in spring and summer of 2009. Results show that the highest Ωc (~9.0) and Ωa (~ 5.8) values were found in surface water of the Changjiang plume area in summer, whereas the lowest values (Ωc=~2.7 and Ωa=~1.7) were concurrently observed in the bottom water of the same area. This divergent behavior of saturation states in surface and bottom waters was driven by intensive biological production and strong stratification of the water column. The high rate of phytoplankton production, stimulated by the enormous nutrient discharge from the Changjiang, acts to decrease the ratio of DIC to TA, and thereby increases Ω values. In contrast, remineralization of organic matter in the bottom water acts to increase the DIC to TA ratio, and thus decreases Ω values. The projected result shows that continued increases of atmospheric CO2 under the IS92a emission scenario will decrease Ω values by 40–50% by the end of this century, but both the surface and bottom waters will remain supersaturated with respect to calcite and aragonite. Nevertheless, superimposed on such Ω decrease is increasing eutrophication, which would mitigate or enhance the Ω decline caused by anthropogenic CO2 uptake in surface and bottom waters, respectively. Our simulation reveals that under the combined impact of eutrophication and augmentation of atmospheric CO2, the bottom water of the Changjiang plume area will become undersaturated with respect to aragonite (Ωa=~0.8) by the end of this century, which would threaten the health of the benthic ecosystem.

scholarly journals Modeling benthic-pelagic nutrient exchange processes and porewater distributions in a seasonally-hypoxic sediment: evidence for massive phosphate release by <i>Beggiatoa</i>?

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 11517-11575 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. W. Dale ◽  
V. J. Bertics ◽  
T. Treude ◽  
S. Sommer ◽  
K. Wallmann
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Alternative Hypothesis ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Sediment Surface ◽  
Organic P ◽  
Low Oxygen ◽  
Bottom Waters ◽  
Water Values

Abstract. This study presents benthic data from 12 samplings from February to December 2010 in a 2 m deep channel in the southwest Baltic Sea. In winter, the distribution of solutes in the porewater was strongly modulated by bioirrigation which efficiently flushed the upper 1 cm of sediment, leading to concentrations which varied little from bottom water values. Solute pumping by bioirrigation fell sharply in summer as the bottom waters became severely hypoxic (<2 μM O2). At this point the giant sulfide-oxidizing bacteria Beggiatoa was visible on surface sediments. Despite an increase in O2following mixing of the water column in November, macrofauna remained absent until the end of the sampling. Contrary to expectations, metabolites such as dissolved inorganic carbon, ammonium and hydrogen sulfide did not accumulate in the porewater during the hypoxic period when bioirrigation was absent, but instead tended toward bottom water values. This was taken as evidence for episodic bubbling of methane gas out of the sediment acting as an abiogenic irrigation process. Escaping bubble may provide a pathway for enhanced nutrient release to the bottom water and exacerbate the feedbacks with hypoxia. Subsurface dissolved phosphate (TPO4) peaks in excess of 400 μM developed in autumn resulting in a very large diffusive TPO4 flux to the water column of 0.7 ± 0.2 mmol m−2 d−1. The model was not able to simulate this TPO4 source as release of iron-bound P (Fe–P) or organic P. As an alternative hypothesis, the TPO4 peak was reproduced using new kinetic expressions that allow Beggiatoa to take up porewater TPO4 and accumulate an intracellular P pool during periods with oxic bottom waters. TPO4 is then released during hypoxia, as previous published results with sulfide-oxidizing bacteria indicate. The TPO4 added to the porewater over the year by organic P and Fe–P is recycled though Beggiatoa, meaning that no additional source of TPO4 is needed to explain the TPO4 peak. Further experimental studies are needed to strengthen this conclusion and rule out Fe–P and organic P as candidate sources of ephemeral TPO4 release. A measured C/P ratio of <20 for the diffusive flux at the sediment surface during hypoxia directly demonstrates preferential release of P relative to C under low oxygen bottom waters. Our results suggest that sulfide oxidizing bacteria act as phosphorus capacitors in systems with oscillating redox conditions, releasing massive amounts of TPO4 in a short space of time and dramatically increasing the internal loading of TPO4 in overlying waters.

scholarly journals Modeling benthic–pelagic nutrient exchange processes and porewater distributions in a seasonally hypoxic sediment: evidence for massive phosphate release by <i>Beggiatoa</i>?

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 629-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. W. Dale ◽  
V. J. Bertics ◽  
T. Treude ◽  
S. Sommer ◽  
K. Wallmann
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Alternative Hypothesis ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Nutrient Release ◽  
Organic P ◽  
Overlying Water ◽  
Bottom Waters ◽  
Water Values

Abstract. This study presents benthic data from 12 samplings from February to December 2010 in a 28 m deep channel in the southwest Baltic Sea. In winter, the distribution of solutes in the porewater was strongly modulated by bioirrigation which efficiently flushed the upper 10 cm of sediment, leading to concentrations which varied little from bottom water values. Solute pumping by bioirrigation fell sharply in the summer as the bottom waters became severely hypoxic (< 2 μM O2). At this point the giant sulfide-oxidizing bacteria Beggiatoa was visible on surface sediments. Despite an increase in O2 following mixing of the water column in November, macrofauna remained absent until the end of the sampling. Contrary to expectations, metabolites such as dissolved inorganic carbon, ammonium and hydrogen sulfide did not accumulate in the upper 10 cm during the hypoxic period when bioirrigation was absent, but instead tended toward bottom water values. This was taken as evidence for episodic bubbling of methane gas out of the sediment acting as an abiogenic irrigation process. Porewater–seawater mixing by escaping bubbles provides a pathway for enhanced nutrient release to the bottom water and may exacerbate the feedback with hypoxia. Subsurface dissolved phosphate (TPO4) peaks in excess of 400 μM developed in autumn, resulting in a very large diffusive TPO4 flux to the water column of 0.7 ± 0.2 mmol m−2 d−1. The model was not able to simulate this TPO4 source as release of iron-bound P (Fe–P) or organic P. As an alternative hypothesis, the TPO4 peak was reproduced using new kinetic expressions that allow Beggiatoa to take up porewater TPO4 and accumulate an intracellular P pool during periods with oxic bottom waters. TPO4 is then released during hypoxia, as previous published results with sulfide-oxidizing bacteria indicate. The TPO4 added to the porewater over the year by organic P and Fe–P is recycled through Beggiatoa, meaning that no additional source of TPO4 is needed to explain the TPO4 peak. Further experimental studies are needed to strengthen this conclusion and rule out Fe–P and organic P as candidate sources of ephemeral TPO4 release. A measured C/P ratio of < 20 for the diffusive flux to the water column during hypoxia directly demonstrates preferential release of P relative to C under oxygen-deficient bottom waters. This coincides with a strong decrease in dissolved inorganic N/P ratios in the water column to ~ 1. Our results suggest that sulfide oxidizing bacteria could act as phosphorus capacitors in systems with oscillating redox conditions, releasing massive amounts of TPO4 in a short space of time and dramatically increasing the internal loading of TPO4 to the overlying water.

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