| 1. |
- Alling, Vanja, et al.
(författare)
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Degradation of terrestrial organic carbon, primary production and out-gassing of CO2 in the Laptev and East Siberian Seas as inferred from delta C-13 values of DIC
- 2012
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Ingår i: Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta. - : Elsevier BV. - 0016-7037 .- 1872-9533. ; 95, s. 143-159
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The cycling of carbon on the Arctic shelves, including outgassing of CO2 to the atmosphere, is not clearly understood. Degradation of terrestrial organic carbon (OCter) has recently been shown to be pronounced over the East Siberian Arctic Shelf (ESAS), i.e. the Laptev and East Siberian Seas, producing dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC). To further explore the processes affecting DIC, an extensive suite of shelf water samples were collected during the summer of 2008, and assessed for the stable carbon isotopic composition of DIC (delta C-13(DIC)). The delta C-13(DIC) values varied between -7.2 parts per thousand to +1.6 parts per thousand and strongly deviated from the compositions expected from only mixing between river water and seawater. Model calculations suggest that the major processes causing these deviations from conservative mixing were addition of (DIC) by degradation of OCter, removal of DIC during primary production, and outgassing of CO2. All waters below the halocline in the ESAS had delta C-13(DIC) values that appear to reflect mixing of river water and seawater combined with additions of on average 70 +/- 20 mu M of DIC, originating from degradation of OCter in the coastal water column. This is of the same magnitude as the recently reported deficits of DOCter and POCter for the same waters. The surface waters in the East Siberian Sea had higher delta C-13(DIC) values and lower DIC concentrations than expected from conservative mixing, consistent with additions of DIC from degradation of OCter and outgassing of CO2. The outgassing of CO2 was equal to loss of 123 +/- 50 mu M DIC. Depleted delta C-13(POC) values of -29 parts per thousand to -32 parts per thousand in the mid to outer shelf regions are consistent with POC from phytoplankton production. The low delta C-13(POC) values are likely due to low delta C-13(DIC) of precursor DIC, which is due to degradation of OCter, rather than reflecting terrestrial input compositions. Overall, the delta C-13(DIC) values confirm recent suggestions of substantial degradation of OCter over the ESAS, and further show that a large part of the CO2 produced from degradation has been outgassed to the atmosphere. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 2. |
- Alling, Vanja, et al.
(författare)
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Non-conservative behavior of dissolved organic carbon across the Laptev and East Siberian Seas
- 2010
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Ingår i: Global Biogeochemical Cycles. - 0886-6236 .- 1944-9224. ; 24, s. GB4033-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Climate change is expected to have a strong effect on the Eastern Siberian Arctic Shelf (ESAS) region, which includes 40% of the Arctic shelves and comprises the Laptev and East Siberian seas. The largest organic carbon pool, the dissolved organic carbon (DOC), may change significantly due to changes in both riverine inputs and transformation rates; however, the present DOC inventories and transformation patterns are poorly understood. Using samples from the International Siberian Shelf Study 2008, this study examines for the first time DOC removal in Arctic shelf waters with residence times that range from months to years. Removals of up to 10%–20% were found in the Lena River estuary, consistent with earlier studies in this area, where surface waters were shown to have a residence time of approximately 2 months. In contrast, the DOC concentrations showed a strong nonconservative pattern in areas with freshwater residence times of several years. The average losses of DOC were estimated to be 30%–50% during mixing along the shelf, corresponding to a first-order removal rate constant of 0.3 yr−1. These data provide the first observational evidence for losses of DOC in the Arctic shelf seas, and the calculated DOC deficit reflects DOC losses that are higher than recent model estimates for the region. Overall, a large proportion of riverine DOC is removed from the surface waters across the Arctic shelves. Such significant losses must be included in models of the carbon cycle for the Arctic Ocean, especially since the breakdown of terrestrial DOC to CO2 in Arctic shelf seas may constitute a positive feedback mechanism for Arctic climate warming. These data also provide a baseline for considering the effects of future changes in carbon fluxes, as the vast northern carbon-rich permafrost areas draining into the Arctic are affected by global warming.
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| 3. |
- Alling, Vanja, 1978-
(författare)
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Terrestrial organic carbon dynamics in Arctic coastal areas : budgets and multiple stable isotope approaches
- 2010
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Arctic rivers transport 31-42 Tg organic carbon (OC) each year to the Arctic Ocean, which is equal to 10% of the global riverine OC discharge. Since the Arctic Ocean only holds approximately 1% of the global ocean volume, the influence of terrestrially derived organic carbon (OCter) in the Arctic Ocean is relatively high. Despite the global importance of this region the behavior of the, by far largest fraction of the OCter, the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in Arctic and sub-arctic estuaries is still a matter of debate. This thesis describes data originating from field cruises in Arctic and sub-arctic estuaries and coastal areas with the aim to improve the understanding of the fate of OCter in these areas, with specific focus on DOC. All presented studies indicate that DOCter and terrestrially derived particulate organic carbon (POCter) are subjected to substantial degradation in high-latitude estuaries, as shown by the non-conservative behavior of DOC in the East Siberian Arctic Shelf Seas (ESAS) (paper I) and the even more rapid degradation of POC in the same region (paper II). The removals of OCter in Arctic shelf seas were further supported by multiple isotope studies (paper III and IV), which showed that a use of 13C/12C in both OC and DIC, together with 34S/32S is a powerful tool to describe the sources and fate of OCter in estuaries and coastal seas. High-latitude estuaries play a key role in the coupling between terrestrial and marine carbon pools. In contrast to the general perception, this thesis shows that they are not only transportation areas for DOCter from rivers to the ocean, but are also active sites for transformation, degradation and sedimentation of DOCter, as well as for POCter. In a rapidly changing climate, the importance of these areas for the coupling between inorganic and organic carbon pools cannot be underestimated.
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| 4. |
- Conley, Daniel, et al.
(författare)
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Hypoxia is increasing in the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea
- 2011
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Ingår i: Environmental Science and Technology. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0013-936X .- 1520-5851. ; 45:16, s. 6777-6783
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hypoxia is a well-described phenomenon in the offshore waters of the Baltic Sea with both the spatial extent and intensity of hypoxia known to have increased due to anthropogenic eutrophication, however, an unknown amount of hypoxia is present in the coastal zone. Here we report on the widespread unprecedented occurrence of hypoxia across the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea. We have identified 115 sites that have experienced hypoxia during the period 1955-2009 increasing the global total to ca. 500 sites, with the Baltic Sea coastal zone containing over 20% of all known sites worldwide. Most sites experienced episodic hypoxia, which is a precursor to development of seasonal hypoxia. The Baltic Sea coastal zone displays an alarming trend with hypoxia steadily increasing with time since the 1950s effecting nutrient biogeochemical processes, ecosystem services, and coastal habitat.
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| 5. |
- Deutsch, Barbara, et al.
(författare)
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Tracing inputs of terrestrial high molecular weight dissolved organic matter within the Baltic Sea ecosystem
- 2012
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Ingår i: Biogeosciences. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1726-4170 .- 1726-4189. ; 9:11, s. 4465-4475
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To test the hypothesis whether high molecular weight dissolved organic matter (HMW-DOM) in a high latitude marginal sea is dominated by terrestrial derived matter, 10 stations were sampled along the salinity gradient of the central and northern Baltic Sea and were analyzed for concentrations of dissolved organic carbon as well as δ13C values of HMW-DOM. Different end-member-mixing models were applied to quantify the influence of terrestrial DOM and to test for conservative versus non-conservative behavior of the terrestrial DOM in the different Baltic Sea basins. The share of terrestrial DOM to the total HMW-DOM was calculated for each station, ranging from 43 to 83%. This shows the high influence of terrestrial DOM inputs for the Baltic Sea ecosystem. The data also suggest that terrestrial DOM reaching the open Baltic Sea is not subject to substantial removal anymore. However compared to riverine DOM concentrations, our results indicate that substantial amounts of HMW-DOM (> 50%) seem to be removed near the coastline during estuarine mixing. A budget approach yielded residence times for terrestrial DOM of 2.8, 3.0, and 4.5 yr for the Bothnian Bay, the Bothnian Sea and the Baltic Proper.
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| 6. |
- Eriksson Hägg, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
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Future nutrient load scenarios for the Baltic Sea due to climate and lifestyle changes
- 2014
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Ingår i: Ambio. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0044-7447 .- 1654-7209. ; 43:3, s. 337--351
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dynamic model simulations of the future climate and projections of future lifestyles within the Baltic Sea Drainage Basin (BSDB) were considered in this study to estimate potential trends in future nutrient loads to the Baltic Sea. Total nitrogen and total phosphorus loads were estimated using a simple proxy based only on human population (to account for nutrient sources) and stream discharges (to account for nutrient transport). This population-discharge proxy provided a good estimate for nutrient loads across the seven sub-basins of the BSDB considered. All climate scenarios considered here produced increased nutrient loads to the Baltic Sea over the next 100 years. There was variation between the climate scenarios such that sub-basin and regional differences were seen in future nutrient runoff depending on the climate model and scenario considered. Regardless, the results of this study indicate that changes in lifestyle brought about through shifts in consumption and population potentially overshadow the climate effects on future nutrient runoff for the entire BSDB. Regionally, however, lifestyle changes appear relatively more important in the southern regions of the BSDB while climatic changes appear more important in the northern regions with regards to future increases in nutrient loads. From a whole-ecosystem management perspective of the BSDB, this implies that implementation of improved and targeted management practices can still bring about improved conditions in the Baltic Sea in the face of a warmer and wetter future climate
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| 7. |
- Eriksson Hägg, Hanna, 1975-
(författare)
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Nitrogen land-sea fluxes in the Baltic Sea catchment : Empirical relationships and budgets
- 2010
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In this thesis empirical relationships and modeling tools are used to describe the relationship between human activities and meso- and large scale riverine N fluxes from land to sea. On a large scale Paper I showed that by only having knowledge about human population size and runoff one can estimate the riverine export of DIN (r2= 0.76). In Paper II we included two other important anthropogenic N inputs, i.e. atmospheric deposition and primary emission (PE) from animals. In most of the catchments the PE from animals were larger than the PE from humans. Hence, development of livestock is important and increased animal protein consumption by humans might increase the riverine N export. Scenario analysis (Paper II) show that climate change is expected to both decrease and increase the riverine N export depending on which part of the catchment is modeled. In the southern and eastern parts of the Baltic Sea catchment there is large potential for N reductions from point sources (Papers III & V). The diffuse sources are more difficult to decrease and a reduction of mineral fertilizer does not always lead to reduced N loadings because the agricultural systems can buffer even a slight surplus (Paper III). There is inertia in the catchments which can be seen in for example in the northern part of the catchment. Here atmospheric N deposition is almost as high as in the southern part but the nitrogen flux from these rivers is not elevated. These northern river catchments have N exports of the same magnitude as the natural background (Paper IV), indicating that the atmospheric N deposition is retained in the system and probably taken up by N limited boreal forests. However, important reductions can be achieved in the agricultural sector by detailed management of the planted land and animal manure. The highest sensitivity is in catchments with high animal density and high specific discharge, primarily draining to Kattegat and Danish Straits (Paper II & IV).
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| 8. |
- Eriksson Hägg, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
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Riverine nitrogen export in Swedish catchments dominated by atmospheric inputs
- 2012
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Ingår i: Biogeochemistry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0168-2563 .- 1573-515X. ; 111:1-3, s. 203-217
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the first estimates of net anthropogenic nitrogen input (NANI) in European boreal catchments. In Swedish catchments, nitrogen (N) deposition is a major N input (31-94%). Hence, we used two different N deposition inputs to calculate NANI for 36 major Swedish catchments. The relationship between riverine N export and NANI was strongest when using only oxidized deposition (NOy) as atmospheric input (r(2) = 0.70) rather than total deposition (i.e., both oxidized and reduced nitrogen, NOy + NHx deposition, r(2) = 0.62). The y-intercept (NANI = 0) for the NANI calculated with NOy is significantly different from zero (p = 0.0042*) and indicates a background flux from the catchment of some 100 kg N km(-2) year(-1) in addition to anthropogenic inputs. This agrees with similar results from North American boreal catchments. The slope of the linear regressions was 0.25 for both N deposition inputs (NOy and NOy + NHx), suggesting that on average, 25% of the anthropogenic N inputs is exported by rivers to the Baltic Sea. Agricultural catchments in central and southern Sweden have increased their riverine N export up to tenfold compared to the inferred background flux. Although the relatively unperturbed northernmost catchments receive significant N loads from atmospheric deposition, these catchments do not show significantly elevated riverine N export. The fact that nitrogen export in Swedish catchments appears to be higher in proportion to NANI at higher loads suggests that N retention may be saturating as loading rates increase. In northern and western Sweden the export of nitrogen is largely controlled by the hydraulic load, i.e., the riverine discharge normalized by water surface area, which has units of distance time(-1). Besides hydraulic load the percent total forest cover also affects the nitrogen export primarily in the northern and western catchments.
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| 9. |
- Eriksson Hägg, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
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Scenario Analysis on Protein Consumption and Climate Change Effects on Riverine N Export to the Baltic Sea
- 2010
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Ingår i: Environmental Science and Technology. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0013-936X .- 1520-5851. ; 44:7, s. 2379-2385
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper evaluates possible future nitrogen loadings from 105 catchments surrounding the Baltic Sea. Multiple regressions are used to model total nitrogen (TN) flux as a function of specific runoff (0), atmospheric nitrogen deposition, and primary emissions (PE) from humans and livestock. On average cattle contributed with 63%, humans with 20%, and pigs with 17% of the total nitrogen PE to land. Compared to the reference period (1992-1996) we then evaluated two types of scenarios for year 2070. i) An increased protein consumption scenario that led to 16% to 39% increased mean TN flux (kg per km(-2)). ii) Four climate scenarios addressing effects of changes in river discharge. These scenarios showed increased mean TN flux from the northern catchments draining into the Gulf of Bothnia (34%) and the Gulfs of Finland and Riga (14%), while the mean TN flux decreased (-27%) for catchments draining to the Baltic Proper. However, the net effect of the scenarios showed a possible increase in TN flux ranging from 3-72%. Overall an increased demand for animal protein will be instrumental for the Baltic Sea ecosystem and may be a major holdback to fulfill the environmental goals of the Baltic Sea Action Plan.
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| 10. |
- Ferreira, Joao G., et al.
(författare)
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Overview of eutrophication indicators to assess environmental status within the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive
- 2011
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Ingår i: Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0272-7714 .- 1096-0015. ; 93:2, s. 117-131
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In 2009, following approval of the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD, 2008/56/EC), the European Commission (EC) created task groups to develop guidance for eleven quality descriptors that form the basis for evaluating ecosystem function. The objective was to provide European countries with practical guidelines for implementing the MSFD, and to produce a Commission Decision that encapsulated key points of the work in a legal framework. This paper presents a review of work carried out by the eutrophication task group, and reports our main findings to the scientific community. On the basis of an operational, management-oriented definition, we discuss the main methodologies that could be used for coastal and marine eutrophication assessment. Emphasis is placed on integrated approaches that account for physico-chemical and biological components, and combine both pelagic and benthic symptoms of eutrophication, in keeping with the holistic nature of the MSFD. We highlight general features that any marine eutrophication model should possess, rather than making specific recommendations. European seas range from highly eutrophic systems such as the Baltic to nutrient-poor environments such as the Aegean Sea. From a physical perspective, marine waters range from high energy environments of the north east Atlantic to the permanent vertical stratification of the Black Sea. This review aimed to encapsulate that variability, recognizing that meaningful guidance should be flexible enough to accommodate the widely differing characteristics of European seas, and that this information is potentially relevant in marine ecosystems worldwide. Given the spatial extent of the MSFD, innovative approaches are required to allow meaningful monitoring and assessment. Consequently, substantial logistic and financial challenges will drive research in areas such as remote sensing of harmful algal blooms, in situ sensor development, and mathematical models. Our review takes into account related legislation, and in particular the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD - 2000/60/EC), which deals with river basins, including estuaries and a narrow coastal strip, in order to examine these issues within the framework of integrated coastal zone management.
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