Recent research has highlighted the valuable role that coastal and marine ecosystems play in sequestering carbon dioxide (CO2). The carbon (C) sequestered in vegetated coastal ecosystems, specifically mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and salt marshes, has been termed “blue carbon”. Although their global area is one to two orders of magnitude smaller than that of terrestrial forests, the contribution of vegetated coastal habitats per unit area to long‐term C sequestration is much greater, in part because of their efficiency in trapping suspended matter and associated organic C during tidal inundation. Despite the value of mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and salt marshes in sequestering C, and the other goods and services they provide, these systems are being lost at critical rates and action is urgently needed to prevent further degradation and loss. Recognition of the C sequestration value of vegetated coastal ecosystems provides a strong argument for their protection and restoration; however, it is necessary to improve scientific understanding of the underlying mechanisms that control C sequestration in these ecosystems. Here, we identify key areas of uncertainty and specific actions needed to address them.

Despite the importance of coastal ecosystems for the global carbon budgets, knowledge of their carbon storage capacity and the factors driving variability in storage capacity is still limited. Here we provide an estimate on the magnitude and variability of carbon stocks within a widely distributed marine foundation species throughout its distribution area in temperate Northern Hemisphere. We sampled 54 eelgrass (Zostera marina) meadows, spread across eight ocean margins and 36° of latitude, to determine abiotic and biotic factors influencing organic carbon (Corg) stocks in Zostera marina sediments. The Corg stocks (integrated over 25‐cm depth) showed a large variability and ranged from 318 to 26,523 g C/m2 with an average of 2,721 g C/m2. The projected Corg stocks obtained by extrapolating over the top 1 m of sediment ranged between 23.1 and 351.7 Mg C/ha, which is in line with estimates for other seagrasses and other blue carbon ecosystems. Most of the variation in Corg stocks was explained by five environmental variables (sediment mud content, dry density and degree of sorting, and salinity and water depth), while plant attributes such as biomass and shoot density were less important to Corg stocks. Carbon isotopic signatures indicated that at most sites <50% of the sediment carbon is derived from seagrass, which is lower than reported previously for seagrass meadows. The high spatial carbon storage variability urges caution in extrapolating carbon storage capacity between geographical areas as well as within and between seagrass species.

Seagrass ecosystems are important natural carbon sinks but their efficiency varies greatly depending on species composition and environmental conditions. What causes this variation is not fully known and could have important implications for management and protection of the seagrass habitat to continue to act as a natural carbon sink. Here, we assessed sedimentary organic carbon in Zostera marina meadows (and adjacent unvegetated sediment) in four distinct areas of Europe (Gullmar Fjord on the Swedish Skagerrak coast, Askö in the Baltic Sea, Sozopol in the Black Sea and Ria Formosa in southern Portugal) down to ~35 cm depth. We also tested how sedimentary organic carbon in Z. marina meadows relates to different sediment characteristics, a range of seagrass-associated variables and water depth. The seagrass carbon storage varied greatly among areas, with an average organic carbon content ranging from 2.79 ± 0.50% in the Gullmar Fjord to 0.17 ± 0.02% in the area of Sozopol. We found that a high proportion of fine grain size, high porosity and low density of the sediment is strongly related to high carbon content in Z. marina sediment. We suggest that sediment properties should be included as an important factor when evaluating high priority areas in management of Z. marina generated carbon sinks.

Diel fluctuations in seawater pH can be >1 pH unit (7.9 to > 8.9) in the seagrass meadows of Chwaka Bay (Zanzibar, Tanzania). The high daily pH values are generated by the photosynthetic activity of the bay's submerged seagrasses and macroalgae, and maintained by the relatively low, tide-dominated, water exchange rate. Since pH in principle can affect rates of both calcification and photosynthesis, we investigated whether diel variations in pH caused by photosynthesis could affect rates of calcification and photosynthesis of the calcareous red (Hydrolithon sp. and Mesophyllum sp.) and green (Halimeda renschii) algae growing within these meadows. This was done by measuring rates of calcification and relative photosynthetic electron transport (rETR) of the algae in situ in open-bottom incubation cylinders either in the natural presence of the rooted seagrasses or after the leaves had been removed. The results showed that seagrass photosynthesis increased the seawater pH within the cylinders from 8.3-8.4 to 8.6-8.9 after 2.5 h (largely in conformity with that of the surrounding seawater), which, in turn, enhanced the rates of calcification 5.8-fold for Hydrolithon sp. and 1.6-fold for the other 2 species. The rETRs of all algae largely followed the irradiance throughout the day and were (in Mesophyllum sp.) significantly higher in the presence of seagrasses despite the higher pH values generated by the latter. We conclude that algal calcification within seagrass meadows such as those of Chwaka Bay is considerably enhanced by the photosynthetic activity of the seagrasses, which in turn increases the seawater pH.KEY WORDS: Calcareous algae · Calcification · Halimeda sp. · Hydrolithon sp. · Mesophyllum sp. · Photosynthesis · Halimeda renschii Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 382: [41][42][43][44][45][46][47] 2009 and Middelboe & Hansen 2007 for shallow macro-algal habitats). Also, seagrasses can increase the pH of the surrounding seawater; Invers et al. (1997) showed a pH increase of up to 0.5 units in seagrass meadows, which negatively affected photosynthetic rates of 3 seagrasses (Posidonia oceanica, Cymodocea nodosa and Zostera noltii). Similarly, Beer et al. (2006) showed that dominant species from a tropical bay could raise the pH to 8.5-9.2 and suggested that certain species (in this case Halophila ovalis) were excluded from growing in mono-specific tidal pools with other species (e.g. Thalassia hemprichii) because they could not photosynthesise at the high pH values generated.One effect of seawater pH that has been studied more than the effects of photosynthesis and growth is calcification (e.g. Yates & Halley 2006). However, most studies of macrophytes considered mainly the negative effects of decreasing pH as brought about by the projected future enrichment in atmospheric and, accordingly, dissolved CO 2 (Smith & Roth 1979, Borowitzka 1981, Gao et al. 1993, de Beer & Larkum 2001. While some higher pH values have also been tested (Smi...

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