Pathways of blue carbon export from kelp and seagrass beds along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia

Coastal vegetated ecosystems are recognized for their role in cycling and storing carbon in the world’s oceans (i.e., blue carbon); however, high uncertainty in carbon sequestration rates is partly due to an absence of studies estimating carbon export to the deep sea. We modeled export from nearshore kelp forests and seagrass beds, showing variability by orders of magnitude across spatial scales (3 to hundreds of kilometers), kelp and seagrass species, seasons, and carbon forms, raising caution in using generalized export rates in blue carbon accounting. Our results also show rapid (20 to 30 days) and extensive export of neutrally buoyant dissolved organic carbon particles to the shelf break (up to 44% within 90 days), contrasting sinking particulate organic carbon particles that largely remained within 100-meter water depth in the nearshore. These results improve estimates of carbon sequestration by blue carbon ecosystems and reveal contrasting patterns of export relative to other regions of the globe.

Cite this data as: Kira A. Krumhansl et al., Pathways of blue carbon export from kelp and seagrass beds along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia.Sci. Adv.11,eadw1952(2025).DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adw1952

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Title (French)	Voies d’exportation du carbone bleu depuis les herbiers de varech et de zostère le long de la côte atlantique de la Nouvelle-Écosse
Update Frequency	not_planned
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Sensitivity Level	unrestricted
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Contact Person	{"en": "Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Coastal Ecosystem Science Division (CESD)", "fr": "Gouvernement du Canada; Pêches et Océans Canada; Division des sciences des écosystèmes côtiers (DSEC)"}
Contact Email	DFO.CESDDataRequest-DSECDemandededonnes.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Dictionnaire de données	EPSG:4326,https://epsg.io,
Open Canada Date Published	2026-03-16 00:00:00
Open Canada Date Modified
Open Canada Subject	["nature_and_environment", "science_and_technology"]
Open Canada Keywords	{"en": ["Kelp", "Eelgrass", "Blue carbon", "Carbon cycling", "Competitive Science Research Fund (CSRF)", "Aquatic ecosystems", "Aquatic plants", "Oceans"], "fr": ["Varech", "Zostère", "Carbone bleu", "Cycle du carbone", "Fonds de recherche scientifique compétitif", "Écosystème aquatique", "Plante aquatique", "Océan"]}
Open Canada Collection	fgp
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