Contrasting Carbon Dioxide Inputs and Exchange in Three Adjacent New England Estuaries

Four surveys of the adjacent Cocheco, Bellamy, and Oyster estuaries reveal spatial heterogeneity with respect both to river-born carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes and CO2 exchange with the atmosphere (-17 to 51 mmol m(-2)day(-1)), a finding partially explained by CO2 inputs from contributing watersheds. Nonuniform nutrient and organic carbon loading from upstream rivers and within the estuaries is considered as a mechanism resulting in the variability between estuaries. Conditions during the surveys included spring river runoff and phytoplankton blooms, drought with baseline river flow, and a historic flood which led to a large CO2 release to the atmosphere. This study highlights the variability of CO2 transport and release found between proximate estuaries over a wide range of flow conditions.