Biogeochemistry

Introduction

The portmanteau biogeochemistry signals the trend in geophysics towards transdisciplinary research. Here we consider the coupling of terrestrial and marine ecosystems in terms of the biogeochemistry of glaciers, forests, wetlands, estuaries and coastal waterways; the constitutive terrains of the Northeast Pacific Ocean.

Background (by Rob Fatland)

I started the transition from remote sensing to in situ sensors in 2002. This led to my contributions to SEAMONSTER which for three years (2006--2009) was a terrestrial sensor network project. SEAMONSTER is set in southeast Alaska, based out of the University of Alaska Southeast near Juneau. It asks, to begin with: “Can we measure physical parameters from these steep coastal semi-glaciated watersheds and get the data back in near real time?”

While SEAMONSTER continues, this page launches 'spinoff' research in 2010. My interest, sparked by Eran Hood, is to establish a scientific basis for terrestrial-marine coupling with the following rationale:

• Coastal oceans comprise perhaps 5% of the world's total ocean area (from continental shelf margin to beach)
• Coastal oceans account for, disproportionately, 25% of the world's ocean productivity, or biomass.
• To account for the relatively high -- say a factor of 6.3 -- productivity by area there are three alternatives
  • First: There is something about proximity to land
  • Second: There is something about proximity to the edge of the continental shelf
  • Third: Neither of the above
  • Incidentally the factor of 6.3 comes from (5 / 1) divided by (16 / 19), respectively mass to area ratios.

In fact it is really a matter of degree of influence, not exclusivity. However it is reasonable to guess that as you move from continental shelf to beach the influence of runoff increases.

This is illustrated nicely in some FerryMon data which, were I to become very energized, would appear here graphically.

This section concludes by setting up the next section.

So How To Do It?

At MSR External Research we focus on collaboration; so we begin here with a loose confederacy across institutions: University of Alaska, Yale, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, CU Boulder, Virginia Tech, and others.

The driving science question:

• Locally:
  • How can one characterize riverine plume input to coastal marine waters near Juneau and how does this relate to glacial and non-glacier processes?
• To extrapolate:
  • As glaciers recede how will coastal marine productivity change in the northeast Pacific?

These questions have some nice features across science, technology and policy. There are thousands of watersheds stretching from the Nisqually River delta in Puget Sound to Okmok Island in the Aleutians, so this is a potential computer modeling problem: Is there value in computing results using a box model of mutually de-coupled watersheds? To first order it appears to be a matter of bookkeeping, but with further potential--to be evaluated--for nonlinear behavior.

From the generalization a practical question: If watershed A is 80% glacier ice above some forest, and watershed B is 40% glacier ice and lots more forest, then based on recession rates how many years before watershed A looks like B? What are their comparative contributions of bioavailable nutrients to primary producers?

(nitrogen, phosphorous, carbon, metals, ...) --> (phytoplankton)

Meanwhile in addition to the “bottom line” results concerning basic things like carbon sequestration there are practical concerns: “How will climate change affect fisheries?” (crab, salmon, halibut and so on)

Material for subsequent additions