Numerical study on salinity stratification in the Pamlico River Estuary

The variations of current circulation, salt intrusion, and vertical stratification under different river flow and wind conditions in the Pamlico River Estuary (PRE) were investigated in this paper using a three-dimensional numerical model. The model was calibrated and verified against water level variation, temperature, and salinity variations during 2003 and 2001, respectively. Eight sensitivity tests were conducted with different river flow and wind conditions specified in the model. Model results show that salinity intruded further upstream under scenarios with low flow, downriver local wind, and remote-wind-caused water level set-up conditions. In contrast, the responses of salinity stratification to different environmental forcing functions were different in different portions of the estuary. Salinity stratification was enhanced under high flow condition at the lower part of the estuary, under upriver wind near the river mouth, under downriver wind at the upstream to middle portion of the estuary, and under remote-wind-caused water level set-up condition at the majority of the estuary except near the river mouth. Model results also show that across-channel wind tended to reduce salt intrusion and salinity stratification in the PRE through increased vertical mixing.     

A modelling study of residence time in a macro-tidal estuary

This paper outlines a numerical modelling study to predict the average residence time of a conservative tracer in a macro-tidal estuary, namely the Mersey Estuary, UK. An integrated hydrodynamic-dispersion model was used to predict the average residence time in the estuary for various tidal level and freshwater discharge conditions. The numerical model was verified against six sets of field measured hydrodynamic data, with the model-predicted water elevations and salinity levels generally agreeing well with the field measurements. The numerical model results show that in the Mersey Estuary both the tidal level and river discharge affect significantly the predicted average residence time. The value of the average residence time is also shown to be closely linked to the intensity of the residual tidal current. This is due to the fact that a large proportion of the Upper and Inner Estuary dries out during low tides, thus a significant amount of the tracer material is transported through the deep channels. An increase in the freshwater discharge causes a considerable increase in the intensity of the residual current along the main channels and thus a reduction in the average residence time. The predicted overall tracer residence time for the whole estuary is relatively short for a relatively large estuary, ranging from less than 1 day to 4 days for various tidal level and freshwater flow combinations. When the tidal range and freshwater discharge are both small, then the local tracer residence time in the upper part of the estuary can be significantly longer than the values predicted for the middle and lower reaches of the estuary.     

基于改进的RCA水质模型对珠江口夏季缺氧及初级生产力的数值模拟研究

针对珠江口藻类生长受泥沙遮光限制明显的问题, 对RCA(row and column of Aesop)三维水质模型进行改进, 加入泥沙模块及悬沙遮光对藻类生长的限制作用。应用改进的RCA水质模型, 对珠江口的营养盐、浮游植物及溶解氧进行模拟研究, 结果显示, 改进的RCA水质模型较好地再现了洪季珠江口营养盐、浮游植物和溶解氧在水平及垂向上的空间分布, 这表明该水质模型能较好地反映珠江河口中生态因子的关键过程。珠江口的缺氧现象在物理和生化过程的共同作用下, 被限制在伶仃洋的西滩和中滩及磨刀门海域。在洪季, 大量冲淡水进入珠江口形成锋面, 颗粒态有机物(particulate organic matter, POM)在锋面的影响下, 大量集中沉降在伶仃洋的西滩及中滩特定区域及磨刀门外, 产生较高的底泥耗氧率(sediment oxygen demand, SOD)。而在高SOD的区域, 水体分层通常也较明显, 因而产生缺氧现象。另一方面, 伶仃洋水体中磷的限制作用明显, 加上悬浮泥沙的遮光作用, 不利于浮游植物生长, 使得初级生产力低; 而在陆架上, 悬沙浓度减少使初级生产力增加, 但由于海源颗粒有机碳(particulate organic carbon, POC)的沉积分散于整个陆架上, 无法产生伶仃洋内的高SOD区域, 加上水体分层不明显, 并没有产生缺氧现象。     

Picophytoplankton: A major contributor to planktonic biomass and primary production in a eutrophic,river-dominated estuary

Biomass and primary productivity of picophytoplankton (PP; phytoplankton <3 μm) and larger phytoplankton (>3 μm) were determined during an annual cycle along the salinity gradient in North Carolina’s Neuse River Estuary (NRE), a eutrophic, microtidal estuary. The PP were a major component of total phytoplankton biomass and productivity, contributing ∼35–44% of the total chlorophyll a (Chl a) and 42–55% of the total primary productivity. Chl a and productivity of PP decreased from the upper to lower estuary, although the PP contribution relative to larger phytoplankton remained nearly constant. Significant PP growth occurred in the spring, but PP productivity and biomass were maximal in summer. PP productivity and biomass were positively correlated with temperature and dissolved inorganic phosphorus concentrations, which were maximal in summer due to release from sediments. Biomass and productivity of PP and >3 μm phytoplankton were also positively correlated, suggesting that growth conditions favoring the onset of blooms of larger phytoplankton species will similarly affect PP. High PP productivity and biomass in the NRE support the notion that PP play an important role in the production and eutrophication potentials of this estuary. High PP productivity and biomass have been noted in several other temperate estuaries, all sharing a common feature with the NRE—long residence time. These findings challenge the assumption that PP relative importance should be minimal in eutrophic systems.     

2006年夏季珠江冲淡水驱动的上升流

根据珠江口及其附近海域2006年夏季（7-8月）航次水文调查资料,发现调查期间,除了西南季风驱动下的冲淡水东向扩散外,粤西珠江口外冲淡水主要呈西向扩散趋势,并且西向扩散的冲淡水下存在上升流。已有的模型研究中,西南季风下珠江口外没有出现上升流,说明西南季风不是珠江口外上升流产生的主导因素。观测的温盐分布、潜标流速时间序列与走航ADCP流态表明,上升流产生的原因是:（1）口门外冲淡水南向扩展驱动了垂向重力环流;（2）密度跃层以下东北向沿岸流的底边界层Ekman效应;（3）口门外冲淡水团之间的气旋型中尺度涡旋作用。     

Observed fluxes of water,salt and suspended sediment in a partly mixed estuary

Observations of the residual fluxes of water, salt and suspended sediment are presented for seven stations along the Tamar Estuary. The data include measurements over single spring and neap tidal cycles, and are generally applicable to medium or high run-off conditions.Surface to bed differences in salinity are typically of the order of several parts per thousand. Gravitational circulation is an important component of residual flow in the deep, lower reaches of the estuary. Here, Stokes drift is insignificant. In the shallow upper reaches, the major residual currents are generated by Stokes drift and freshwater inputs. Data are compared with predictions from Hansen and Rattray's (1966) model of estuarine circulation.Salt fluxes due to tidal pumping and vertical shear are directed up-estuary at spring tides, tidal pumping being dominant. Tidal pumping of salt is also directed up-estuary at neap tides, although it is insignificant in the lower reaches, where vertical shear dominates.Tidal pumping of suspended sediment is directed up-estuary near the head at spring tides, and probably contributes to the formation of the turbidity maximum. The existence of the turbidity maximum is predicted using a simplified model of the transport of water and sediment. The model shows that an additional mechanism for the existence of the turbidity maximum is an up-estuary maximum in the tidal current speeds (and thus resuspension). In the lower reaches, transport of suspended sediment is directed down-estuary at both spring and neap tides, and sediment is essentially flushed to sea with the fresh water.     

A model study of influence of circulation on the pollutant transport in the Zhujiang River Estuary and adjacent coastal waters

A tracer model with random diffusion coupled to the hydrodynamic model for the Zhujiang River Estuary (Pearl River Estuary, PRE) is to examine the effect of circulations on the transport of completely conservative pollutants. It is focused on answering the following questions: (1) What role does the estuarine plume front in the winter play in affecting the pollutants transport and its distribution in the PRE? (2) What effect do the coastal currents driven by the monsoon have on the pollutants transport? The tracer experiment results show that: (1) the pollutant transport paths strongly depend on the circulation structures and plume frontal dynamics of the PRE and coastal waters; (2) during the summer when a southwesterly monsoon prevails, the pollutants from the four easterly river inlets and those from the bottom layer of offshore stations will greatly influence the water quality in Hong Kong waters, however, the pollutants released from the four westerly river-inlets will seldom affect the water quality of Hong Kong waters due to their transport away from Hong Kong; (3) during the winter when a northeasterly monsoon prevails, all pollutants released from the eight river gates will be laterally transported seaward inside the estuary and transport westward in the coastal waters along the river plume frontal zone. However, pollutants released from the surface layer of offshore stations near or east of the Dangan Channel will be carried into the coastal waters of Hong Kong by the landward component of the westward coastal current driven by the winter northeasterly monsoon. But the pollutants from the bottom layer of the offshore stations will be carried away from the offshore by the bottom flow driven by the northeasterly monsoon. This implies that only surface-released matter from offshore stations will affect the water quality of the coastal waters around Hong Kong during the winter when a northeasterly monsoon prevails.     

A model study of influence of circulation on the pollutant transport in the Zhujiang River Estuary and adjacent coastal waters

A tracer model with random diffusion coupled to the hydrodynamic model for the Zhujiang River Estuary (Pearl River Estuary, PRE) is to examine the effect of circulations on the transport of completely conservative pollutants. It is focused on answering the following questions: (1) What role does the estuarine plume front in the winter play in affecting the pollutants transport and its distribution in the PRE ? (2) What effect do the coastal currents driven by the monsoon have on the pollutants transport? The tracer experiment results show that: (1) the pollutant transport paths strongly depend on the circulation structures and plume frontal dynamics of the PRE and coastal waters; (2) during the summer when a southwesterly monsoon prevails, the pollutants from the four easterly river inlets and those from the bottom layer of offshore stations will greatly influence the water quality in Hong Kong waters, however, the pollutants released from the four westerly river-inlets will seldom affect the water quality of Hong Kong waters due to their transport away from Hong Kong; (3) during the winter when a northeasterly monsoon prevails, all pollutants released from the eight river gates will be laterally transported seaward inside the estuary and transport westward in the coastal waters along the river plume frontal zone. However, pollutants released from the surface layer of offshore stations near or east of the Dangan Channel will be carried into the coastal waters of Hong Kong by the landward component of the westward coastal current driven by the winter northeasterly monsoon. But the pollutants from the bottom layer of the offshore stations will be carried away from the offshore by the bottom flow driven by the northeasterly monsoon. This implies that only surface-released matter from offshore stations will affect the water quality of the coastal waters around Hong Kong during the winter when a northeasterly monsoon prevails.     

Typhoon-induced precipitation impact on nutrient and suspended matter dynamics of a tropical estuary affected by human activities in Hainan,China

Typhoons regularly hit the coasts along the northern South China Sea during summer monsoon. However, little is known on the effects of typhoon-related heavy precipitation on estuarine dynamics and coastal ecosystems. We analyzed physico-chemical characteristics, and concentrations and composition of dissolved and suspended matter in the Wenchang/Wenjiao Estuary (WWE) on the tropical island of Hainan, China, prior to and after typhoon Kammuri in August 2008. Before the typhoon, the estuary displayed vertical and horizontal gradients. High nutrient inputs from agriculture and widespread aquaculture were to a large extent converted into biomass inside the estuarine lagoon resulting in low export of nutrients to coastal waters and a mainly autochthonous origin of total suspended matter (TSM). Heavy typhoon-associated precipitation increased river runoff, which moved the location of the estuarine salinity gradient seaward. It resulted in an export of dissolved and particulate matter to coastal waters one day after the typhoon. Dissolved nutrients increased by up to an order of magnitude and TSM increased approximately twofold compared to pre-typhoon values. Lower δ¹³C_org and δ¹⁵N and elevated C/N ratios of TSM together with lower chlorophyll a (chl a) concentrations indicated an increased contribution of terrestrial material originating from typhoon-induced soil erosion. Local uptake of excess nutrients inside the lagoon was inhibited because of reduced water transparency and the lack of phytoplankton, which had been washed out by the initial freshwater pulse. Two weeks after the typhoon, TSM concentration and composition had almost returned to pre-typhoon conditions. However, physico-chemical properties and nutrients were still different from pre-typhoon conditions indicating that the estuarine system had not fully recovered. Unusually high chl a concentrations in the coastal zone indicated a phytoplankton bloom resulting from the typhoon-induced nutrient export. The typhoon-induced flushing of the WWE resulted in hyposalinity, reduced water transparency, siltation, as well as temporary eutrophication of coastal waters. These are physiological stressors, which are known to impair the performance of adjacent seagrass meadows and coral reefs. The predicted increase in typhoon frequency and intensity will lead to a frequently recurring exposure of coastal ecosystems to these threats, particularly in the South China Sea region where aquaculture is widespread and tropical cyclone frequency is at a maximum.     

Transport of salt and suspended sediments in a curving channel of a coastal plain estuary: Satilla River, GA

This study describes the transport of salt and suspended sediment in a curving reach of a shallow mesotidal coastal plain estuary. Circulation data revealed a subtidal upstream bottom flow during neap tide, indicating the presence of a gravitational circulation mode throughout the channel. During spring tide, landward bottom flow weakened considerably at the upstream end of the channel and changed to seaward in the middle and downstream areas of the reach, suggesting the importance of tidal pumping. Salt flux near-bottom was landward at both ends of the channel during neap tide. At spring, however, the salt flux diverged along the bottom of the thalweg suggesting that tidal pumping caused a transfer of salt vertically and laterally into the intertidal zone. Thus, landward flux of salt is maintained even in the presence of subtidal seaward flow along the bottom at the downstream end of the channel.Landward bottom stress is greater than seaward stress, preferentially transporting suspended sediments upstream. Compared with salt, however, the weight of the suspended sediments causes less upward transfer of sediments into the intertidal zone. Flood flow carried more suspended sediments landward at the upstream end compared with the downstream end. We speculate that secondary flow in the curving channel picks up increasing amounts of suspended sediments along the sides during flood and adds them to the axial flow in the thalweg. Since the landward flow along the bottom of the thalweg weakens and even reverses during spring tide, there appears to be a complex re-circulation system for sediments re-suspended in curving channels that complicates the picture of a net transport of sediments landward.     

夏季长江口南北支溶解有机质的比较

本文以2021年5月长江口南北支采集的表层水为研究对象,通过测定氢、氧同位素,溶解有机碳(DOC)浓度,有色溶解有机质(CDOM)的吸收光谱和荧光光谱参数,探讨了夏季长江口北支、南支(北港、北槽、南槽)水体溶解有机质的组成、分布及其影响因素。沿长江下游到河口近海,南、北支DOC浓度分别为1.68±0.16 mg/L和1.46±0.31mg/L,CDOM的吸光系数a350分别为2.37±0.61 m^-1和1.59±0.24 m^-1。南支整体具有“高类腐殖质、低类蛋白”的特征,北支则具有“低类腐殖质、低类蛋白”的特征,这可能与南北支的径流量差异有关。在南北支不同分汊河道(北支、南支北港、南支北槽和南支南槽)中,南槽和北支有类似的海水入侵特征,但南槽具有较强的类蛋白组分输入,而南支北港和北槽样品间无显著差异,均表现为河流有机质为主的特征。对比2011年长江南北支DOC和CDOM数据显示,作为长江主河道的南支在2021年无明显变化,而北支有显著的变化。这些结果综合表明长江口DOM的变化格局可能受水动力条件(径流量)、人类活动因素共同作用的影响。比较全...     

Analysis on the Circulation of the Yangtze River Estuary Based on ADCP Measurements

According to analysis on field data obtained by ADCP(Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler),the flow regime of the Yangtze River Estuary is studied by use of a 3-D numerical model.The flow field characteristics,under the influence of Coriolis force,saltwater intrusion and freshwater inflow and tidal current interaction,are depicted in details.The main driving forces and some important effective factors of lateral,longitudinal and horizontal circulation are also analyzed.     

Pattern of phosphorus forms in a Mediterranean shallow estuary: Effects of flooding events

Floods are responsible for the variation in the concentration of different phosphorus forms contained in the sediment of a small shallow estuary (Palmones River). The maximum differences were observed in the middle estuary, while other stations, placed in the inner and outer parts, showed a less sensitive response. The apatite forms (AIP) are the major ones. Noticeable changes in the concentration of different phosphorus forms are related with fine grain size sediment. In spite of different responses obtained along the estuary, the results reveal the possibility of using phosphorus concentration as a flood event index, discarding the use of phosphorus speciation for the same purpose.     

Modelling nutrient mass balance in a temperate meso-tidal estuary: Implications for management

Although mitigation programmes have been implemented in huge eutrophied estuarine systems, satisfactory results are not always immediately achieved. External loadings are reduced but the nutrient pools still existing in the sediments (due to decades of external supply) start to deplete only slowly, to reach the lower steady state level related to the new external loading. In the Mondego Estuary, this situation could be seen from the mass balance calculations including different nutrient fractions (dissolved, SPM and bound in vegetation). Different nutrient fractions quantified over the year showed the retention capacity and supplying capacity of these estuarine systems, and also the seasonal dynamics those fractions can present. External loading of nitrogen was largely dominated by DIN, but after its incorporation by benthic primary producers nitrogen export occurred essentially as SPM-N. Phosphorus loading was dominated by SPM-P, but during warmer periods P-efflux increased DIP concentration inside the system and was afterwards exported through the outer boundary. Although nutrients bound in vegetation were not significant to total mass balance, depending on the occurrence of occasional macroalgal blooms, the vegetation fraction can significantly increase its contribution to the overall balance.     

水文气象条件变化对长江口盐水入侵影响研究

分析论述了长江口盐水入侵的研究现状、影响因素、入侵变化规律及时空分布特征,将三维数值模式EFDC应用于长江口及其邻近海域,对长江口、杭州湾及邻近海区的水动力特性及盐度进行数值计算,研究结果表明,北港的盐水入侵强度高于北槽,北槽的盐水入侵强度又高于南槽,并且北港淡水往外冲淡的强度也高于南、北槽.在模拟长江口水动力特征和盐...     

象山港水交换特性研究

在验证良好的三维斜压潮流数学模型的基础上,以溶 解态的保守性物质为示踪剂,建立对流-扩散型的海湾水交换数值模型,计算了象山港水体半交换时间和平均滞留时间,并研究了斜压动力对湾内外水交换的贡献。研究结果表明,象山港水交换速度的区域性变化较大,水体半交换时间和平均滞留时间由象山港口门向湾顶逐渐增加,口门附近半交换时间在5d以内,平均滞留时间为5~10 d;湾顶水交换速度缓慢,水体半交换时间为30~35 d,平均滞留时间为35~40d。斜压动力对狭湾外段水交换影响较弱,对狭湾内段有较大的影响。     

The principal factors contributing to the flux of salt in a narrow, partially stratified estuary

Observations of the velocity and salinity structure of the Tees estuary were made at eight stations along the estuary axis between Victoria Bridge and the sea during the summer of 1975. The measurements were made on ten separate tidal periods covering neap and spring tides.The data were collected over a period of relatively low freshwater flows and the residual current was found to have a strong dependence on the Stokes drift. At the upstream stations, the residuals were more than an order of magnitude greater than the currents anticipated from the freshwater discharge. Although the mean stratification decreased as the tidal range increased, the vertical circulation was stronger on spring tides than on neaps. Vertical variations in the amplitude and phase of the tidal current results in a current which strengthens the vertical circulation. However, this effect only made a relatively small contribution to the observed vertical circulation.The relative contribution of the individual salt flux terms to the net upstream transport of salt varies along the estuary. As the estuary narrows, the contribution by the oscillatory terms dominates that from the shear in the steady state flow. Of these oscillatory terms, the correlation of velocity and salinity fluctuations plays a key rôle in the salt transport. The depth mean values make a greater contribution than deviations from the depth mean and the flux due to phase variations over depth is smaller than either of these. Since the Stokes drift is compensated by a down-stream steady state flow, it does not contribute to the tidal mean transport of salt.At the seaward end of the estuary, the salt fluxes due to the steady state vertical shear and the convariance of the tidal fluctuations act in a complementary way to counter the seaward transport of salt by the freshwater flow. With the possible exceptions of the wide or narrow reaches of the Tees, the longitudinal fluxes of salt due to transverse variations in velocity, salinity and depth and turbulent fluctuations are of secondary importance as contributors to the estuary salt budget.On both neap and spring tides, the computed total salt transports at the Newport and Victoria bridges did not match the values required for a salt balance with the corresponding freshwater flows. These fluxes were probably the cause of the observed downstream displacement of the tidal mean salinity distribution between neap and spring tides.     

The effect of a tidal cycle on the dynamics of nutrients in a tidal estuary in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan

A 24 hour time series survey was carried out during a spring tide (tidal range ca.2 m) of May 1995 on a tidal estuary in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, in the context of an integrated program planned to quantify the dynamics of biophilic elements (carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus) and the roles played by the macrobenthos on the processes. Three stations were set along a transect line of about 1.4 km, which linked the river to the rear to the innermost part of the subtidal zone. Every hour, at each station, measurements were made of surface water temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen concentration, and surface water was collected for the determination of nutrients [NH₄ ⁺−N, (NO₃ ⁻+NO₂ ⁻)−N, PO₄ ³⁻−P and Si (OH)₄−Si]. During the ebb flow, riverine input of silicate and nitrate+nitrite significantly increased the concentrations of both the intertidal and the subtidal stations. Conversely, during the high tide, river nutrient concentrations were lowered by the mixing of fresh water with sea water. As a result, best (inverse) correlations were found at the river station for salinity against silicate (y=-2.9 Sal.+110.7,r ²=0.879) and nitrate+nitrite (y=-1.3 Sal.+48.4,r ²=0.796). In contrast, ammonium nitrogen concentrations were higher at intermediate salinities. Indeed, no significant correlation was found between salinity and ammonium. The effect of the macrobenthos, which is abundant on the intertidal flat, is discussed as a biological component that influences the processes of nutrient regeneration within the estuary. The effect of the tidal amplitude is an important one in determining the extent of the variations in nutrient concentrations at all three stations, which were stronger between the lower low tide and the higher high tide.     

珠江口蕉门南水道枯季时局部高盐度区形成与机理分析

采用ROMS模型研究了珠江口蕉门南水道枯季时的局部高盐度现象。表明这一现象在大潮期发育显著,而小潮期则不明显。从动力机制上解释了这一现象的成因,揭示其形成原因为大潮期的平流输运强,涨潮时的潮程远大于凫洲水道的长度,以及大潮期径流相对较小,有利于虎门的高盐度水体输运至蕉门水道。此外,大潮期由于洪奇沥与横门来的淡水在涨潮期向北输运而导致蕉门南水道口门处盐度较低。并进一步分析了这一现象的存在对蕉门南水道水体分层、河口环流及物质输运的意义。     

The cycling and oxidation pathways of organic carbon in a shallow estuary along the Texas Gulf Coast

The cycling and oxidation pathways of organic carbon were investigated at a single shallow water estuarine site in Trinity Bay, Texas, the uppermost lobe of Galveston Bay, during November 2000. Radio-isotopes were used to estimate sediment mixing and accumulation rates, and benthic chamber and pore water measurements were used to determine sediment-water exchange fluxes of oxygen, nutrients and metals, and infer carbon oxidation rates. Using ⁷Be and ²³⁴Th_XS, the sediment-mixing coefficient (D_b) was 4.3 ± 1.8 cm² y⁻¹, a value that lies at the lower limit for marine environments, indicating that mixing was not important in these sediments at this time. Sediment accumulation rates (S_a), estimated using ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb_XS, were 0.16 ± 0.02 g cm⁻² y⁻¹. The supply rate of organic carbon to the sediment-water interface was 30 ± 3.9 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹, of which ∼10% or 2.9 ± 0.44 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹was lost from the system through burial below the 1-cm thick surface mixed layer. Measured fluxes of O₂ were 26 ± 3.8 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ and equated to a carbon oxidation rate of 20 ± 3.3 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹, which is an upper limit due to the potential for oxidation of additional reduced species. Using organic carbon gradients in the surface mixed layer, carbon oxidation was estimated at 2.6 ± 1.1 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. Independent estimates made using pore water concentration gradients of ammonium and C:N stoichiometry, equaled 2.8 ± 0.46 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. The flux of DOC out of the sediments (DOC_efflux) was 5.6 ± 1.3 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. In general, while mass balance was achieved indicating the sediments were at steady state during this time, changes in environmental conditions within the bay and the surrounding area, mean this conclusion might not always hold. These results show that the majority of carbon oxidation occurred at the sediment-water interface, via O₂ reduction. This likely results from the high frequency of sediment resuspension events combined with the shallow sediment mixing zone, leaving anaerobic oxidants responsible for only ∼10–15% of the carbon oxidized in these sediments.