Quantifying and valuing carbon flows and stores in coastal and shelf ecosystems in the UK

Luisetti, Tiziana, Turner, R. Kerry, Andrews, Julian E., Jickells, Timothy D., Kröger, Silke, Diesing, Markus, Paltriguera, Lucille, Johnson, Martin T., Parker, Eleanor R., Bakker, Dorothee C. E. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9234-5337 and Weston, Keith (2019) Quantifying and valuing carbon flows and stores in coastal and shelf ecosystems in the UK. Ecosystem Services, 35. pp. 67-76. ISSN 2212-0416

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Abstract

Evidence shows that habitats with potential to mitigate against greenhouse gases emissions, by taking up and storing CO2, are being lost due to the effects of on-going human activities and climate change. The carbon storage by terrestrial habitats (e.g. tropical forests) and the role of coastal habitats (‘Blue Carbon’) as carbon storage sinks is well recognised. Offshore shelf sediments are also a manageable carbon store, covering ∼9% of global marine area, but not currently protected by international agreements to enable their conservation. Through a scenario analysis, we explore the economic value of the damage of human activities and climate change can inflict on UK marine habitats, including shelf sea sediments. In a scenario of increased human and climate pressures over a 25-year period, we estimate damage costs up to US$12.5 billion from carbon release linked to disturbance of coastal and shelf sea sediment carbon stores. It may be possible to manage socio-economic pressure to maintain sedimentary carbon storage, but the trade-offs with other global social welfare benefits such as food security will have to be taken into account. To develop effective incentive mechanisms to preserve these valuable coastal and marine ecosystems within a sustainability governance framework, robust evidence is required.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: blue carbon,carbon storage,ecosystem governance,ecosystem services,mitigation,offshore sediments,global and planetary change,geography, planning and development,ecology,agricultural and biological sciences (miscellaneous),nature and landscape conservation,management, monitoring, policy and law,sdg 2 - zero hunger,sdg 13 - climate action,sdg 14 - life below water,sdg 15 - life on land ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2300/2306
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences
Faculty of Science > School of Chemistry
University of East Anglia Research Groups/Centres > Theme - ClimateUEA
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Science > Research Centres > Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment (CSERGE)
Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Geosciences
Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Environmental Social Sciences
Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Collaborative Centre for Sustainable Use of the Seas
Related URLs:
Depositing User: LivePure Connector
Date Deposited: 27 Nov 2018 10:30
Last Modified: 20 Mar 2023 10:46
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/69047
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoser.2018.10.013

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