Publication Date:
2020-11-16
Description:
The Arctic Ocean region is currently undergoing dramatic changes, which will likely alter the nutrient cycles
that underpin Arctic marine ecosystems. Phosphate is a key limiting nutrient for marine life but gaps in our
understanding of the Arctic phosphorus (P) cycle persist. In this study, we investigate the benthic burial and
recycling of phosphorus using sediments and porewaters from the Eurasian Arctic margin, including the
Barents Sea slope and the Yermak Plateau. Our results highlight that P is generally lost from sediments with
depth during organic matter respiration. On the Yermak Plateau, remobilization of P results in a diffusive flux
of P to the seafloor of between 96 and 261 μmol m-2 yr-1. On the Barents Sea slope, diffusive fluxes of P are much
larger (1736 to 2449 μmol m-2 yr-1) but these fluxes are into near surface sediments rather than to the bottom
waters. The difference in cycling on the Barents Sea slope is controlled by higher fluxes of fresh organic matter
and active iron cycling. As changes in primary productivity, ocean circulation, and glacial melt continue,
benthic P cycling is likely to be altered with implications for P imported into the Arctic Ocean Basin.
Repository Name:
EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
Type:
Article
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isiRev
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