Author(s): Mohamed T. Ahmed; Kamal H. Shaltout; Ebrahem M. Eid; Sulaiman A. Alrumman; Dalia A. Ahmed
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: Quatic communities; Arabian Peninsula; Carbon sequestration; Global warming; Red Sea; Vertical distribution
Abstract: Climate change is a serious issue facing the world today. Carbon dioxide (CO) emission is one of the important factors in global climate change. Carbon sequestration potential (CSP) of various terrestrial ecosystems, especially wetlands, play a role in manipulating the excessive increase of CO in the atmosphere. In the current investigation, we report on the efficiency of mangrove forests along the Saudi Arabian Red Sea coast in carbon sequestration and establishment of a baseline data on soil organic carbon (SOC) pools for future studies on SOC dynamics. The study area was classified into north, middle and south locations on the Saudi Arabian Red Sea coast. In each of the sampling location, three sampling stands were selected to assure representative samples to the site. Ten soil cores were taken in each sampling stand. A total of 1383 soil samples were collected. The mean distribution of soil bulk density in the northern, middle and southern stands increased significantly with depth reaching the maximum at a depth of 25-30 cm in north location, 20-25 cm in middle location and 30-35 cm in south location. SOC concentration in the north location declined significantly with depth from 17.7 g C kg at depth 0-5 cm to 14.0 g C kg at depth 20-25 cm. SOC concentration in the middle location declined significantly with depth from 19.6 g C kg at depth 5-10 cm to 15.8 g C kg at depth 20-25cm, while SOC concentration in the south location declined significantly with depth from 22.8 g C kg at depth0-5 cm to 15.9 g C kg at depth 40-45 cm. The carbon sequestration rate (CSR) ranged between 8.7 g C m year in the north location, 7.4 g C m year in the middle location and 8.9 g C m year in the south location. Based on the area of mangrove stands (292 km) and CSR, the total CSP of mangroves in Saudi Arabiawas 2.53 ± 0.03 Gg C year.
Year: 2018