Multi-scale observations of mangrove blue carbon fluxes; the NASA Carbon Monitoring System BlueFlux field campaign

Abstract

The BlueFlux field campaign is supported by NASAs Carbon Monitoring System (CMS) and will develop prototype blue carbon products to inform coastal carbon management. Blue carbon is included in carbon-dioxide removal actions proposed to reduce atmospheric CO2 concentrations to mitigate climate change. Due to their high productivity and carbon storage, combined with historic losses and a wide-range of beneficial ecosystem services, the restoration and conservation of mangrove ecosystems features prominently in blue-carbon planning. The goal of BlueFlux is to carry out multi-scale measurements of CO2 and CH4 fluxes using chambers, flux towers, and aircraft and scale these to gridded products using space-based observations of forest structure and surface reflectance. The measurements cover gradients in disturbance, mainly from the history of hurricanes in the region that drive the dieback of mangroves and the formation of ghost forests. The fluxes of CH4 emissions will be contrasted with CO2 uptake to provide a more complete budget of radiative forcing and to understand the net climate benefits of blue carbon. BlueFlux demonstrates that quantifying the removals of CO2 and emissions of CH4 using a multi-scale approach can provide increased confidence in regional greenhouse-gas accounting, contribute to process-understanding, and help inform restoration and conservation efforts in the context of climate mitigation.