Seagrasses provide several benefits. They serve as habitat and refuge for a high number of species; they retain sediment, protecting coastal areas; In addition, healthy grasslands help improve water quality and regulate the impact of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. However, these biological forms are also among some of the most threatened ecosystems in the world.
Scientists from the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav) of the National Polytechnic Institute, Mérida unit, conducted a study published in the journal PeerJ, in which they analyze the capacity of seagrasses to capture carbon dioxide and store it as blue carbon (organic carbon from marine-coastal ecosystems). “Although there are global estimates of how much is captured by these habitats, there is a need to generate information on their role in the phenomenon of climate change locally,” said Tania Cecilia Cota Lucero, lead author of the study.
The researcher added: “The goal is to have precise maps of its extension at a national, regional and, above all, local scale. We are collecting, systematizing and organizing information from various sources with the aim of creating a robust database that helps identify its conservation status.”
Based on this information, it is also aimed at developing strategies to mitigate the pollution generated by greenhouse gases. So a new line of research is designed to propose actions to protect these ecosystems. First, the species at risk are listed in the Official Mexican Standard NOM-059-Semarnat-2010, so that they are monitored, as is done with mangroves or coral reefs, and thus seagrasses are taken into account by society and the community. scientific research when looking for its conservation and the restoration of those that already show damage.
group of angiosperms
Seagrasses are species of the angiosperm group (flowering plants) that evolved 100 million years ago. They have a system of rhizomes (horizontal underground stems) that extend through the sediments, allowing their roots to absorb nutrients, as well as the ability to expand covering large areas of underwater land. They retain carbon 35 times faster than tropical forests due to their ability to store it in the sediment, where it remains for thousands of years, contributing to climate impact mitigation.
On a global scale, these organisms store carbon in their sediment from 100 to 300 tons per hectare; however, that amount varies locally due to various factors. Like mangroves, the contribution of seagrasses to blue carbon at a site varies, so local studies are of greatest interest to scientists.
To avoid bias in estimates of the amount of carbon stored, as well as the sources from which it is obtained (external carbon, called allochthonous, also manages to be captured since organisms also trap organic matter from other ecosystems, such as mangroves), it is necessary to measure their extension and origins with robust technological tools, in addition to accompanying them with field work to determine stable isotopes, complementing them with information about water quality and health indicators.
“We began to investigate the contribution that seagrasses have in the Petenes Biosphere Reserve, Campeche; the area is characterized by having this ecosystem in a good state of conservation and presents a continuous extension of almost 150 thousand hectares. This helps to make visible the importance of seagrass conservation, the site and its contribution to mitigation strategies in Mexico”, highlighted Tania Cecilia Cota Lucero.
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