Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Spatial Variation in Organic Carbon Density of Mangrove Soil in Indian Sundarbans

  • Research Article
  • Published:
National Academy Science Letters Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Soils from intertidal mudflats of mangrove dominated Indian Sundarbans were analyzed for soil organic carbon, bulk density and organic carbon density during 2009 in two different sectors: western and eastern. Samplings were carried out at 12 stations in four different depths (0.01–0.10, 0.10–0.20, 0.20–0.30 and 0.30–0.40 m) through three seasons (pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon). High organic carbon density is observed in the stations of western Indian Sundarbans, which is relatively close to the highly urbanized city of Kolkata, Howrah and the newly emerging Haldia port-cum-industrial complex. The mangrove forest in the eastern Indian Sundarbans exhibits comparatively lower organic carbon density. Anthropogenic activities are almost negligible in this sector because of its location almost within the protected forest area. The bulk density of the mangrove soil increased with depth, while organic carbon and carbon density decreased with depth almost in all the stations. We observed significant spatial variations in soil organic carbon and organic carbon density in the study area.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Murako D (2004) Seaweed resources as a source of carbon fixation. Bull Fish Res Agency 1:59–63

    Google Scholar 

  2. Anthropogenic carbon fluxes; 1980 to 1989. IPCC 1994

  3. Siegenthaler U, Sarmiento JL (1993) Atmospheric carbon dioxide and the ocean. Nature 365:119–125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Mitsch WJ, Gosselink JG (2000) Wetlands. Wiley, New York, pp 920

  5. Cerón-Bretón JG, Cerón-Bretón RM, Guerra-Santos JJ, Aguilar-Ucán C, Montalvo-Romero C, Vargas-Cáliz C, Córdova-Quiroz V, Jiménez-Corzo R (2010) Effects of simulated tropospheric ozone on nutrients levels and photosynthethic pigments concentrations of three mangrove species. WSEAS Trans Environ Dev 6(2):133–143

    Google Scholar 

  6. Bridgham SD, Megonigal JP, Keller JK, Bliss NB, Trettin C (2006) The carbon balance of North American wetlands. Wetlands 26:889–916

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Vesterdal L, Ritter E, Gundersen P (2002) Change in soil organic carbon following afforestation of former arable land. For Ecol Manag 162:137–147

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Zinn YL, Lala R, Resck DVS (2005) Changes in soil organic carbon stocks under agriculture in Brazil. Soil Tillage Res 84:28–40

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Homann PS, Remillard SM, Harmon ME, Bormann BT (2004) Carbon storage in coarse and fine fractions of Pacific Northwest old growth forest soils. Soil Sci Soc Am J 68:2023–2030

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Shukla MK, Lal R (2005) Erosional effects on soil organic carbon stock in an on-farm study on Alfisols in west central Ohio. Soil Tillage Res 81:173–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Jobb´agy EG, Jackson RB (2000) The vertical distribution of soil organic carbon and its relation to climate and vegetation. Ecol Appl 10:423–436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Wang SQ, Huang M, Shao XM, Mickler RA, Li KR, Ji JJ (2004) Vertical distribution of soil organic carbon in China. Environ Manag 33(Suppl 1):S200–S209

    Google Scholar 

  13. Mi N, Wang SQ, Liu JY, Yu GR, Zhang WJ, Jobb´agy EG (2008) Soil inorganic carbon storage pattern in China. Global Change Biol 14:2380–2387

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Jackson RB, Schenk HJ, Jobb´agy EG, Canadell J, Colello GD, Dickinson RE, Field CB, Friedlingstein P, Heimann M, Hibbard K, Kicklighter DW, Kleidon A, Neilson RP, Parton WJ, Sala OE, Sykes MT (2000) Belowground consequences of vegetation change and their treatment in models. Ecol Appl 10:470–483

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Gill R, Burke IC, Milchunas DG, Lauenroth WK (1999) Relationship between root biomass and soil organic matter pools in the short-grass steppe of Eastern Colorado. Ecosystems 2:226–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Meersmans J, van Wesemael B, De Ridder F, Fallas Dotti M, De Baets S, Van Molle M (2009) Changes in organic carbon distribution with depth in agricultural soils in Northern Belgium, 1960–2006. Global Change Biol 15:2739–2750

    Google Scholar 

  17. Fontaine S, Barot S, Barre P, Bdioui N, Mary B, Rumpel C (2007) Stability of organic carbon in deep soil layers controlled by fresh carbon supply. Nature 450:277–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Mitra A (2000) In: Sheppard C (ed) Seas at the millennium—an environmental evaluation, Chapter 62. The Northeast coast of the Bay of Bengal and deltaic Sundarbans. Elsevier Science, New York, pp 143–157

  19. Chaudhuri AB, Choudhury A (1994) Mangroves of the Sundarbans—India, 1st edn. IUCN, The World Conservation Union, Dhaka

    Google Scholar 

  20. Ovalle ARC, Rezende CE, Lacerda LD, Silva CAR (1990) Factors affecting the hydrochemistry of a mangrove tidal creek, Sepetiba Bay, Brazil. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 31:639–650

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Lacerda LD, Carvalho CEV, Tanizaki KF, Ovalle ARC, Rezende CE (1993) The biogeochemistry and trace metals distribution of mangrove rhizospheres. Biotropica 25:251–256

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Tanizaki KF (1994) Biogeoquímica de metais pesados na rizosfera de plantas de um manguezal do Rio de Janeiro. M.Sc. Thesis, Departamento de Geoquímica, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, pp 67

  23. Walkley A, Black IA (1934) An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic matter and a proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Sci 37:29–38

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Bouillon S, Rivera-Monroy VH, Twilley RR, Kairo JG (2009) Mangroves. In: Laffoley D, Grimsditch (eds) The management of natural coastal carbon sinks. IUCN, Dhaka

  25. Alongi DM (2008) Mangrove forests: resilience, protection from tsunamis, and responses to global climate change. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 76:1–13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Chmura GL, Anisfeld SC, Cahoon DR, Lynch JC (2003) Global carbon sequestration in tidal, saline wetland soils. Glob Biogeochem Cycles 17:1111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Lacerda LD, Ittekkot V, Patchineelam SR (1995) Biochemistry of mangrove soil organic matter: a comparison between Rhizophora and Avicennia soils in South-eastern Brazil. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 40:713–720

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Donato DC, Kauffman BJ, Murdiyarso D, Sofyan K, Melanie S, Markku K (2011) Mangroves amongst the most carbon-rich forests in the tropics. Nature Geosci 1–5

  29. Bernal B, Mitsch WJ (2008) A comparison of soil carbon pools and profiles in wetlands in Costa Rica and Ohio. Ecol Eng 34:311–323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Brevik E, Homburg J (2004) A 500 year record of carbon sequestration from a coastal lagoon and wetland complex, Southern California. USA Catena 57:221–232

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Khan MNI, Suwa R, Hagihara A (2007) Carbon and nitrogen pools in a mangrove stand of Kandelia obovata (S., L.) Yong: vertical distribution in the soil-vegetation systems. Wetlands Ecol Manag 15:141–153

    Google Scholar 

  32. Howe AJ, Rodríguez JF, Saco PM (2009) Surface evolution and carbon sequestration in disturbed and undisturbed wetland soils of the Hunter estuary, southeast Australia. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 84:75–86

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Mitra A, Banerjee K, Sengupta K (2010) The affect of salinity on the mangrove growth in the lower Gangetic plain. Jr. Coastal Environ 1(1):71–82

    Google Scholar 

  34. Mitra A, Sengupta K, Banerjee K (2011) Standing biomass and carbon storage of above-ground structures in dominant mangrove trees in the Sundarbans. For Ecol Manag 261(7):1325–1335

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The financial assistance from the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Govt. of India under the programme ISRO-GBP/NCP/SVF is gratefully acknowledged. The infrastructural support from the Forest Department, Govt. of West Bengal is duly acknowledged.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marine Science, University of Calcutta, 35 B.C. Road, Kolkata, West Bengal, 700 019, India

    Abhijit Mitra & Saurov Sett

  2. School for Biodiversity and Conservation of Natural Resources, Central University of Orissa, Landiguda, Koraput, 764020, India

    Kakoli Banerjee

Authors
  1. Abhijit Mitra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kakoli Banerjee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Saurov Sett
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Abhijit Mitra.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mitra, A., Banerjee, K. & Sett, S. Spatial Variation in Organic Carbon Density of Mangrove Soil in Indian Sundarbans. Natl. Acad. Sci. Lett. 35, 147–154 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40009-012-0046-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40009-012-0046-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation