Seasonal Drivers of Carbon Dioxide Dynamics in a Hydrologically Modified Subtropical Tidal River and Estuary (Caboolture River, Australia)

Abstract

Estuaries are dynamic hot spots for carbon cycling and atmospheric evasion. Here we assess the dynamics and drivers of CO2 in a hydrologically modified subtropical Australian estuary. Over 1 year, 10 high-resolution spatial surveys of pCO2, radon, chromophoric dissolved organic matter, chlorophyll a, and physicochemical parameters were conducted from the estuary mouth to a weir located 25 km upstream. The riverine respiratory quotient revealed that processes besides water column respiration were driving high CO2 within the tidal river (salinity < 2) but not in the estuary (salinity > 2). Conservative mixing plots for pCO2 and 222Rn implied that groundwater may be a contributing source of CO2 during most surveys, but not during dry conditions. A multiple linear regression model explained 88% of the annual pCO2 variability, indicating that mixing, metabolism, temperature, and groundwater inputs were key drivers of CO2. Inputs from an upstream wastewater outfall potentially fuel observed seasonal algal blooms, resulting in the lowest daytime CO2 emissions periods. Postbloom surveys had the highest daytime CO2 emissions. The average tidal river CO2 atmospheric flux rate was 379 ± 53 mmol m−2 day−1. The average estuarine CO2 flux was 78 ± 17 mmol m−2 day−1, equating to 28 ± 6 mol m−2 yr−1. Although the tidal river surface area was ~10 times smaller than the estuary, about one third (35%) of the CO2 emissions were derived from the tidal river. Our results suggest that CO2 emissions along the tidal river-estuary continuum are dynamic over small temporal and spatial scales and that a combination of hydrological and biological processes is a controlling factor of this variability.