Global Dissolved Organic Carbon Research Articles

Rising CO2 and land use change amplify the increase in terrestrial and riverine export of dissolved organic carbon over the past four decades

The lateral transport of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from land to rivers and oceans is a significant but overlooked component of the global carbon cycle. However, there are still large uncertainties in the magnitude and trend of global DOC export fluxes, as well as their response to environmental change. In this study, several simulations were conducted using a developed land surface model that considered riverine DOC transport and anthropogenic disturbance to investigate the terrestrial DOC loading and riverine DOC export, and to quantify the relative contributions of natural and anthropogenic factors over the past four decades (1981–2016). These factors include climate change, nitrogen deposition, land use change, atmospheric CO2 concentration, anthropogenic water regulation, and fertilizer and manure application. Results showed that the average global annual terrestrial DOC loading was about 432.30 ± 53.59 Tg C yr−1, and rivers exported about 209.73 ± 36.58 Tg C yr−1 to oceans over the past four decades. Simultaneously, a significant increase in terrestrial DOC loading and riverine DOC export fluxes (3.36 Tg C yr−2 and 2.99 Tg Cyr−2, p < 0.01) was found, which increased by 26.88 % and 47.02 %, respectively. According to our factorial analysis, the interannual variability in DOC fluxes in most regions was mainly attributed to climate change and contributed more than 60 % of the long-term increase. In addition, rising atmospheric CO2 and land use change amplified the increase in terrestrial DOC loading, with the area dominated by the two factors expanding from 7.94 % in the 1980s to 23.84 % in the 2010s, and riverine DOC export showed a similar pattern, which may be related to the increased soil DOC sources. Anthropogenic water regulation and nitrogen addition have led to a slight increase in DOC fluxes, which should not be ignored, otherwise carbon fluxes may be underestimated.

Mapping turnover of dissolved organic carbon in global topsoil

Dissolved organic carbon (DOC), the labile fraction of organic carbon, is a predominant substrate for microbes. Therefore, the turnover of DOC dominates microbial respiration in soils. We compiled a global dataset (1096 data points) of the turnover rates of DOC in 0–30 cm soil profiles and integrated the data with a machine learning algorithm to develop a global map of DOC turnover rate in global topsoil. The global DOC turnover rate in 0–30 cm soil was averaged as 0.0087 day−1, with a considerable variation among biomes. The fastest DOC turnover rate was found in tropical forests (0.0175 day−1) and the lowest in tundra (0.0036 day−1), exhibiting a declining trend from low to high latitudes. The DOC turnover rate is primarily controlled by edaphic and climate factors, as confirmed by the analyses with the structural equation model and the Mental's test. With a machine learning algorithm, we produced global maps of DOC turnover rate at a monthly scale, which were further combined with a global dataset of DOC density to produce monthly maps of carbon mineralization from DOC turnover in topsoil. The annual carbon release from DOC was estimated as 27.98 Pg C year−1 from topsoil across the globe, with the largest contribution from forest biomes, followed by pasture and grassland. Tundra released the least carbon from DOC due to its low turnover rate suppressed by low temperatures. The biome- and global-scale information of DOC turnover rate and carbon release from DOC provide a benchmark for ecosystem models to better project soil carbon dynamics and their contributions to global carbon cycling in the changing environment.

Large fluxes of continental-shelf-borne dissolved organic carbon in the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea

Fluxes of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from continental shelves to the ocean may play a critical role in marine carbon cycling and budget. However, these fluxes have been poorly constrained because complicated biogeochemical reactions of riverine, atmospheric, and marine organic carbon occur in continental shelf-waters. We used multiple tracers of DOC such as stable- and radiocarbon isotope ratios of DOC, fluorescent properties of dissolved organic matter (FDOM), and 228Ra as a water age tracer to investigate the sources and fluxes of DOC in the northwest Pacific continental margin of the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. Here, we show that there are significant additional (excess) supplies of DOC in the central Yellow Sea relative to the Changjiang (Yangtze River) source, based on these tracers. The marine δ13C signature (−21.1 ± 1.1‰) and the radiocarbon age (2000 ± 400 yr) of DOC suggest that the additional DOC (Δ14DOC = −44‰) is supplied from a combination of newly produced DOC and the degradation of particulate as well as sedimentary organic matter. The flux of this additional DOC produced in the continental shelf of the East China Sea to the open ocean is estimated to be ~1.9 ± 0.8 Tg C yr−1, which is comparable to that from the Changjiang discharge. Our study implies that the fluxes of continental shelf-borne DOC may be important globally and should be considered in estimating global DOC budgets in the marine environment.

Warming and ocean acidification may decrease estuarine dissolved organic carbon export to the ocean

Abstract. Relative to their surface area, estuaries make a disproportionately large contribution of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to the global carbon cycle, but it is unknown how this will change under a future climate. As such, the response of DOC fluxes from microbially dominated unvegetated sediments to individual and combined future climate stressors of temperature change (from Δ−3 to Δ+5 ∘C compared to ambient mean temperatures) and ocean acidification (OA, ∼ 2× current CO2 partial pressure, pCO2) was investigated ex situ. Warming alone increased sediment heterotrophy, resulting in a proportional increase in sediment DOC uptake; sediments became net sinks of DOC (3.5 to 8.8 mmol C m−2 d−1) at warmer temperatures (Δ+3 and Δ+5 ∘C, respectively). This temperature response changed under OA conditions, with sediments becoming more autotrophic and a greater sink of DOC (up to 4× greater than under current pCO2 conditions). This response was attributed to the stimulation of heterotrophic bacteria with the autochthonous production of labile organic matter by microphytobenthos. Extrapolating these results to the global area of unvegetated subtidal estuarine sediments, we find that the future climate of warming (Δ+3 ∘C) and OA may decrease estuarine export of DOC by ∼ 80 % (∼ 150 Tg C yr−1) and have a disproportionately large impact on the global DOC budget.

How much carbon can be added to soil by sorption?

Quantifying the upper limit of stable soil carbon storage is essential for guiding policies to increase soil carbon storage. One pool of carbon considered particularly stable across climate zones and soil types is formed when dissolved organic carbon sorbs to minerals. We quantified, for the first time, the potential of mineral soils to sorb additional dissolved organic carbon (DOC) for six soil orders. We compiled 402 laboratory sorption experiments to estimate the additional DOC sorption potential, that is the potential of excess DOC sorption in addition to the existing background level already sorbed in each soil sample. We estimated this potential using gridded climate and soil geochemical variables within a machine learning model. We find that mid- and low-latitude soils and subsoils have a greater capacity to store DOC by sorption compared to high-latitude soils and topsoils. The global additional DOC sorption potential for six soil orders is estimated to be 107 pm 13 Pg C to 1 m depth. If this potential was realized, it would represent a 7% increase in the existing total carbon stock.

Leaching of dissolved organic carbon from mineral soils plays a significant role in the terrestrial carbon balance.

The leaching of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from soils to the river network is an overlooked component of the terrestrial soil C budget. Measurements of DOC concentrations in soil, runoff and drainage are scarce and their spatial distribution highly skewed towards industrialized countries. The contribution of terrestrial DOC leaching to the global‐scale C balance of terrestrial ecosystems thus remains poorly constrained. Here, using a process based, integrative, modelling approach to upscale from existing observations, we estimate a global terrestrial DOC leaching flux of 0.28 ± 0.07 Gt C year−1 which is conservative, as it only includes the contribution of mineral soils. Our results suggest that globally about 15% of the terrestrial Net Ecosystem Productivity (NEP, calculated as the difference between Net Primary Production and soil respiration) is exported to aquatic systems as leached DOC. In the tropical rainforest, the leached fraction of terrestrial NEP even reaches 22%. Furthermore, we simulated spatial‐temporal trends in DOC leaching from soil to the river networks from 1860 to 2010. We estimated a global increase in terrestrial DOC inputs to river network of 35 Tg C year−1 (14%) from 1860 to 2010. Despite their low global contribution to the DOC leaching flux, boreal regions have the highest relative increase (28%) while tropics have the lowest relative increase (9%) over the historical period (1860s compared to 2000s). The results from our observationally constrained model approach demonstrate that DOC leaching is a significant flux in the terrestrial C budget at regional and global scales.

Estimating dissolved carbon concentrations in global soils: a global database and model

Dissolved carbon (C) leaching in and from soils plays an important role in C transport along the terrestrial-aquatic continuum. However, a global overview and analysis of dissolved carbon in soil solutions, covering a wide range of vegetation types and climates, is lacking. We compiled a global database on annual average dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in soil solutions, including potential governing factors, with 762 entries from 351 different sites covering a range of climate zones, land cover types and soil classes. Using this database we develop regression models to calculate topsoil concentrations, and concentrations versus depth in the subsoil at the global scale. For DIC, the lack of a proportional globally distributed cover inhibits analysis on a global scale. For DOC, annual average concentrations range from 1.7 to 88.3 (median = 25.27) mg C/L for topsoils (n = 255) and from 0.42 to 372.1 (median = 5.50) mg C/L for subsoils (n = 285, excluding lab incubations). Highest topsoil values occur in forests of cooler, humid zones. In topsoils, multiple regression showed that precipitation is the most significant factor. Our global topsoil DOC model ({mathrm{R}}^{2}=0.36) uses precipitation, soil class, climate zone and land cover type as model factors. Our global subsoil model describes DOC concentrations vs. depth for different USDA soil classes (overall ({mathrm{R}}^{2}=0.45). Highest subsoil DOC concentrations are calculated for Histosols.

Global-scale daily riverine DOC fluxes from lands to the oceans with a generic model

Abstract The export of riverine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to the oceans is determinant in carbon exchanges of the estuaries and oceanic food webs. Past research returned a global DOC export around 160–450 TgC.yr−1 by using complex process-based models or yearly average estimates that could have been misjudged. In this study, we try to understand the complex processes explaining daily DOC exports among 341 exoreic watersheds covering 71% of freshwater flows to the oceans. Based on a dataset of DOC concentrations among rivers at the global scale, we were able to link DOC concentrations to daily discharge, the ration between the soil organic carbon content and the amount of precipitations and the average air temperature in the watersheds. We have found a global riverine DOC flux of 131.6 TgC.yr−1 based on daily data and a generic model. Tropical and cold watersheds are the main contributors with 49.5% and 33.3% of the global riverine DOC flux on the two last decades while temperate, semi-arid and polar basins represent 15.9%, 0.7% and 0.6%, respectively. Temporal exports range from 0.1 to 0.16 TgC.day−1 in tropical areas, 0.03–0.32 TgC.day−1 in cold areas and 0.03–0.08 TgC.day−1 in temperate areas. Atlantic and Arctic oceans receive the most important fluxes (0.12–0.2 and 0.01–0.26 TgC.day−1). In a climate change context, this generic equation could be introduced in hydrological modelling tools to predict future DOC fluxes trends.

Impacts of Global Change on Ocean Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) Cycling

The marine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) pool is an important player in the functioning of marine ecosystems. DOC is at the interface between the chemical and the biological worlds, it fuels marine food webs, and is a major component of the Earth’s carbon system. Here, we review the research showing impacts of global change stressors on the DOC cycling, specifically: ocean warming and stratification, acidification, deoxygenation, glacial and sea ice melting, changed inflow from rivers, changing ocean circulation and upwelling, and wet/dry deposition. A unified outcome of the future impacts of these stressors on the global ocean DOC production and degradation is not possible, due to regional differences and differences in stressors impacts, but general patterns for each stressor are presented.

Predicting lake dissolved organic carbon at a global scale

The pool of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), is one of the main regulators of the ecology and biogeochemistry of inland water ecosystems, and an important loss term in the carbon budgets of land ecosystems. We used a novel machine learning technique and global databases to test if and how different environmental factors contribute to the variability of in situ DOC concentrations in lakes. In order to estimate DOC in lakes globally we predicted DOC in each lake with a surface area larger than 0.1 km2. Catchment properties and meteorological and hydrological features explained most of the variability of the lake DOC concentration, whereas lake morphometry played only a marginal role. The predicted average of the global DOC concentration in lake water was 3.88 mg L−1. The global predicted pool of DOC in lake water was 729 Tg from which 421 Tg was the share of the Caspian Sea. The results provide global-scale evidence for ecological, climate and carbon cycle models of lake ecosystems and related future prognoses.

A Synthetic Model to Quantify Dissolved Organic Carbon Transport in the Changjiang River System: Model Structure and Spatiotemporal Patterns

AbstractRiverine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is an important carbon pool in the global biogeochemical cycle. DOC transport in river networks involves three processes: DOC input (including DOC release from terrestrial ecosystems and in situ production in river networks), in‐river removal, and export through watershed outlets or estuaries. DOC transport in large river networks is gaining attention due to its important role in carbon and nutrient supply and CO2 emission, for example. However, quantifying DOC input to rivers and in‐river removal is still not properly understood. This study developed a synthesis model to quantify DOC transport in the Changjiang River Network (CRN) by coupling spiraling theory with Strahler river order. Our study suggested that the wetlands proportion and soil organic matter are valid parameters in a DOC model and our simulations showed that approximately 2.65–4.86 Tg C/year entered rivers and 1.16–2.12 Tg C/year was exported to the estuary as DOC, with a removal proportion of over 50% throughout the CRN in 1980–2015. The subbasins of the Dongting Lake, the Yichang‐Jiujiang section of the mainstream, and the Min‐Tuo River were primary contributors of DOC load, accounting for approximately 45% of the bulk DOC load of the CRN. The subbasins of Jinsha River and Yalong River in the upper reaches of the CRN and the subbasin of Wu River contributed less than 10% of the DOC load. DOC export by the CRN accounted for 0.3–1.2% of the global DOC flux from land to sea.

Modeling Global Riverine DOC Flux Dynamics From 1951 to 2015

AbstractClimate change has a profound impact on the global carbon cycle, including effects on riverine carbon pools, which connect terrestrial, oceanic, and atmospheric carbon pools. Until now, terrestrial ecosystem models have rarely incorporated riverine carbon components into global carbon budgets. Here we developed a new process‐based model, TRIPLEX‐HYDRA (TRIPLEX‐hydrological routing algorithm), that considers the production, consumption, and transport processes of nonanthropogenic dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from soil to river ecosystems. After the parameter calibration, model results explained more than 50% of temporal variations in all but three rivers. Validation results suggested that DOC yield simulated by TRIPLEX‐HYDRA has a good fit (R2 = 0.61, n = 71, p &lt; 0.001) with global river observations. And then, we applied this model for global rivers. We found that mean DOC yield of global river approximately 1.08 g C/m2 year, where most high DOC yield appeared in the rivers from high northern or tropic regions. Furthermore, our results suggested that global riverine DOC flux appeared a significant decrease trend (average rate: 0.38 Pg C/year) from 1951 to 2015, although the variation patterns of DOC fluxes in global rivers are diverse. A decreasing trend in riverine DOC flux appeared in the middle and high northern latitude regions (30–90°N), which could be attributable to an increased flow path and DOC degradation during the transport process. Furthermore, increasing trend of DOC fluxes is found in rivers from tropical regions (30°S–30°N), which might be related to an increase in terrestrial organic carbon input. Many other rivers (e.g., Mississippi, Yangtze, and Lena rivers) experienced no significant changes under a changing environment.

Large Stimulation of Recalcitrant Dissolved Organic Carbon Degradation by Increasing Ocean Temperatures

More than 96% of organic carbon in the ocean is in the dissolved form, most of it with lifetimes of decades to millennia. Yet, we know very little about the temperature sensitivity of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) degradation in a warming ocean. Combining independent estimates from laboratory experiments, oceanographic cruises and a global ocean DOC cycling model, we assess the relationship between DOC decay constants and seawater temperatures. Our results show that the apparent activation energy of DOC decay (Ea) increases by 3-fold from the labile (lifetime of days) and semi-labile (lifetime of months) to the semi-refractory (lifetime of decades) DOC pools, with only minor differences between the world’s largest ocean basins. This translates into increasing temperature coefficients (Q10) from 1.7–1.8 to 4–8, showing that the generalised assumption of a constant Q10 of ~2 for biological rates is not universally applicable for the microbial degradation of DOC in the ocean. Therefore, rising ocean temperatures will preferentially impact the microbial degradation of the more recalcitrant and larger of the three studied pools. Assuming a uniform 1oC warming scenario throughout the ocean, our model predicts a global decrease of the DOC reservoir by 7 ± 1 Pg C. This represents a 15% reduction of the semi-labile + semi-refractory DOC pools.

Efficient dissolved organic carbon production and export in the oligotrophic ocean

Biologically fixed carbon is transferred from the surface to deep ocean as sinking particles or dissolved organic carbon (DOC). DOC is estimated to account for ~20% of global export production, but the degree to which this varies regionally has not been assessed at a global scale. Here we present the first observationally based global-scale assessment of DOC production and export, obtained by combining an artificial neural network estimate of the global DOC distribution, and a data-constrained ocean circulation model. Our results demonstrate that the efficiency of DOC production and export varies more than threefold across oceanographic regions. DOC production and export display a pronounced peak in the oligotrophic subtropical oceans, where DOC accounts for roughly half of the total organic carbon export. These stratified nutrient-depleted regions are expected to expand with future warming, amplifying the role of DOC in the biological pump, and magnifying the need to improve DOC cycling in climate models.

A Global Assessment of Dissolved Organic Carbon in Precipitation

AbstractPrecipitation is the largest physical removal pathway of atmospheric reactive organic carbon in the form of dissolved organic carbon (DOC). We present the first global DOC distribution simulated with a global model. A total of 85 and 188 Tg C yr−1 are deposited to the ocean and the land, respectively, with DOC ranging between 0.1 and 10 mg C L−1 in this GEOS‐Chem simulation. We compare the 2010 simulated DOC to a 30 year synthesis of measurements. Despite limited measurements and imperfect temporal matching, the model is able to reproduce much of the spatial variability of DOC (r = 0.63), with a low bias of 35%. We present the global average carbon oxidation state ( ) as a simple metric for describing the chemical composition. In the atmosphere, , and the increase in solubility upon oxidation leads to a global increase in in precipitation with .

Mangrove outwelling is a significant source of oceanic exchangeable organic carbon

AbstractExchangeable dissolved organic carbon (EDOC) makes up a significant proportion of the oceanic dissolved organic carbon (DOC) pool, yet EDOC sources to the coastal ocean are poorly constrained. We measured the exchange of EDOC and concentrations of EDOC and DOC in mangrove waters over a 26° latitudinal gradient. A clear latitudinal trend was observed, with the highest EDOC concentrations in the tropics. EDOC exports to the coastal ocean were 4.7 ± 1.9 mmol m−2 d−1, equivalent to 11% of DOC exports (42.1 ± 6.7 mmol m−2 d−1). Pore‐water and groundwater exchange were minor sources of EDOC. EDOC concentrations were equal to 13% ± 4% of DOC concentrations. Based on previous global DOC export estimates, and our EDOC : DOC ratios, mangroves outwell 3.1 Tg C yr−1 as EDOC, equivalent to ∼ 60% of the global EDOC flux from the ocean to the atmosphere. However, seasonality of mangrove EDOC cycling requires further research.

Dissolved organic carbon pools and export from the coastal ocean

AbstractThe distribution of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration across coastal waters was characterized based on the compilation of 3510 individual estimates of DOC in coastal waters worldwide. We estimated the DOC concentration in the coastal waters that directly exchange with open ocean waters in two different ways, as the DOC concentration at the edge of the shelf break and as the DOC concentration in coastal waters with salinity close to the average salinity in the open ocean. Using these estimates of DOC concentration in the coastal waters that directly exchange with open ocean waters, the mean DOC concentration in the open ocean and the estimated volume of water annually exchanged between coastal and open ocean, we estimated a median ± SE (and average ± SE) global DOC export from coastal to open ocean waters ranging from 4.4 ± 1.0 Pg C yr−1 to 27.0 ± 1.8 Pg C yr−1 (7.0 ± 5.8 Pg C yr−1 to 29.0 ± 8.0 Pg C yr−1) depending on the global hydrological exchange. These values correspond to a median and mean median (and average) range between 14.7 ± 3.3 to 90.0 ± 6.0 (23.3 ± 19.3 to 96.7 ± 26.7) Gg C yr−1 per km of shelf break, which is consistent with the range between 1.4 to 66.1 Gg C yr−1 per km of shelf break of available regional estimates of DOC export. The estimated global DOC export from coastal to open ocean waters is also consistent with independent estimates of the net metabolic balance of the coastal ocean. The DOC export from the coastal to the open ocean is likely to be a sizeable flux and is likely to be an important term in the carbon budget of the open ocean, potentially providing an important subsidy to support heterotrophic activity in the open ocean.

The relationship between dissolved organic matter absorption and dissolved organic carbon in reservoirs along a temperate to tropical gradient

Recent and upcoming launches of new satellite sensors will provide the spatial, spectral and radiometric resolution to globally assess freshwater chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM), and thus estimate dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration. However, estimating DOC from optical remote sensing requires a robust relationship between CDOM and DOC. This is particularly problematic for reservoirs because they have variable dissolved organic matter composition that complicates the CDOM–DOC relationship. We investigated six manmade reservoirs along a temperate to tropical gradient that represent a range of reservoir types and watershed conditions to determine whether a linear relation between CDOM and DOC could be established. We measured CDOM absorption and DOC concentration during the wet and dry seasons in the six reservoirs.We found the CDOM absorption coefficient and CDOM spectral slope were uncorrelated due to exogenous DOC inputs from multiple sources. Alone, the absorption coefficient of CDOM was a poor predictor of DOC concentration. Including both CDOM absorption coefficient and spectral slope in a multiple regression accounted for both composition and concentration, significantly improving the regression r2. By using both CDOM absorption coefficient and spectral slope, we identify a framework for a potential solution to overcome the influence of dissolved organic matter source and transformation history on the CDOM–DOC relationship. We conclude that local variability, seasonality and optical complexity should be considered in remote sensing based approaches for global freshwater DOC estimation.

Dissolved organic carbon fluxes by seagrass meadows and macroalgal beds

Estimates of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release by marine macrophyte communities (seagrass meadows and macroalgal beds) based on in situ benthic chambers from published and unpublished are compiled in this study. The effect of temperature and light availability on DOC release by macrophyte communities was examined. Almost 85 % of the seagrass communities and all of macroalgal communities examined acted as net sources of DOC. Net DOC fluxes in seagrass communities increase positively with water temperature. In macroalgal communities net DOC fluxes under light exceeded those under dark condition, however, this trend was weaker in seagrass communities. Shading of a mixed seagrass meadow in The Philippines led to a significant reduction on the net DOC release when shading was maintained for 6 days compared to only 2 days of shading. Net DOC fluxes increased with increasing community respiration, but were independent of primary production or net community production. The estimated global net DOC flux, and hence export, from marine macrophytes is about 0.158 ± 0.055 Pg C yr-1 or 0.175 ± 0.056 Pg C yr-1 depending on the global extent of seagrass meadows considered.

Environmental dynamics of dissolved black carbon in wetlands

Wetlands are ecosystems commonly characterized by elevated levels of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and although they cover a surface area less than 2 % worldwide, they are an important carbon source representing an estimated 15 % of global annual DOC flux to the oceans. Because of their unique hydrological characteristics, fire can be an important ecological driver in pulsed wetland systems. Consequently, wetlands may be important sources not only of DOC but also of products derived from biomass burning, such as dissolved black carbon (DBC). However, the biogeochemistry of DBC in wetlands has not been studied in detail. The objective of this study is to determine the environmental dynamics of DBC in different fire-impacted wetlands. An intensive, 2-year spatial and temporal dynamics study of DBC in a coastal wetland, the Everglades (Florida) system, as well as one-time sampling surveys for the other two inland wetlands, Okavango Delta (Botswana) and the Pantanal (Brazil), were reported. Our data reveal that DBC dynamics are strongly coupled with the DOC dynamics regardless of location, season or recent fire history. The statistically significant linear regression between DOC and DBC was applied to estimate DBC fluxes to the coastal zone through two main riverine DOC export routes in the Everglades ecosystem. The presence of significant amounts of DBC in these three fire-impacted ecosystems suggests that sub-tropical wetlands could represent an important continental-ocean carrier of combustion products from biomass burning. The discrimination of DBC molecular structure (i.e. aromaticity) between coastal and terrestrial samples, and between samples collected in wet and dry season, suggests that spatially-significant variation in DBC source strength and/or degree of degradation may also influence DBC dynamics.