This data release includes carbon stocks and geochronic data for impounded and unimpounded tidal marshes of coastal Delaware and Barnegat Bay. Our studies have examined 1) the relative accretionary status of selected managed and natural marshlands, 2) the relative influences of mineral and organic solids accumulation on rates of accretion, and 3) the stability of organic carbon accumulation in Spartina alterniflora-dominated salt marshes. Accretion rates were measured using 137Cs and 210Pb radiometric methods, which are commonly used in tidal marsh studies but not always together.
| Start date | End date |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 2016 |
| Rank name | Value |
|---|---|
| Species | Phragmites australis |
| Species | Distichlis spicata |
| Species | Spartina alterniflora |
| Species | Spartina patens |
| attribute name | definition | format, unit or codes |
|---|---|---|
| study_id | Unique identifier for the study made up of the first author's family name, as well as the second author's or 'et al.' if more than three, then publication year spearated by underscores. See worksCited.bib for more detail. | Boyd_2012 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary Boyd_and_Sommerfield_2016 = Marsh accretion and sediment accumulation in a managed tidal wetland complex of Delaware Bay Boyd_et_al_2017 = Hydrogeomorphic influences on salt marsh sediment accumulation and accretion in two estuaries of the US Mid-Atlantic coast Unger_et_al_2016 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary |
| coring_method | Code indicating what type of device was used to collect soil depth profiles. | piston corer = A device that extrudes core into tube upward with a plunger pvc and hammer = PVC pipe was driven into the sediment with a hammer to recover a core |
| roots_flag | Code indicating whether live roots were included or excluded from carbon assessments. | roots and rhizomes included = Roots and rhizomes were included in dry bulk density and or organic matter and carbon measurements |
| compaction_flag | Code indicating how the authors qualified or quantified compaction of the core. | corer limits compaction = Authors specified that the coring device's design minimized compaction |
| dry_bulk_density_flag | Any notable codes regarding how the authors quantified dry bulk density. | modeled = Bulk density was not measured, but was modeled from loss on ignition and assumptions about the particle densities of organic and inorganic matter |
| loss_on_ignition_temperature | Temperature at which samples were combusted to estimate fraction organic matter. | celsius |
| loss_on_ignition_time | Time over which samples were combusted to estimate fraction organic matter. | hour |
| loss_on_ignition_sample_mass | Sample mass used for loss on ignition, if held constant. | gram |
| carbon_measured_or_modeled | Code indicating whether fraction carbon was measured or estimated as a function of organic matter. | measured = Fraction carbon was measured as opposed to modeled |
| carbonates_removed | Whether or not carbonates were removed prior to calculating fraction organic carbon. | TRUE = Carbonates were removed before measuring organic carbon. |
| carbonate_removal_method | The method used to remove carbonates prior to measuring fraction carbon. | acid fumigation = Carbonates were removed by fumigating with concentrated acid |
| fraction_carbon_type | Code indicating whether fraction_carbon refers to organic or total carbon. | organic carbon = Author specified that fraction carbon measurements were of organic carbon |
| cs137_counting_method | Code indicating the method used for determining radiocesium activity. | gamma = Gamma counting method used. |
| pb210_counting_method | Code indicating the method used for determining lead 210 activity. | gamma = Gamma counting method used. |
| excess_pb210_rate | Code indicating the mass or accretion rate used in the excess_pb_210_model | accretion = Excess 210Pb modeled using vertical accretion rate. |
| excess_pb210_model | Code indicating the model used to estimate excess lead 210. | CIC = Constant initial concentration model used CFCS = Constant flux constant sedimentation model used. |
| attribute name | definition | format, unit or codes |
|---|---|---|
| study_id | Unique identifier for the study made up of the first author's family name, as well as the second author's or 'et al.' if more than three, then publication year spearated by underscores. See worksCited.bib for more detail. | Boyd_2012 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary Boyd_and_Sommerfield_2016 = Marsh accretion and sediment accumulation in a managed tidal wetland complex of Delaware Bay Boyd_et_al_2017 = Hydrogeomorphic influences on salt marsh sediment accumulation and accretion in two estuaries of the US Mid-Atlantic coast Unger_et_al_2016 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary |
| site_id | Site identification code unique to each study. | |
| core_id | Core identification code unique to each site. | |
| core_date | Date of core collection. | YYYY |
| core_latitude | Positional latitude of the core in decimal degree WGS84. | degree |
| core_longitude | Positional longitude of the core in decimal degree WGS84. | degree |
| core_position_method | Code indicating how latitude and longitude were determined. | RTK-GPS = Real-time kinematic global position system (GPS) |
| core_position_notes | Any relevant submitter generated notes on how latitude and longitude were determined. | |
| core_elevation | Surface elevation of the core relative to defined datum. | meter |
| core_elevation_datum | The datum relative to which the core elevation was measured against (For a complete list of datum names and aliases please refer to the ISO Geodedic Registry https://iso.registry.bespire.eu/register/geodetic/VerticalDatum). | NAVD88 = A gravity-based geodetic datum, North American Vertical Datum of 1988 |
| core_elevation_method | Code indicating how elevation was determined | RTK-GPS = Real-time kinematic global position system (GPS) LiDAR = Handheld GPS matched to lidar-based digital elevation model |
| salinity_class | Code based on submitter field observation or measurement indicating average annual salinity (Note: Palustrine and freshwater should only include tidal wetlands, or wetlands that are potentially/formerly tidal but artificially freshened due to artificial tidal restrictions). | saline = 30-50 ppt brackish = 0.5-30 ppt |
| vegetation_class | Code based on submitter field observations or measurement indicating dominant wetland vegetation type. | emergent = Describes wetlands dominated by persistent emergent vascular plants |
| inundation_class | Code based on submitter field observation or measurement indicating how often the coring location is inundated. | low = Study-specific definition of an elevation in relatively low in the tidal frame, typically defined by vegetation type |
| core_length_flag | Indicated whether or not the coring team believes they recovered a full sediment profile, down to bedrock, or other non-marsh interface. | core depth limited by length of corer = The total depth of the core was limited by the length of the coring device |
| attribute name | definition | format, unit or codes |
|---|---|---|
| study_id | Unique identifier for the study made up of the first author's family name, as well as the second author's or 'et al.' if more than three, then publication year spearated by underscores. See worksCited.bib for more detail. | Boyd_2012 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary Boyd_and_Sommerfield_2016 = Marsh accretion and sediment accumulation in a managed tidal wetland complex of Delaware Bay Boyd_et_al_2017 = Hydrogeomorphic influences on salt marsh sediment accumulation and accretion in two estuaries of the US Mid-Atlantic coast Unger_et_al_2016 = Comparison of sediment accumulation and accretion in impounded and unimpounded marshes of the Delaware Estuary |
| site_id | Site identification code unique to each study. | |
| core_id | Core identification code unique to each site. | |
| depth_min | Minimum depth of a sampling increment. | centimeter |
| depth_max | Maximum depth of a sampling increment. | centimeter |
| dry_bulk_density | Dry mass per unit volume of a soil sample. This does not include ash free bulk density. | gramsPerCubicCentimeter |
| fraction_organic_matter | Mass of organic matter relative to sample dry mass. Ash free bulk density should not be used here but should be expressed as a loss on ignition fraction. | dimensionless |
| cs137_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for radiocesium (137Cs). | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| cs137_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with cs137_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| total_pb210_activity | Total radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for excess lead 210 (210Pb). | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| total_pb210_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with total_pb210_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| ra226_activity | Total radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for Radium 226 (226Ra) if measured as part of the 210Pb dating process. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| ra226_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with ra226_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| fraction_organic_matter_modeled | Modeled mass of organic matter relative to sample dry mass | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| total_pb210_activity_modeled | Smoothed total radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for lead 210 (210Pb) using a cubic spline function | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| cs137_activity_modeled | Smoothed radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for radiocesium (137Cs) using a cubic spline function | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| ra226_activity_modeled | Smoothed radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for Radium 226 (ra226) using a cubic spline function | dimensionless |
| th234_activity_modeled | Smoothed radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for thorium 234 (234Th) using a cubic spline function | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| th234_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for thorium 234 (234Th) | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| th234_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with th234_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| bi214_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for Bismuth 214 (bi214) | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| bi214_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with bi214_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| bi214_activity_modeled | Smoothed radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for Bismuth 214 (bi214) using a cubic spline function | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| pb212_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for lead 212 (212Pb) | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| pb212_activity_sd | 1 standard deviation of uncertainty associated with pb212_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| be7_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for 7Be | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| be7_activity_sd | Estimated uncertainty in be7_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| am241_activity | Radioactivity counts per unit dry weight for 241Am | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| am241_activity_sd | Estimated uncertainty in am241_activity. | becquerelsPerKilogram |
| fraction_carbon | Mass of carbon relative to sample dry mass. | dimensionless |
| refractory_carbon | Density of non-hydrolyzable carbon | gramsPerSquareMeter |
| labile_carbon | Density of soil organic carbon with the most rapid turnover times | gramsPerSquareMeter |
| unit name | parent SI unit | unit type | description |
|---|---|---|---|
| becquerelsPerKilogram | radionucleotideActivityPerMass | becquerels per kilogram |
This dataset is listed under a Creative Commons BY 4.0 and can be used with attribution. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/