A Potential Tool to Support the Prioritization of Blue Carbon Ecosystems in Canada

Abstract

Globally, climate change and various anthropogenic activities have contributed to a significant decline in blue carbon ecosystems over the past few decades. These ecosystems can be prolific at accumulating and sequestering carbon dioxide and can be a vital, natural resource to mitigate increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. Canada has the longest coastline of any country, and it has a responsibility to protect and restore these productive ecosystems. Sea-level rise is a predominant factor influencing coastal marsh's ability to remain a carbon sink in the future. Here I highlight a potential decision-making tool utilizing the Sea-level Affecting Marshes Model and Natural Capital Projects Coastal Blue Carbon model in a Canadian context. Requirements to improve the accuracy of using these models in Canada are isolated, and their integration into Canadian coastal management efforts are discussed. A high-level quantification of current and future carbon storage and sequestration in blue carbon ecosystems throughout Canada can aid future protection and restoration ambitions.

Keywords: Blue Carbon, Carbon Modelling, Coastal Ecosystems, Coastal Management, Salt Marshes, Atlantic Canada