Theory 87/Coastal & Estuary/Coastal carbon
Coastal Carbon Needs Accretion
The claim
Coastal wetland carbon burial is set by the ratio of accretion to subsidence, because a drowning wetland stops accumulating.
01Mechanism
Burial requires the surface to keep pace with relative sea level; the ratio determines whether the wetland persists long enough to store carbon.
02Prediction
Burial should track the ratio.
03Refutation
Burial tracking productivity would remove subsidence.