Methodological proposal for the study of carbon sequestration in sediments of blue carbon ecosystems in Cuba using nuclear and isotopic techniques

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Liana Beatriz Carballo Rosado
Aniel Guillén Arruebarrena
Alejandro García Moya
Yusmila Helguera Pedraza
Carlos Manuel Alonso Hernández

Abstract

Blue carbon ecosystems are capable of long-term carbon storage in their sediments. Due to their inherent spatial and temporal variability, the study of these ecosystems requires multiple approaches. For this reason, technical advances and analytical tools have been used to improve the quantification of carbon sequestration and the monitoring of its changes over time, such as the use of short-lived radionuclides to determine sequestration rates and stable isotopes to identify the origin of organic matter in sediments. Cuba is considered one of the Blue Carbon hotspots in the world with an important potential for carbon storage. However, there are uncertainties about the extent of these ecosystems and a lack of carbon data in the scientific literature, so there is a need for scientific data to estimate the organic carbon stocks in these ecosystems, their rate of carbon accumulation and their origin. In recent years, new guidelines and methodologies have emerged that provide internationally accepted measurement and monitoring procedures for carbon accounting and for sediment profile analytical measurements as environmental records. The main objective of this article was to propose an integrative methodological guide for the study of carbon sequestration in blue carbon ecosystems in Cuba based on the available literature, and above all contextualized to the analytical capabilities in our country.

Article Details

How to Cite
Carballo Rosado, L. B., Guillén Arruebarrena, A., García Moya, A., Helguera Pedraza, Y., & Alonso Hernández, C. M. (2025). Methodological proposal for the study of carbon sequestration in sediments of blue carbon ecosystems in Cuba using nuclear and isotopic techniques. Nucleus, (75), 27-32. Retrieved from http://nucleus.cubaenergia.cu/index.php/nucleus/article/view/805
Section
Ciencias Nucleares

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