Coupled Biogeochemical Cycling and Controlling Factors

Abstract

The changing climate of the planet is closely linked to biogeochemical processes in the oceans with important feedbacks between oceanic, atmospheric and terrestrial components of the earth system. This chapter identifies key processes that mediate the response of marine ecosystems to a changing environment and recommends implementation strategies for future studies. Technological and methodological advances such as the use of new biochemical and molecular techniques have led to the discovery of unknown metabolic pathways and identification of genetic diversity in marine systems. Ecosystem changes, reflected in shifts in dominant plankton groups are likely to have a large global but also regional impact in the European context. In terms of marine biogeochemical cycling, key processes that respond to a changing climate include photosynthesis (and its modulation by trace metal availability and nitrogen fixation), calcification and the production and release of a suite of volatile, climate-reactive gasses. Implementation of future research strategies should focus on the ability to monitor key variables from stationary platforms and ships of opportunity with sufficient stability and accuracy to resolve natural and anthropogenic signals. Large-scale in situ manipulation experiments and mesocosm studies are also recommended as well as the application of molecular and genetic techniques that are a powerful means to investigate physiological and biogeochemical transformations that drive the oceans’s response to climate change.