MANGROVE forests play a major role in pumping carbon from the atmosphere into the ocean, and may help regulate greenhouse gas concentrations. The trouble is, they are disappearing.
Mangroves are the intertidal forests that fringe many tropical coastlines. Like all plants, mangroves fix carbon dioxide from the air through photosynthesis and return organic material to the soil when they decompose. But because their roots and soil are regularly washed by tides, much of this organic carbon leaches into the ocean.
Researchers led by Thorsten Dittmar of Florida State University in Tallahassee measured how much mangroves contribute to the organic carbon…
