The supply and preservation of ancient and modem components of organic carbon in the Canadian Beaufort Shelf of the Arctic Ocean

The provenance of organic matter in sediments from the Mackenzie River and Beaufort Shelf was investigated using the stable carbon and radiocarbon isotopic compositions of bulk organic matter and the stable carbon isotopic compositions of individual organic compounds, including lignin-derived phenols and lipid-derived fatty acids. Most river suspended sediments and shelf surface sediments contained organic carbon characterized by highly depleted Delta C-14 values that were consistent with average radiocarbon ages exceeding 7000 years. The stable carbon isotopic signatures of lignin phenols were uniformly depleted (-25greater than or equal todelta(13)Cgreater than or equal to-32parts per thousand), indicating the predominant contributions of C-3 vascular plant sources. The isotopic compositions Of C-14 and C-16 fatty acids exhibited important contrasts between the river (-36parts per thousand to -40parts per thousand) and shelf (-25parts per thousand to -29parts per thousand) sediments that were consistent with contributions from freshwater algae and/or vascular plants in the former and marine phytoplankton in the latter. Using C-14 isotopic mass balance, the abundances of modem and ancient organic matter were quantitatively constrained. The fate of organic matter in the Beaufort Shelf was explored by normalizing these abundances to the specific surface area of sediments. Ancient organic carbon, which may include old pre-aged soil material as well as fossil bitumen or kerogen, accounted for the majority (similar to70%) of the particulate organic matter exported by the Mackenzie River and deposited in surface sediments of the Beaufort Shelf Modem organic carbon accounted for similar to30% in both river and shelf sediments, with significant contributions from vascular plant-derived materials in both river and shelf samples and from marine algae in the shelf sediments. Respiration (and/or leaching) of particle-bound marine organic matter dominates the carbon metabolism in the Mackenzie Delta/Beaufort Shelf region. However, land-derived pools, including modem carbon derived from vascular plants as well as ancient carbon also appeared to undergo a degree of post-depositional degradation prior to burial in the shelf. These novel source apportionments are reflected in an updated carbon budget for the study area. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.