The sources and accumulation rate of sedimentary organic matter in the Pearl River Estuary and adjacent coastal area, Southern China

In this study, the contents, sources and accumulation rate of sedimentary organic matter (OM) in the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) and adjacent coastal area were investigated. The stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C) is a reliable geochemical proxy and was used to indicate the OM origin here. Nevertheless, the organic carbon and nitrogen molar ratios (TOC/TN) and the stable nitrogen isotopic composition (δ15N) were affected by diagenesis and could be the supplementary indicators. The sources of OM were estimated based on the two end-member model. The results showed that in the estuary, sedimentary OM originated from terrestrial and aquatic mixing origins, whereas, OM in coastal sediments was dominantly algae-derived. The accumulation rate of sedimentary OM was analyzed based on 210Pb dating. Due to the sampling sites and the distinct hydraulic environments, the accumulation rates of TOC, aquatic and terrestrial OC were obviously higher in the estuary than in coastal area. TOC accumulation rates were 18–27 mg cm−2 y−1 in the estuary, and 0.84–3.6 mg cm−2 y−1 in coastal area. Aquatic OC accumulation rates were 7.9–11.3, 0.8–1.3, and 2.6–3.1 mg cm−2 y−1, and terrestrial OC accumulation rates were 9.7–16.3, 0.02–0.14, 0.16–0.42 mg cm−2 y−1 in cores 2, 5, 6, respectively. It could be seen from the high accumulation rate of organic matter in the estuary that, when nutrients increased in the river, phytoplankton biomass and productivity would also have increased. As a result, phytoplankton sinking and organic matter sedimentation usually increased with primary productivity, resulting in the observed accumulation rate of aquatic OC in the estuary. Furthermore, terrestrial OC accumulation rates in the estuary and coastal area showed an increasing trend with the age.