High spatial variability of carbon emission and gas exchange coefficient in three tropical reservoirs

Abstract

Reservoirs are significant sources of carbon emission to the atmosphere. However the magnitude of this emission has huge uncertainties, partly related to the methods of sampling and partly related to the unconsidered spatial-temporal variability. Here we examined the spatial variability and its drivers of partial pressure, gas exchange coefficient and diffusive flux of CO2 and CH4 in three tropical reservoirs. We observed high spatial variability in CO2 and CH4 concentration and flux within the reservoirs. Our results suggest that all reservoirs were supersaturated in both gases, even considering that some areas were CO2 sinks. A large spatial variability in k600 for CO2 and CH4, and consistently observed k600CH4 values higher than k600CO2 were also observed in all reservoirs. We could explain the high spatial variability of CO2 and CH4 by a combination of parameters such as dissolved oxygen, pH, chlorophyll, wind speed and bathymetry. Finally, we suggest a minimum sampling effort required to representatively cover a study site. Our results illustrate the first specially-resolved analysis of CH4 emissions in reservoirs, and we suggest that in large systems (area ≥ 1,000 km²) and small systems (area ≤ 100 km²), 600 and 200 measurements sites, respectively, are need for a representative dry period carbon flux estimates.