• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.110-123
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• 2021

We investigated geochemical constituents of pore-water and sediment, rates of organic carbon (C_org) oxidation and sulfate reduction (SR), and benthic nutrient flux (BNF) to elucidate characteristic of C_org oxidation and its control in the coastal area near Lake Shihwa. The study sites were selected in the vicinity of Soraepogu (E0), Songdo tidalflat (E1) and Oido dock (E3) and in front of floodgate Shihwa tidal plant (E5). The C_org contents in the sediments and concentrations of ammonium and phosphate in pore water exhibited the highest value at EO, and gradually decreased toward the outer sea (E1, E3, E5). Rates of anaerobic C_org oxidation (260.6 mmol C m^-2 d^-1) and SR (91.4 mmol S m^-2 d^-1) at E0 were 4-9 and 6-54 times higher than at the site of outer sea (E1, E3, E5). Rates of SR at E3 and E5 accounted for 11-23% of anaerobic C_org oxidation, whereas it comprised 47-70% of anaerobic C_org oxidation at E0 and E1. Rates of C_org oxidation and SR showed a highly positive correlation with the concentration of dissolved organic carbon (r² = 0.795 and 0.777, respectively). The BNF at E0, E1, and E3 accounted for 120-510% and 26-178%, respectively, of the N and P required for primary production in the water column. Overall results suggest that the C_org oxidation in the sediment controlled by concentration of dissolved organic carbon in the pore water and the excessive C_org oxidation stimulates the benthic nutrient flux, which may cause a phytoplankton bloom in the water column.