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CARBON CYCLE

Carbon fate in lowland rivers

The fate of sedimentary carbon in rivers is determined by a combination of mineral protection and transit time. Along the fluvial journey from headwaters to sea, biogeochemical transformations control whether carbon is buried or returned to the atmosphere as CO2.

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Fig. 1: Tipping the scales on river carbon.

Marisa Repasch.

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Correspondence to William Ford or James Fox.

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Ford, W., Fox, J. Carbon fate in lowland rivers. Nat. Geosci. 14, 802–803 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-021-00849-3

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