UF led Research Coordination Network publishes review paper on Carbonates in the Critical Zone

The UF Water Institute coordinated Carbonate Critical Zone Research Coordination Network (CCZ-RCN) is funded by the National Science Foundation to further transdisciplinary and collaborative research into landscapes underlain by carbonate and mixed carbonate-silicate mineralogies

As part of this effort, the Steering Committee, which includes WI Faculty Fellow Jon Martin and Director Wendy Graham, recently published a review of the current state of knowledge of Earth’s carbonate critical zone to explore how mineralogy impacts critical zone hydrology, biology, geomorphology, and ecosystem services. The review leads to significant revisions and expansion of the theoretical framework (called conveyor model) commonly used to describe critical zone processes and characteristics, advancing Critical Zone science. The paper also identifies key knowledge gaps in our understanding of the carbonate critical zone specifically, as well as non-carbonate portions of Earth’s critical zone. The authors conclude that a holistic understanding of Earth’s critical zone (CZ) requires integrative studies spanning the spectrum of carbonate and silicate landscapes

This applies to the entire state of Florida which is underlain by carbonate aquifers that provide important water resources and ecosystem services, and are vulnerable to contamination and depletion by human activity.

Read the full paper: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2022EF002765

January 9, 2023