The goal of this research is to determine what processes control the transport, cycling and preservation of vascular plant debris, fossil kerogen, mineral-associated soil organic matter and marine phytoplankton in the Fly River/Gulf of Papua (GoP) shelf system. A PI from the University of South Carolina plans to accomplish this task by isolating and characterizing these four organic carbon pools (OC) from suspended and bottom sediments at the elemental, isotopic and molecular level using a suite of novel techniques. With the results, the PI will address the following three objectives: (1) determine the distribution of the four OC pools within the Fly River dispersal system in the GoP shelf; (2) follow the changes in concentration and composition of the four OC pools along the dispersal system; and (3) determine the sequestration rates and compositional changes of the four OC pools during burial in the GoP.
