Evaluating Salt Marsh Ecosystem Restoration: Quantifying Soil Carbon Accumulation and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Across a 12-y Chronosequence

We will evaluate the effectiveness of removing tidal restrictions to restore biogeochemical functions in salt marshes. To do this, we will characterize soil chemistry and measure fluxes of greenhouse gases in marshes that have been restored over the past 12 y and compare those properties with natural salt marshes. In addition, we will use this time-since-restoration – or chronosequence – experimental design to evaluate the trajectory of changes in biogeochemical processes, including carbon burial. Our results will provide watershed managers, towns, and agencies with estimated recovery times and insight to how extensively biogeochemical functions are restored in sites where tidal restrictions have been repaired.