CO sub(2) Outgassing from Spring Waters

CO sub(2) released from lakes, rivers, and estuaries has been included in estimates of the global CO sub(2) budget; however, CO sub(2) released from carbonate springs has not been routinely included in the estimate of the global CO sub(2) budget. The omission of carbonate spring water as a source of CO sub(2) might result in an underestimation of the overall flux of CO sub(2) from surface waters to the atmosphere. In this study, the flux of CO sub(2) from carbonate springs was calculated and compared to the rate of outgassing of CO sub(2) reported in the literature for other surface water bodies. The calculated fluxes of CO sub(2) from carbonate springs ranged 280-380,000 mmol m super(-2) d super(-1). A range that is larger than the range of CO sub(2) fluxes reported for estuaries (100-1900 mmol m super(-2) d super(-1)), headwater streams and rivers (100-1600 mmol m super(-2) d super(-1)), freshwater lakes (-300 to 3200 mmol m super(-2) d super(-1)), and saline lakes (-300 to 9900 mmol m super(-2) d super(-1)). This work demonstrates that the outgassing of CO sub(2) from springs should be included in the global CO sub(2) budget.