Data and R code on the net climate benefit from blue carbon burial and greenhouse gas emissions in zostera noltei seagrass meadows from Arcachon Bay, France

In this study, we evaluated carbon burial and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes, focusing on CH₄ (µmol CH₄ m⁻² day⁻¹) and N₂O (µmol N₂O m⁻² day⁻¹), within Zostera noltei seagrass meadows and adjacent bare sediments. To assess the balance between carbon burial and GHG emissions, we combined field and laboratory measurements with relevant calculations. Data were collected from seven sites within Arcachon Bay, each consisting of a healthy seagrass area and an adjacent area where seagrass had been absent for the past 20 years, now consisting of bare sediments. We considered factors such as sediment organic content and hydrodynamic conditions. The Excel field contains variables used to calculate the net climate benefit (CO₂eq m-² y⁻¹), which represents carbon burial minus GHG fluxes, as well as other variables relevant to the associated paper. The R code used for statistical analysis included the Wilcoxon test to compare bare and seagrass areas at each site for the different variables, as well as Spearman’s correlation to examine the relationship between the net climate benefit and hydrodynamic factors. Additionally, the code was used to generate the various figures presented in the article. Our results provide a comprehensive understanding of the role of seagrass meadows in climate regulation and emphasize the need for further research into the microbial communities and environmental conditions that influence GHG emissions.