21. Sedimentation Rate Estimates from Sulfate and Ammonia Gradients

Data from the Ocean Drilling Program and from other marine studies are used to relate organic carbon flux preserved in the seabed with the uptake of sulfate and production of ammonia in the pore water of the sediment column. Relationships are derived that can be used to estimate recent sedimentation rates to within one order of magnitude, spanning the range from 0.1 to 100,000 m/m.y. The relationships provide a simple rule of thumb to apply to initial observations when an estimate of sedimentation rate is not readily available from biostratigraphic or isotope methods. The sedimentation rates estimated for the Leg 119 sites agree to within a factor of 3 with the biostratigraphic results.