Deep ocean fluxes and their link to surface ocean processes and the biological pump

Data-based estimates of the annual mean impact of the biological pump on the fCO2 in the surface water suggest that the biological pump reduces the increase of fCO2 in the surface water caused by intrusion of CO2-enriched subsurface water by ∼50-70%. The remaining 30 to 50% are attributed to CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Rain ratios up to 60% higher in river-influenced areas off Pakistan and in the Bay of Bengal than in the open Arabian Sea imply that riverine silica inputs can further enhance the impact of the biological pump on the fCO2 in the surface water by supporting diatom blooms. Consequently, it is assumed that reduced river discharges caused by the damming of major rivers increase CO2 emission by lowering silica inputs to the Arabian Sea; this mechanism probably operates in other regions of the world ocean also.