Dr. Alex Cabral
Research Fellow, Geology
Biography
I investigate groundwater-surface water interactions and their influence on carbon and nutrient fluxes across freshwater, estuarine, and marine environments. My research uses isotope tracers and automated field instrumentation to quantify groundwater discharge, porewater exchange, solute transport, and greenhouse gas emissions.
I am also interested in the role of coastal systems in enhancing ocean alkalinity and their potential as nature-based solutions for climate change mitigation. My work combines hydrogeological and geochemical approaches to understand groundwater-driven biogeochemical processes in aquatic ecosystems and their implications for water quality, resource management, and climate adaptation.
I coordinate both undergraduate and postgraduate modules in Hydrology and Groundwater Quality and teach the postgraduate module Practical Environmental Skills. My teaching integrates a research-led approach, field methods, and data-driven learning to connect geoscience theory with real-world environmental challenges.
Publications and Further Research Outputs
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Tomer, Aprajita S., McKenzie, Tristan, Majtényi-Hill, Claudia, Cabral, Alex, Yau, Yvonne Y. Y., Call, Mitchell, Chen, Xiaogang, Correa, Rogger E., Davis, Kay, Jeffrey, Luke, Sadat-Noori, Mahmood, Tait, Douglas, Webb, Jackie, Maher, Damien T., Henriksson, Linnea, Bonaglia, Stefano, Zhao, Shibin, Cardenas, M. Bayani, Santos, Isaac R., Groundwater releases CO 2 to diverse global coastal ecosystems, Science Advances, 11, (2), 2025
Cabral, Alex, Hayden, Juliana, Viana, Bárbara, de Almeida, Marcos, Passos, Tiago, Barcellos, Roberto, Bonaglia, Stefano, Hatje, Vanessa, Santos, Isaac R., A mangrove nitrous oxide sink attenuates methane climate impacts, Limnology and Oceanography Letters, 2025
Jatobá-Junior, Antoniwal A., Hatje, Vanessa, Masque, Pere, de Rezende, Carlos Eduardo, Cabral, Alex, Yau, Yvonne Y.Y., Barreira, João, Reithmaier, Gloria M.S., Santos, Isaac R., Carbon and mercury burial in mangrove soils across an anthropogenic gradient, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 318, 2025, p109226
Politi, T., Yau, Y. Y., Santos, I. R., Cabral, A., Cheung, H. L. S., Majtényi"Hill, C., Ulfsbo, A., Wåhlin, A., Bonaglia, S., Global Fjords as Minor Sources of Nitrous Oxide to the Atmosphere, Geophysical Research Letters, 52, (4), 2025
Henriksson L., Yau Y.Y.Y., Majtenyi-Hill C., Ljungberg W., Tomer A.S., Zhao S., Wang F., Cabral A., Asplund M., Santos I.R., Drivers of Seasonal and Diel Methane Emissions From a Seagrass Ecosystem, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 129, (11), 2024
Cabral A., Reithmaier G.M.S., Yau Y.Y.Y., Cotovicz L.C., Barreira J., Viana B., Hayden J., Bouillon S., Brandini N., Hatje V., de Rezende C.E., Fonseca A.L., Santos I.R., Large Porewater-Derived Carbon Outwelling Across Mangrove Seascapes Revealed by Radium Isotopes, Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 129, (9), 2024
Yau Y.Y.Y., Cabral A., Reithmaier G., Cotovicz L.C., Barreira J., Abril G., Morana C., Borges A.V., Machado W., Godoy J.M., Bonaglia S., Santos I.R., Efficient oxidation attenuates porewater-derived methane fluxes in mangrove waters, Limnology and Oceanography, 2024
Cabral A., Yau Y.Y.Y., Reithmaier G.M.S., Cotovicz L.C., Barreira J., Brostrom G., Viana B., Fonseca A.L., Santos I.R., Tidally driven porewater exchange and diel cycles control CO2 fluxes in mangroves on local and global scales, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 374, 2024, p121 - 135, p121-135
Ljungberg W., Yau Y.Y.Y., Cabral A., Majtenyi-Hill C., Henriksson L., McKenzie T., Ruiz-Angulo A., Szymczycha B., Dittmar T., Ulber I., Santos I.R., Carbon Outwelling and Uptake Along a Tidal Glacier-Lagoon-Ocean Continuum, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 129, (6), 2024
Cabral A., Sugimoto R., Taniguchi M., Tait D., Nakajima T., Honda H., Santos I.R., Fresh and saline submarine groundwater discharge as sources of carbon and nutrients to the Japan Sea, Marine Chemistry, 249, 2023
Reithmaier G.M.S., Cabral A., Akhand A., Bogard M.J., Borges A.V., Bouillon S., Burdige D.J., Call M., Chen N., Chen X., Cotovicz L.C., Eagle M.J., Kristensen E., Kroeger K.D., Lu Z., Maher D.T., Perez-Llorens J.L., Ray R., Taillardat P., Tamborski J.J., Upstill-Goddard R.C., Wang F., Wang Z.A., Xiao K., Yau Y.Y.Y., Santos I.R., Carbonate chemistry and carbon sequestration driven by inorganic carbon outwelling from mangroves and saltmarshes, Nature Communications, 14, (1), 2023
Fonseca A.L., Newton A., Cabral A., Local and meso-scale pressures in the eutrophication process of a coastal subtropical system: Challenges for effective management, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 250, 2021
Cabral, Alex, Dittmar, Thorsten, Call, Mitchell, Scholten, Jan, de Rezende, Carlos E., Asp, Nils, Gledhill, Martha, Seidel, Michael, Santos, Isaac R., Carbon and alkalinity outwelling across the
Santos I.R., Burdige D.J., Jennerjahn T.C., Bouillon S., Cabral A., Serrano O., Wernberg T., Filbee-Dexter K., Guimond J.A., Tamborski J.J., The renaissance of Odum's outwelling hypothesis in 'Blue Carbon' science, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 255, 2021
Cabral A., Bonetti C.H.C., Garbossa L.H.P., Pereira-Filho J., Besen K., Fonseca A.L., Water masses seasonality and meteorological patterns drive the biogeochemical processes of a subtropical and urbanized watershed-bay-shelf continuum, Science of the Total Environment, 749, 2020
Brauko K.M., Cabral A., Costa N.V., Hayden J., Dias C.E.P., Leite E.S., Westphal R.D., Mueller C.M., Hall-Spencer J.M., Rodrigues R.R., Rorig L.R., Pagliosa P.R., Fonseca A.L., Alarcon O.E., Horta P.A., Marine Heatwaves, Sewage and Eutrophication Combine to Trigger Deoxygenation and Biodiversity Loss: A SW Atlantic Case Study, Frontiers in Marine Science, 7, 2020
Cabral A., Fonseca A., Coupled effects of anthropogenic nutrient sources and meteo-oceanographic events in the trophic state of a subtropical estuarine system, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 225, 2019
Cabral A., Bercovich M.V., Fonseca A., Implications of poor-regulated wastewater treatment systems in the water quality and nutrient fluxes of a subtropical coastal lagoon, Regional Studies in Marine Science, 29, 2019
Barros G., Fonseca A.L.D., Santos A.C.D., Fontes M.L.S., Varela A.R.D., Franco D., Nutrient distribution in a shallow subtropical lagoon, south Brazil, subjected to seasonal hypoxic and anoxic events, Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 65, (2), 2017, p116 - 127, p116-127
Research Expertise
Projects
- Title
- Groundwater age distributions for the sustainable management of groundwater resources in Ireland
- Summary
- This project will quantify groundwater residence and travel times in Irish catchments to improve understanding of nitrate transport and support sustainable groundwater management. It combines multiple environmental tracers, including stable and radioactive isotopes, to trace water from recharge to discharge. A nationwide isotopic map of the water cycle will be developed, alongside a citizen science network to enhance monitoring coverage and public engagement. The findings will inform policy and help assess the impact of land use and climate change on groundwater quality.
- Funding Agency
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Date From
- 2022
- Date To
- 2026
- Title
- Tracing inorganic carbon in Irish groundwater
- Summary
- This project investigates the sources and transformation of dissolved inorganic carbon in Irish groundwater. It focuses on how aquifer type and agricultural practices influence carbon cycling and buffering, using carbon isotopes to trace key biogeochemical processes.
- Funding Agency
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Date From
- 2022
- Date To
- 2026
Recognition
Representations
Reviewer for a broad range of scientific journals in hydrogeology and environmental geosciences, including Limnology and Oceanography, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, Global Biogeochemical Cycles, Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, Water Research, Marine Chemistry, Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, Estuaries and Coasts, Science of the Total Environment, Environmental Research Letters, Continental Shelf Research, Regional Studies in Marine Science, Frontiers in Marine Science, Marine Pollution Bulletin, Communications Earth & Environment, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Communications Sustainability, One Earth, Journal of South American Earth Sciences, and Scientific Reports.
Memberships
Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO)
European Geosciences Union (EGU)