Spatial Heterogeneity of Global Organic Matter Accumulation during the PETM

The Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) was an abrupt global warming event triggered by a massive release of isotopically light carbon. Rapid recovery from the PETM has been attributed to enhanced burial of organic matter. However, the mechanisms and spatial distribution of global organic matter (OM) accumulation remain uncertain. Here, we present new multi-biomarker-based reconstructions of paleoproductivity, ocean stratification, redox conditions, and OM accumulation across the PETM from Egypt, combined with a compilation of the global OM records. We reveal that intensified bacterial activity and ocean anoxia stimulated OM burial on the southern Tethyan margin during the main body of the PETM, and emphasize that water column stratification played a significant role in driving both. Global compilations reveal three patterns between land-sea carbon isotope excursion and OM content. We explicitly address regional variability and the mechanisms underlying the patterns, and provide a geological perspective for current carbon sequestration.