Hadal trenches act as depocenters for organic material, although pathways for hadal material transport and deposition rates are poorly constrained. Here we assess, focusing, deposition and accumulation, of material and organic carbon in four hadal trench systems underlying provinces of different net primary productivity in the surface ocean – from the eutrophic Atacama and Kuril-Kamchatka trenches, and the mesotrophic Kermadec Trench, to the oligotrophic Mariana Trench. The study is based on the distributions of 210Pbex, 137Cs and total organic carbon from recovered sediment cores and by applying previously quantified benthic mineralization rates. Periods of steady deposition and discreet mass-wasting deposits were identified from the profiles and the latter were associated with historic recorded seismic events in the respective regions. During periods without mass wasting, the estimated focusing factors along trench axes were elevated, suggesting continuous downslope focusing of material towards the interior of the trenches. The estimated accumulation rates of organic carbon during these periods exhibited extensive site-specific variability but were generally similar to values encountered at much shallower settings such as continental slopes and margins. Organic carbon deposition and accumulation rates during periods of steady deposition was not mirrored by surface ocean productivity, but appeared confounded by local bathymetry. Seismic driven mass wasting events markedly enhanced the accumulation of sediment and organic carbon by factors from 20 to 400. Thus, hadal trenches are important sites for deposition and sequestration of organic carbon in the deep-sea partly due to intensified downslope focusing of material but mainly due to mass-wasting events.

In the past 20 years, the exploration of deep ocean trenches has led to spectacular new insights. Even in the deepest canyons, an unusual variety of life and unexpectedly high benthic oxygen consumption rates have been detected while microbial processes below the surface of the hadal seafloor remains largely unknown. The information that exist comes from geophysical measurements, especially related to seismic research, and specific component analyses to estimate the carbon export. In contrast, no information is available on metabolic activities in deeper buried sediments of hadal environment. Here we present the first pore water profiles from 15 up to 11 m long sediment cores recovered during three expeditions to two hadal zones, the Japan Trench and the Atacama Trench. Despite low levels of organic debris, our data reveal that rates of microbial carbon turnover along the trench axes can be similar to those encountered in much shallower and more productive oceanic regions. The extreme sedimentation dynamics, characterized by frequent mass wasting of slope sediments into the trenches, result in effective burial of reactive, microbially available, organic material. Our results document the fueling of the deep hadal biosphere with bioavailable material and thus provide important understanding on the function of deep-sea trenches and the hadal carbon cycle.