October 14, 2009 3:46 PM
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Secret to Slowing Global Warming Lies Beneath the Waves
Life in the ocean has the potential to help to prevent global warming, according to a report published today. Marine plant life sucks 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year, but most of the plankton responsible never reaches the seabed to become a permanent carbon store. Mangrove forests, salt marshes and seagrass beds are a different matter. Although together they cover less than 1 percent of the world's seabed, they lock away well over half of all carbon to be buried in the ocean floor. They are estimated to store 1,650 million tons of carbon dioxide every year — nearly half of global transport emissions — making them one of the most intense carbon sinks on Earth. Their capacity to absorb the emissions is under threat, however: the habitats are being lost at a rate of up to 7 per cent a year, up to 15 times faster than the tropical rainforests. A third have already been lost.
Art Trembanis
CSHEL
Univ of Delaware
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