What is the ocean's role is absorbing COâ‚‚?
We live on the blue planet. With nearly three-quarters of the Earth covered in ocean it is not surprising that it plays a crucial role in capturing COâ‚‚.
Currently, approximately half the CO₂ we emit stays in the atmosphere, a quarter is absorbed by the biosphere (plants and soils) and a quarter is absorbed by the ocean. The set of chemical processes that occurs when CO₂ is absorbed in seawater is known as “ocean acidification".
The current concentration of COâ‚‚ in our planet's atmosphere (more than 390 parts per million) is higher than has been experienced on Earth for hundreds of thousands of years. The rate of increase of atmospheric COâ‚‚ since the industrial revolution - driven by human fossil fuel combustion and deforestation - is faster than has occurred for millions of years.
Because of the amount of COâ‚‚ absorbed by the oceans, this increase in emissions is changing the acidity and therefore the chemistry of our oceans. Read the full report here.
Source: Donna Roberts, The Conversation.
