Researchers from Georgia Tech and Yale, including Chris Reinhard and Mojtaba Fakhraee, propose fighting climate change by restoring coastal ecosystems like seagrass and mangroves. These “blue carbon” ecosystems absorb carbon dioxide and store some underground, taking it out of the atmosphere permanently. This approach has double benefits. It removes carbon dioxide and helps fight ocean acidification, another climate change problem. Ocean acidification happens when excess carbon dioxide dissolves in the ocean. By storing carbon as a different form in the ocean, this method can help reverse this harmful effect.
In order to assess its effectiveness, the researchers constructed a model. According to the model’s findings, the restoration of these ecosystems leads to a prolonged removal of carbon dioxide, notwithstanding occasional setbacks. This could incentivize businesses to invest in ecosystem restoration as a means of compensating for their emissions. Such actions would not only enhance environmental conditions but also result in a permanent reduction of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.
Date: May 30, 2023, Accessed: March 14, 2024
Source: Georgia Institute of Technology
Adopted from: Science News
For more details, visit the source: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230530174257.htm
Image source: Nature Sustainability