Oceans absorb carbon dioxide

Oceans absorb vast amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) , and play vital role by acting as a brake to climate change. Scientists still cannot tell with certainty how global increase in temperature is affecting the amount of absorbed CO2, but they predict it to have very negative impact. Carbon dioxide, once absorbed by seawater mixes with the turbulent surface layer, and goes all the way down to the depths of the ocean. However because of the increased temperature mixing process becomes more difficult, therefore reducing the circulation of CO2.

On the other hand carbon dioxide is also absorbed by literally billions of tiny phytoplankton and other organisms, which fall to the ocean bottom when they die, trapping carbon in deep bottom layers of sediment. And as the climate warms the amount of CO2 released by many tiny animals that feed on phytoplankton increases, disturbing the balance of biological CO2 absorption.

Southern ocean - Most important in absorbing vast amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2)

With the latest global efforts to curb CO2 emissions, it is extremely important to know how is climate change affecting oceans and their ability to absorb vast amounts of CO2. This is why Australian scientists are working hard to gather data from Southern ocean by monitoring it for several months. Southern ocean, located between Australia and Antarctica plays the most important role in CO2 absorption of all the world's oceans, so results of this study should give us more precise answers about the current absorbing ability of world's oceans. However this will not be easy to do because Southern Ocean is famous for its wild seas and remoteness but scientists have strong belief in their monitoring equipment that includes a float on the surface and more equipment about 165 feet below, of which both are attached to a tether to the ocean floor about 2.5 miles below.

If this equipment provides sufficient this would mean completely new step that could lead to long-term monitoring of the surface layers of the Southern Ocean and ocean's ability to absorb CO2. Very large number of different monitoring procedures related to climate change so far come up only with negative and disturbing results, and there is this feeling that condition of our oceans isn't exception. Hopefully, we are wrong on this one.

Ecological problems - Bering Sea

Bering Sea area is faced with many ecological problems and the importance of this area isn't only important from ecological but also from economic point of view since this are provides more than half of the seafood consumed in the United States. This area lies between Russia and Alaska, where western part of this area belongs to Russia and eastern to United States.

This is perhaps the biggest problem of Bering Sea since it's divided on two parts and there's only one ecosystem that needs joined action from both sides which is often very difficult to achieve.

The fish population recorded big decline in last couple of years happened mainly because of industrial fishing and illegal poaching that is practiced a lot in these areas. Huge ships are not only responsible for decline in fish population but also as they drag their nets on the bottom of the sea, they’re damaging many other marine species, endangering complete underwater habitat that needs all food chain members for its proper functioning. Pollocks, crab and perch population, all recorded serious decline in last couple of years. US Coast Guard and Russian Border service are doing lots of efforts to stop illegal poaching, but this will require much stronger action because of intensity of this problem and well organized poachers.

Indigenous people are also facing many problems: from global warming that is endangering their homes and villages built on already thin ice which is especially problematic in summer time and surprisingly there is also the problem of many toxic pollutants that are found not only in fishes, but in the people too, despite the fact that this area is located far away from heavy industry. This second problem is probably the result of long travel these dangerous toxic made through the atmosphere from Russia, North and South America, and Asia.

Waters are due to a global warming problem much warmer and one part of Bering Sea was even covered in algae blooms because of these unusually high temperatures. Many scientists agree that this problem is much more dangerous for survival of Bering sea ecosystems than the overfishing and illegal poaching.

Marine mammals also recorded significant decline just like some seabirds, all because of the drastic disorder in food chain. Steller’s Sea Lions population has even decreased by 80 % since 1980, mainly because of excessive pollock fishing which leaves little food to them.

Unfortunately so, ecology isn't prime interest in areas of great economic value such as Bering Sea that generates above $1 billion in revenue for US only since pollock is the largest food fish resource in the world. This is the reason why small family fishing ships are making way to ever-larger fishing conglomerates and their excessive industrial fishing. But even these high profits will soon be just thing of the history unless something is done to not only recover fish population, but to restore balance in these specific ecosystems.

Bering Sea - serious decline in pollock population. Pollock is the largest food fish resource in the world.

Human impact on oceans and seas

Just how big is our impact on oceans? As latest study published in Friday's edition of the journal Science showed complete picture is much worse than scientists have expected to be all because of human activities in range from fishing to pollution.

The most affected areas are the North Sea, the South and East China seas, Caribbean sea, east cost of North America, the Mediterranean sea, the Red sea, the Persian gulf the Bering Sea and some parts of the western Pacific.

Luckily areas near the poles are least affected but this could unfortunately soon change as soon as climate change caused by global warming starts warming these areas. There's not only tremendous pollution of world's seas but also reductions in fish and sea animals, and damage has also been done for coral reefs, seagrass beds, mangroves, rocky reefs and shelves and seamounts.

This study included the effects of structures such as oil rigs, commercial shipping, species invasion, climate-change impacts including acidification, ultraviolet radiation and sea temperature, various types of fishing and several types of human-related pollution. It all resulted with one terrible conclusion:"The oceans are not in good shape. Every single spot in the oceans was affected by at least one human activity ... we figured there'd be places people just hadn't gotten to yet."

But unfortunately not only oceans and seas are in bad shape, this is the current state of our entire planet and unfortunately so people have gotten to all places on our planet. And done the damage that apparently always goes with humans...

Oceans and seas - even worse condition than expected