Latest news with #carbonSink
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Removing CO2 from the ocean could have a negative impact, scientists warn
If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, BGR may receive an affiliate commission. We're losing our fight to control climate change, which has led a lot of scientists to look for new ways to combat the consistently rising global temperatures. While we've come up with a few different solutions to try, many come with additional problems. Now researchers have discovered that one of the most widely discussed solutions, marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR), could actually make things much worse by lowering the ocean's oxygen levels. The idea behind mCDR is to try to make our oceans more effective at storing carbon dioxide. Currently, our oceans are the planet's largest carbon sink, estimated to hold around a quarter of human-made CO2 emissions. As such, many believe the ocean could be key to turning the tide in our fight against human-driven climate change. But there's a major problem. Today's Top Deals Best deals: Tech, laptops, TVs, and more sales Best Ring Video Doorbell deals Memorial Day security camera deals: Reolink's unbeatable sale has prices from $29.98 Our oceans are already suffering due to the ongoing changes in our planet's environment. For one, the oxygen levels in the ocean are dropping significantly. Additionally, a large percentage of the ocean is losing access to sunlight, driving lower oxygen levels throughout. As the oceans grow warmer, scientists warn that the deeper parts of our oceans will become much less efficient at circulating oxygen. This will affect marine ecosystems across the world, driving lower oxygen levels and less marine diversity. While we have ideas to slow this warming, what if those plans would actually make things worse? That's the question behind new research published in Environmental Research Letters. The team of researchers behind the study looked at several different mCDR methods, and found that many of them could actually make things worse. We've come up with a number of different ways to slow warming in the oceans. While this might stop sea levels from rising, most would involve some kind of biomass production, which would lead to sinking biomasses in the ocean. This, the researchers warn, would have unintended impacts on the ocean's oxygen levels. One method is to essentially fertilize the ocean by adding nutrients like iron to help stimulate phytoplankton like the ones seen in the image above. These blooms can then soak up more carbon dioxide. While these plants would sink and carry the carbon to the bottom of the ocean, they'd eventually consume oxygen as they decayed. Using simulations, the researchers looked at how 100 years of continuous fertilization would affect the ocean's oxygen levels. They found that over 100 years, the ocean would lose around three percent of its oxygen capacity across the globe. That's more than double the loss being caused by global warming alone. Further, they found that some areas beneath the fertilized zones could actually drop by over 50 micromoles, changes that would even exceed the deoxygenation of the ocean seen under high-emission climate scenarios. This new research just shows that while we might have good ideas about how to help the climate, not all of those are going to help the ocean. Our goal, as humans trying to help our planet, should be to find the best way to do that without hurting it more. And so far, it looks like most methods of mCDR would hurt more than help in the long run. Time to go back to the drawing board, I guess. More Top Deals Amazon gift card deals, offers & coupons 2025: Get $2,000+ free See the
RNZ News
17-06-2025
- Science
- RNZ News
Scientists may have found a big, mysterious carbon sink in the South Island
Fiordland forest. Photo: Supplied / James Williams, NIWA Scientists may have found a big, mysterious carbon sink in the South Island. But they caution more work is needed to solve the puzzle before New Zealand could claim the discovery as a climate win. NIWA scientists have suggested the reason might be that native forests in the South Island are capturing much more carbon than previously thought, which could pave the way for New Zealand to use pest control and other conservation efforts to boost forest health and help meet the country's climate targets. The study leader, NIWA atmospheric scientist Beata Bukosa, said researchers first need to resolve the mystery of where tens of millions of tonnes of seemingly disappearing carbon dioxide are going to. The carbon sink was found over parts of the south west South Island dominated by mature native forests, including Fiordland. "The next thing we have to do is really identify the exact process responsible for this carbon uptake and figure out where the carbon goes," Bukosa said. "At the moment, with our methods we can see the signal that the carbon is basically disappearing in that region but we can't identify where exactly that carbon goes and what is happening after it disappears." The study uses a different technique from the official estimates used in New Zealand's official greenhouse gas inventory. The official inventory uses a variety of methods, including so-called "ground up" estimates of natural carbon storage based on real measurements of trees growing in our native forests. For the latest study, scientists from several universities and research institutes analysed carbon dioxide measurements taken between 2011 and 2020 from Wellington's Baring Head and Lauder research station in Central Otago and used modelling to work out how that carbon dioxide was being transported. Beata Bukosa. Photo: Supplied / Lana Young They found much more carbon was disappearing than other methods had suggested -- around 50-140 million tonnes a year more than the previous estimates, or between one and three years' worth of all New Zealand's carbon dioxide emissions from human activities. Bukosa said they expected to get different results from using different methods, but the differences they found were bigger than could be explained by varying calculation methods. "You would expect some difference just from the way the methods there was still a stronger [carbon] sink in our estimates," she said. "Earlier estimates of how much carbon was removed by New Zealand land ecosystems ranged from a net 24 to 118 million tonnes a year. "Our research found that New Zealand's natural environment absorbed approximately 171 million tonnes of CO2 annually." As for what was behind the difference, she said the south west South Island location suggested it could be native forests but it could also be something less beneficial to nature and the climate, such as rain or landslides carrying soil - and the carbon it contains - down rivers and away from New Zealand, to be released somewhere else. "That's the crucial question we are trying to answer at the moment," said Bukosa. "The region where we found the biggest difference and the strongest sink is around Fiordland and the southwest coast of the South Island and these are also regions where we have quite a bit of erosion, which could lead to frequent landslides which transports carbon. "The forest might be behaving differently due to climate change, or even regenerating due to pest control. We need to add up all the numbers and see how it is contributing." If native forests are capturing much more carbon than previously thought, it could pave the way for New Zealand to use pest control and other conservation efforts to help meet its climate targets and boost the health of native species. Separate studies are tracking the impacts of pest control on boosting carbon storage in native forests in the South island and the East Coast of the North Island. "Depending what the answer is, that could open up new doors on how to mitigate climate change and potentially reduce our reliance in international carbon credits," Bukosa said. The research grew from a 2017 pilot study suggesting native forests in Fiordland and other parts of southwest New Zealand might be sequestering up to 60 per cent more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than expected. Bukosa said the latest study extended the period analysed from three to 10 years and improved the atmospheric modelling used. "The results basically confirmed what we saw in 2017 as well, which is that it seems like there is more carbon dioxide being absorbed across New Zealand relative to what we thought before." Previous estimates used by the Ministry for the Environment and others to create the country's official greenhouse gas estimates say native forests are overall almost carbon neutral - releasing about as much carbon overall as they absorb. But those figures are uncertain, with some forests losing carbon and some forests gaining. Bukosa said previous studies may have underestimated the amount of carbon taken up by mature indigenous forests. Dr Andrea Brandon of the Ministry for the Environment was also involved in the study. She said the findings "indicate there may be additional carbon uptake somewhere in the system that we are currently not tracking. We need to identify what we are missing so that we can further refine our Inventory methods to capture it." As well as Brandon, the NIWA scientists worked with researchers from GNS Science, Manaaki Whenua, the University of Waikato and overseas as part of a Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment-funded Endeavour programme called CarbonWatch NZ, which ended last year. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Malay Mail
21-05-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
‘Delay sends wrong message': Environmental group questions Penang's decision to not gazette Middle Bank as marine sanctuary
GEORGE TOWN, May 21 — Pertubuhan Jaringan Ekologi dan Iklim Pulau Pinang (Jedi) has called on the Penang state government to immediately gazette Middle Bank as a marine sanctuary due to its role as a carbon sink that strengthens climate resilience. Jedi spokesman Andrew Han said the Middle Bank is one of the last surviving seagrass meadows in Peninsular Malaysia. 'It is not just a natural treasure, it is an ecological life support system," he said in a statement today. 'It supports the livelihoods of coastal fishers, contributes to Penang's food security, and serves as a carbon sink that strengthens climate resilience,' he added. Han was responding to state executive councillor H'ng Mooi Lye's remarks that the Penang government currently has no plans to gazette the Middle Bank Marine Sanctuary. H'ng had said doing so would classify it as an environmentally sensitive area and trigger stricter environmental requirements for nearby developments, including the Jelutong landfill rehabilitation. Han claimed residents were not adequately informed about the scope of the landfill rehabilitation project, which involves sea reclamation and the proposed construction of a waste-to-energy processing facility near homes, schools, and public spaces. 'Delaying or denying protection to Middle Bank in the name of project continuity sends the wrong message to residents, especially those living near Karpal Singh Drive and Jelutong who are already concerned about health, environmental degradation, and broken promises over coastal development,' Han added. He called on the state government to reassess the reclamation and waste to energy plant project near Karpal Singh Drive and engage with stakeholders by holding dialogue sessions on the project. H'ng, in his winding-up speech at the legislative assembly, said the state can gazette the Middle Bank as an environmentally sensitive area after the projects in the area have completed. 'If the project is cancelled, it will give the state a negative image and this also lead to a loss in opportunity to generate revenue through rehabilitation of the landfill,' he said. However, he noted that if the project fails to obtain an Environmental Impact Assessment Report approval before February 28, 2026, the state reserves the right not to continue with the development agreement for the project.
The Independent
15-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Long-term drought could cause ‘profound change' in Amazon rainforest
The Amazon rainforest may be able to survive long-term drought caused by climate change but could experience 'profound changes' including the death of large trees and a diminished ability to absorb carbon, researchers have warned. A study by the University of Edinburgh and the Universidade Federal do Para in Brazil suggests adjusting to a drier, warmer climate will have major consequences for the tropical rainforest which spans more than two million square miles. Findings from the study – which was the longest-running on the impact of drought on tropical rainforest – suggest the Amazon could experience 'excess tree deaths' and 'vast' carbon release, also reducing its immediate capacity to act as a carbon sink for human activity. Parts of the Amazon are expected to become drier and warmer, but the long-term effects are poorly understood and previous research suggested climate change and deforestation could lead to a sparser forest or savanna. An area of rainforest in north-eastern Amazonian Brazil, roughly the size of Trafalgar Square, was subjected to drought conditions for 22 years in an experiment, with more than a third loss of biomass recorded. The experiment began in 2002 with thousands of transparent panels installed above the ground to redirect roughly half of the rainfall to a system of gutters, taking it away from the trees in the one-hectare region. Analysis by the researchers showed most of the largest trees in the study area died during the first 15 years, and the forest stabilised. For seven years after the large initial biomass losses, the availability of water increased for the surviving trees, research showed, and tests on these trees found they were no more drought-stressed than neighbouring trees not subjected to drought. Overall, the area lost more than a third of biomass – tree trunks, branches, stems and roots where carbon is stored in vegetation. Excess tree deaths during the first 15 years of the study caused carbon loss, but surviving trees in the area are now making slight carbon gains, according to a report published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution. The study region has less woody biomass than typical Amazon rainforests but more than many dry forests and savannas – suggesting the rainforest has some long-term resilience to drier conditions but at a high cost, scientists said. The biomass the Amazon could lose and the time required to stabilise may be underestimated, as the study only assessed the effects of soil drought, while further research is needed to assess changes to moisture in the air, temperature and storms or fires, according to researchers. The study was led by professors Patrick Meir of the University of Edinburgh and Antonio Carlos Lola Da Costa of the Universidade Federal do Para and the Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi, Brazil. It also involved researchers from the universities of Exeter and Cardiff, and Creaf in Spain, and was supported by the Natural Environment Research Council, the Royal Society and the UK Met Office Newton Fund. Dr Pablo Sanchez Martinez, of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, said: 'Our findings suggest that while some rainforests may be able to survive prolonged droughts brought on by climate change, their capacity to act as both a vital carbon store and carbon sink could be greatly diminished.' Prof Meir added: 'Ecological responses to climate can have very large impacts on our environment, locally and globally. 'We cannot understand and predict them without long-term collaborative research of this sort.'
