With the oceans starving of phytoplankton, a necessary life support for marine life, the scientists are coming up with more and more research and innovations to help not just protect, but also rejuvenate them.
This is exactly what the research ship, Waterbird II, of an eco-restoration organization — called Planktos – is on with their project centering the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean.
The microscopic marine plants are capable of soaking up the Sun’s energy to convert carbon dioxide into organic matter.
A team of researchers are planning to seed the oceans with ‘iron!’ they are optimistic that it would stimulate phytoplankton blooms. Scientists have long postulated that adding more iron would make it possible to speed up the oceans’ soaking up rate of the atmospheric CO2.
Addition of iron would stimulate the plankton’s growth in the oceans – precisely, an essential nutrient for photosynthesis.
Noel Brown, a former director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said
I cannot overstate the importance of these Planktos pilot projects. If their applied science works as well as the early research indicates, this work will both help restore the neglected oceans and give everyone concerned about global warming truly meaningful hope.
The pilot project, about to begin, would unfold how critical roles the marine plankton plays in the battle against global warming and climate change. A research ship will soon be venturing out to fertilize the oceans with iron filings.
Photo credit: seafriends