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Marine greens munch greenhouse gas |
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| Want to beat world hunger and stop global warming? The secret may lie with the tiniest plants in the world, according to researchers from Sydney University. |
When it comes to reversing global warming, most people think of planting trees.
But according to research by Sydney University's Ocean Technology Group, the best place to store excess greenhouse gas is in oceans, not forests.
Ocean Nourishment, the result of that research, is the brainchild of Professor Ian Jones, Director of the Ocean Technology Group. Ocean Nourishment is a process by which nutrients are added to the ocean to enhance the growth of phytoplankton - microscopic plants that form the foundation of the ocean's food chain.
Like land-based plants, phytoplankton use sunlight to create their own food from carbon dioxide and water - a process called photosynthesis. By using carbon dioxide to live and grow, phytoplankton reduce the levels of this greenhouse gas in our oceans and atmosphere.
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Professor Jones (left) and Andy Lu observe phytoplankton growth
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These tiny carbon storehouses are eaten by small fish and other creatures higher up the food chain, providing food for nearly all animal life in the ocean. When marine creatures die, from the tiniest plankton to the largest whale, their remains often end up as sediment on the sea bed, harmlessly trapping the carbon in their tissues far away from the atmosphere.
But these tiny plant powerhouses need certain nutrients to grow, and there are large areas of ocean where these nutrients simply aren't available.
"Almost 80% of the ocean is in this kind of situation where there are no nutrients around, and there's not any bioactivity happening in those regions" said Andy Lu, one of the researcher engineers working on Ocean Nourishment. "Ocean Nourishment is intended to increase the bioactivity in regions where there is no bioactivity at all."
This is done by delivering activated nitrogen compounds, like those found in land-based fertilisers, to barren areas of the ocean. There are a number of ways Ocean Nourishment can be delivered to where it is needed.
"We have two options; one is onshore, where we have an Ocean Nourishment plant and we have a submerged underwater pipeline to release the nutrients" said Andy. "The other will be a ship that will transport these nitrogen nutrients and will release them into the ocean with a towed pipe."
By adding nutrients to the ocean, phytoplankton growth can be increased - just like adding fertiliser to a garden. This gives the double benefit of removing extra carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and boosting fish stocks. Increased fish stocks will be a definite bonus for developing countries that rely on the ocean for food.
"This is one of the main objectives of Ocean Nourishment" said Andy. "By providing more phytoplankton you increase the fishery stock in the ocean - as we know fish stocks are decreasing - and therefore Ocean Nourishment can provide additional food to poor countries."
These nourishing nitrogen compounds are derived from natural gases such as methane. Andy explained that developing countries with long coastlines and plentiful supplies of methane, such as Morocco and the Philippines, are therefore strong candidates for Ocean Nourishment.
Ian hopes that the technology will prove to be an attractive investment for developing nations: boosting their fisheries and economies.
Meanwhile, the rest of the planet benefits by keeping its cool.
The Uni News is published 12 times a year by the University's Publications Office and is distributed to staff, media, the local community and other contacts. www.usyd.edu.au/news/83.html
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