Alkalinity

Emiliania huxleyi, a single-celled marine phytoplankton. Storing excess atmospheric CO2 in the ocean may help mitigate climate change, but the potential biological effects have yet to be explored. Gately et al. investigate the effect of ocean alkalinity enhancement, a process that sequesters carbon by increasing ocean alkalinity through limestone-inspired mineral addition. The growth rate and elemental ratios of two important types of phytoplankton,…

Alkalinity affects the uptake of CO2 and contributes to the long-term buffering capacity of the ocean. Credit: Hereon/ Nele Lehmann If climate change causes more rain, this promotes the weathering of rocks and thus the erosion of the soil. The dissolved substances reach the sea via rivers. A new model from Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon shows that the process has an impact on CO2 storage there.…