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Sea absorbs less carbon dioxide
Source: World Watch Institute, ENN, Date: , 2009
Industrial carbon dioxide emissions have increased dramatically
since the 1950s, and oceans have until recently been able to absorb the
greater amounts of emissions. Sometime after 2000, however, the rise in
emissions and the oceans' carbon uptake decoupled. Oceans continue to
absorb more carbon, but the pace appears to have slowed. The
reason is based in part on simple chemistry. Increased concentrations
of carbon dioxide have turned waters more acidic, especially nearer to
the poles. While carbon dioxide dissolves more readily in cold, dense
seawater, these waters are less capable of sequestering the gas as the
ocean becomes more acidic. The study revealed that the Southern Ocean,
near Antarctica, absorbs about 40 percent of the carbon in oceans.
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