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world's oceans are oxidizing at a rapid rate, today more rapidly than ever over the past 65 millions of years. According to a new study, this is a serious threat to the lives of living organisms.
Researchers at the University of Bristol have analyzed how acid levels in the oceans have changed over the course of history. They found that this accelerated “acidification” of the ocean has broken the food chain and led to the extinction of some parts of the food chain, which in turn threatens the existence of entire ecosystems.
The rapid “acidification” is caused by the huge amount of carbon dioxide that all factories in the world pump every year and which is absorbed by water. As a result of the industrial revolution, the acidity of the seas increased by 30 per cent. The last time such a drastic change is thought to have occurred 65 million years ago, when some natural phenomena caused ocean acidification, leading to the extinction of dinosaurs.
The study studied precipitation about 55 million years old, the average temperature at that time rose sharply by 6 degrees Celsius, and acidification was taking place at about the same rate as it is happening today.
As a result of the study, it was found that a huge number of the smallest living organisms that lived on the ocean floor died out. Ocean acidification can also deprive marine organisms of the necessary carbonate supply, which causes loss of muscle mass and dwarfism in many species.
Andy Ridwell, lead author of the study, says that this will inevitably affect humans in the future. “Unlike surface plankton, which is adapted to live in different environments, plankton living on the ocean floor are adapted to more stable conditions. Rapid and severe geochemical changes in their habitats put their very survival at risk.”
“The disappearance of these organisms from the ocean floor during the Late Paleocene warming, as well as the sharp acidification of the ocean at that time, suggests the presence of similar disappearances in the future,” he says.
Dr. Ridwell even noted that ocean acidification is actually much faster today than in the example they considered in the past. This could mean that fish and other living creatures above the food chain, including humans, could be in danger by the end of this century.
“Today, concerns are often expressed about serious disruptions in the functioning of ecosystems. Of course, the already heavily destroyed coral reef system is having an impact on other species as well. In this century, we will certainly see obvious damage to the entire ecosystem,” he said.
A separate study found that Greenland's glaciers are melting faster than expected due to ocean currents bringing warm water to these areas. If warming continues, it could cause sea levels to rise by at least a metre by 2100.