Humble seaweed is having a moment. It\u2019s been heralded as a sustainable superfood<\/a>, a biodegradable A study<\/a> by researchers at Conservation International and the University of Western Australia found that seaweeds absorb as much climate-warming To learn why, Conservation News sat down with the study\u2019s lead author Albert Pessarrodona, a post-doctoral researcher at Conservation International.<\/p>\n Conservation News: What did your research find?<\/strong><\/p>\n Albert Pessarrodona:<\/strong> For years, we\u2019ve suspected that seaweed is an underappreciated ally in the fight against climate change. Our research set out to examine that potential. We looked closely at seaweed forests, like those made But not all seaweed forests play an equal part in sequestering carbon. Location makes a big difference. Seaweed forests in temperate and polar regions absorb more carbon than those in warmer, tropical waters. That\u2019s because cool, nutrient-rich Given the right conditions, could seaweed be a climate game-changer?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n AP:<\/strong> It\u2019s complicated. We know seaweed forests absorb large amounts of carbon, but to make a difference in terms of climate change that carbon needs to be kept out of the atmosphere for a long time.\u00a0<\/p>\n Again, location matters. Like most plants, seaweed absorbs carbon as it grows. Then, when it dies, some of it can drop to the bottom of the ocean or be buried into layers of sediment. That\u2019s where the carbon can be sequestered for up to hundreds Until now, it has been difficult to quantify the amount of carbon seaweed forests lock away because of the challenge of measuring carbon in hard-to-reach deep sea areas. To help, we created a framework as part of this study that categorizes coastlines How can these findings be applied to marine conservation?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n AP:<\/strong> Scientists studying \u201cblue carbon<\/a>\u201d It\u2019s encouraging to see evidence that kelp forests in areas like Australia\u2019s Great Southern Reef or off the coasts of Norway, Chile and Japan \u2014 places we previously thought had limited opportunities to combat climate change \u2014 We hope that this research will bring attention to the importance of seaweed forests \u2014 from storing carbon to increasing biodiversity to supporting fish habitats worldwide. There\u2019s no silver bullet when it comes to curbing climate change Mary Kate McCoy is a staff writer at Conservation International. Want to read more stories like this? Sign up for email updates<\/a>. Also, please consider supporting our critical work<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n replacement for plastic packaging<\/a> and a feed supplement<\/a> to cut cows\u2019 methane emissions. Now, new research shows that seaweed forests \u2014 such as massive underwater towers of kelp \u2014 may play a bigger role in fighting climate change than previously
\n thought.<\/p>\n
\n carbon as the Amazon rainforest. But not all seaweed forests are created equal \u2014 some offer much better climate benefits than others.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n up of fast-growing kelp, and found that the conservation and restoration of those forests around the world could help keep roughly 36 million metric tons of carbon out of the atmosphere. That\u2019s roughly the same amount of carbon captured
\n by between 1.1 and 1.6 billion trees.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n waters support the tallest forests, which are better at absorbing carbon.<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/cicloud.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/vault-images-s3\/ci_73274033.jpg?sfvrsn=cf658781_17&&auto=compress&auto=format&fit=crop?&auto=compress&auto=format&w=800\")
<\/p>\nKelp forest off the coast of Northern California.\u00a0\u00a9 Keith A. Ellenbogen\u00a0<\/h6>\n
\n of years. Seaweed forests growing near the deep ocean, such as in oceanic islands and canyons, or near fjords, where lots of sedimentation occurs, have greater potential for carbon sequestration.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n based on their carbon sequestration potential \u2014 and identifies areas that are among the most critical for conservation. For example, Chile\u2019s coastline, which has many fjords, cool water and prolific seaweed forests, is going to have
\n greater carbon sequestration potential than a coastline in the tropics that doesn\u2019t have the same conditions.<\/p>\n
\n \u2014 meaning the carbon sequestered by oceanic and coastal ecosystems \u2014 have largely focused on tropical mangroves<\/a>. They\u2019re climate superstars, but far from the only marine ecosystem that stores large amounts of carbon. Our research shows that ecosystems in other parts of the world, which have typically
\n taken a backseat in the blue carbon space, can also play a role in protecting the climate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n have the potential to sequester significant amounts of carbon. But we only get those benefits if we protect these underwater forests or restore the ones that have been lost. Seaweed forests are disappearing at alarming rates<\/a> around the world because of pollution and ocean warming. For example, in Tasmania<\/a> and Northern California<\/a> kelp forests have declined
\n by 95 percent.<\/p>\n
\n \u2014 it\u2019s an all-hands-on-deck effort that needs as many solutions as possible. Our research proves that protecting and restoring seaweed forests belongs in the world\u2019s climate toolkit.<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/ci-ecuador\/ci_63379301?&auto=compress&auto=format&fit=crop?&auto=compress&auto=format&w=800\")
Kelp forest and coral reef off the coast of Northern California. \u00a9 Keith A. Ellenbogen<\/h6>\n