There are increasingly concerning messages and signs of climate change, caused by global warming and greenhouse gas emissions.
Of course, forecasts may seem quite frustrating: Earth’s average temperature is constantly increasing, sea level is raising while ice glaciers are melting.
However, the problems are apparent, and we need to continue to work hard to find the solutions.
Here is one of the plans on how to limit or even reverse climate change that was introduced as part of one of the various contests between environmentalists last year.
The main idea of the plan is that people can restore climate and oceans by managing algae ecosystems.
And here are several reasons why seaweed supply is essential in this project:
- Producing renewable or ‘clean’ energy that is cheap, easily transported and sustainable where nutrients that are left can be recycled (check out our blog about seaweed biofuel here)
- This type of process can ensure jobs, especially for people whose jobs currently depend on the sea and/or are seasonal.
- This also may contribute to the ocean clean up campaigns and activities.
- And, finally, seaweed forests can help to remove CO2 from air and reduce the effects of global warming and climate change.
The emissions of greenhouse gases can stay in the atmosphere from five to thousands years are considered to be the major cause of the global temperature rise. Pulling them back down into storage (in this case in seaweed), and relying on systems with short carbon cycles (i.e. absorb it in growth, use it, absorb it again quickly), as oppose to fossil fuels with very long cycles.
Here is a simple infographic that illustrates the ideal cycle of seaweed for biofuel in a short carbon cycle that might be part of resolving one of the biggest humanity’s problem:
Why seaweed supply?
That’s a good question! Tim Flannery, a former Chief Commissioner of the Climate Commission who spoke at a Global Climate Deal conference a week ago, calls the food of the future ‘a third-way technology’. He thinks that the plan described above is a very unusual and different from other well-known approaches such as, for example, geo-engineering.
Mr Flannery also explains that algae’s pace of growing is very fast. Furthermore, the food of the future is sustainable and doesn’t need fresh water, land or fertilisers (also very carbon intensive to produce) to grow.
Please get in touch with us and let us know what do you think about the ‘seaweed’ benefits in saving the planet.