Oceans Acidifying Fastest in 300 Million Years
The scientists found surging levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere forced down the pH of the ocean by 0.1 unit in the last century, 10 times faster than the closest historical comparison from 56 million years ago, New York’s Columbia University, which led the research, said yesterday in a statement. The seas absorb CO2 from the atmosphere, forming carbonic acid. The lower the pH level in the seas, the more acidic they are.
Warming is not the only consequence on the global climate of our CO2 emissions. In the short term, warming may not even be the most damaging.