January 28, 2009

experts comment on new research on iron fertilisation of oceans to reduce atmospheric CO2, as published in Nature

Prof Peter Burkill, Director of the Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Ocean Science in Plymouth, said:

“This is a significant result. It suggests that ocean iron fertilisation might work for reducing atmospheric CO2 through export of carbon into the ocean’s interior. But the next step from natural experiments (such as this one) to artificial ones is crucial. We now need to know what the ecological impacts of artificial fertilisation experiments are.”

Prof Andrew Watson FRS, University of East Anglia, said:

“This research shows that iron supply to the Antarctic really is important in setting the carbon balance of the region, and that changes in it would affect atmospheric CO2 by locking up carbon at depth. Artificial ocean fertilization experiments have already shown that the plankton are stimulated by iron, but there has been a question about how deep the carbon is sequestered. This paper suggests that Southern Ocean iron fertilization can be quite effective at sending the carbon into the deep ocean.

“It’s interesting that there is a ship at the moment in the Southern Ocean, the Polarstern, that has been at the centre of a lot of controversy because they wanted to do an artificial experiment with a ten or fifteen tons of iron. The German Government ordered its suspension for at time but just yesterday gave them the go-ahead to continue (see http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,3977577,00.html). As this paper shows, much larger amounts of iron are being added daily by natural processes around the Crozet Island, and it doesn’t seem to have done the Antarctic ecosystem any harm!”

Dr Bev MacKenzie, Technical Manager at the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, said:

“It is a fascinating topic and of great interest to marine scientists and engineers alike. It is one which IMarEST is following with great interest. With this in mind, the Institute is in the process of setting up an ocean fertilisation area as part of its regulatory affairs Special Interest Group page on its website, in order to encourage members to become involved with the debate and to provide comment. This is an exceedingly debated topic at the United Nations level and is being discussed at great length at the London Convention of the IMO and at the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, at which the IMArEST has NGO and observer status respectively, and will provide expert input.”