Ocean acidification

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He also tells us in the programme the immense challenges our oceans face and offers hope for a healthy future ocean. He talks notably about coral reefs. But as corals are super-sensitive, they thrive when conditions are perfect but when ocean temperatures change, they react, sometimes violently.

J5. - For example, in 2016, the temperature on the Great Barrier Reef rose so high it created a devastating scene underwater. As waters warm, corals bleach, expelling their photosynthetic organisms that provide the coral with colour, and in so doing, expose the coral’s bone-white skeleton beneath. During this time, a baseline warming of the ocean, a long with the weather event known as El Niño, resulted in the some of the highest temperature ever recorded on the world’s largest reef system.

The devastation continued into 2017, even without the El Niño effect. In recent years and estimated two thirds of the shallow water corals on the Great Barrier Reef has been affected by bleaching. And what has happened off Australia is indicative of what is happening globally., it is estimated that high ocean temperatures have threatened two thirds of the world’s coral reefs. These high ocean tempartures come mainly from the use of carbon dioxide.

To end, he explains that the future of coral reefs and other magical worlds in the ocean lies in our hands.

A6. - We can conclude that CO₂ emissions are the main actors of ocean acidification. They must be reduced in order to save our oceans and the marine life within it. It is possible to lower these emissions but we will have to act fast. To aid in reducing them, you can for example, eat less red meat such as beef because cows release a lot of CO₂ into the atmosphere, purchase green electricity such as solar panels to stop fossil-fuel burning, walk, cycle or take public transport, recycle and re-use certain products, buy local produce to stop CO₂ emissions from cars, lorries, planes and trains, make your home energy efficient like by turning the lights off when you leave a room or turning the tap off when you are brushing your teeth and last of all make climate-conscious political decisions! Certain little things have a huge impact on the environment like ocean acidification. So please help us reduce the CO₂ emissions because it is one of the main factors of global warming on our planet. Global warming increases the risks of natural disasters like earthquakes and hurricanes, threatens loads of species of animals and speeds up the melting of ice caps. Help us stop global warming and other disasters such as ocean acidification.

Thank you.

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