gradual

Mangrove forests and rising seas

December 6, 2024 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Mangrove forests play a vital role in the health of our planet. They protect coastal regions by acting as natural barriers against storms, erosion, and flooding. The intricate root systems of mangrove forests, which allow the trees to handle the daily rise and fall of tides, also serve as biodiversity hotspots, attracting fish and other species seeking food and shelter from predators.

But mangrove forests around the world are under increasing threat from deforestation, coastal development, and climate change. In fact, according to a new study led by researchers from Northumbria University in England, the mangrove trees in the Maldives are actually drowning.

The research, which was recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, found that sea levels around the Maldives rose more than 1.18 inches per year from 2017 to 2020. An unusually intense climate phenomenon, known as the Indian Ocean Dipole, occurred toward the end of this period, causing warmer sea surface temperatures and an increase in sea level in the Western Indian Ocean.

While mangrove forests can naturally keep pace with gradually rising seas, this rate of sea level rise was too fast. The rising sea level meant that seawater effectively flooded mangrove forests, causing many trees to lose their resilience and die. Some islands in the Maldives have lost more than half of their mangrove cover since 2020.

Since mangrove forests also store massive amounts of carbon, the research team fears that the loss of mangrove forests could release large amounts of carbon, further accelerating climate change.

The researchers warn that the findings in the Maldives could have implications for coastal ecosystems around the world.

**********

Web Links

“Drowning” mangrove forests in Maldives signal global coastal threat

Photo, posted February 11, 2015, courtesy of Alessandro Caproni via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Dangers Of Thawing Permafrost | Earth Wise

April 12, 2022 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The thawing of the permafrost in the Arctic is a major concern from the standpoint of the potential release of enormous amounts of carbon dioxide trapped in it. There are nearly 2,000 billion tons of carbon there, which is as much as humanity releases into the atmosphere in 50 years. But greenhouse gases are not the only danger posed by permafrost thawing. There are also microbes, unknown viruses, and chemicals that could be very dangerous.

More than 100 diverse microorganisms in Siberia’s deep permafrost have been found to be antibiotic resistant. The deep permafrost is one of the few environments on Earth that have not been exposed to modern antibiotics. As the permafrost thaws, its bacteria could mix with meltwater and create new antibiotic-resistant strains.

By-products of fossil fuels – introduced into permafrost environments since the beginning of the industrial revolution – are present. Metal deposits including arsenic, mercury, and nickel, have been mined for decades and have contaminated large areas.

Now-banned pollutants and chemicals – including DDT – came to the Arctic through the atmosphere and over time have become trapped in the permafrost.

There is now ongoing research further characterizing the microbes frozen in permafrost and providing more precise measurement of emissions hotspots in permafrost regions. Scientists are increasingly turning to integrated Earth observations from the ground, the air, and space.

There are models that predict the gradual release of emissions from permafrost over the next century. Other models say it could happen within just a few years. The worst-case scenario would be utterly catastrophic but none of the scenarios portend anything good.

**********

Web Links

Thawing Permafrost Could Leach Microbes, Chemicals Into Environment

Photo, posted February 9, 2017, courtesy of Benjamin Jones/USGS via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.