The biological pump in the greenhouse

The increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to the combustion of fossil fuels has stimulated a broad spectrum of research. One of the key questions concerns the amount that can be absorbed by the oceans. The role of biological processes in the uptake of fossil fuel carbon dioxide by the oce...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Global and planetary change 1993, Vol.8 (1), p.13-15
Main Author: Maier-Reimer, Ernst
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics
Exact sciences and technology
Marine and continental quaternary
Pollution, environment geology
Surficial geology
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Summary:The increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to the combustion of fossil fuels has stimulated a broad spectrum of research. One of the key questions concerns the amount that can be absorbed by the oceans. The role of biological processes in the uptake of fossil fuel carbon dioxide by the ocean is often misinterpreted. The naive sketch that the excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is brought into the depth of the ocean by the biological pump is in striking contradiction to the fact that the carbon dioxide-content of the atmosphere has remained almost perfectly constant during the ten thousand years preceding the onset of anthropogenic emissions. The natural biological pumps are in equilibrium with the upwelling of remineralized nutrients. In regions of high productivity, the carbon dioxide-content of the surface water is depleted by only 15% of the deep-sea value.
ISSN:0921-8181
1872-6364
DOI:10.1016/0921-8181(93)90059-W