美国国家公共电台 NPR Deep Seagrass Bed Could Stall Climate Change, If Climate Change Doesn't Kill It First

Deep Seagrass Bed Could Stall Climate Change, If Climate Change Doesn't Kill It First

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Staying on the subject of climate change for a few more minutes, there was another bright spot this past week amid all the dire¹ warnings we have been hearing about the effects of climate change. And it is a very big bright spot - a meadow of seagrass some 50 feet below the surface off the coast of Australia. It is said to be twice the size of New Jersey², and it's soaking up and storing a lot of carbon that otherwise would contribute to global warming.

Jennifer Howard is director of marine³ climate change at Conservation International. She has spent years studying so-called carbon sinks, and she's come in to explain the latest discovery. Jennifer Howard, thanks so much for joining us.

JENNIFER HOWARD: Thank you so much.

MARTIN: So, first, I'm going to ask you to walk me through what is a blue carbon sink. And why is it called that?

HOWARD: Sure. So blue carbon sinks really refer to three main ecosystems⁵ - seagrass being one of them, of course, then, also, salt marshes⁶ and mangrove⁷ forests. These ecosystems are powerhouses when it comes to removing carbon out of the atmosphere but, even more importantly, storing it in the soil beneath them. So these coastal⁸ blue carbon ecosystems can sequester⁹ or remove carbon from the atmosphere about four times the rate of terrestrial forests on land. And they store about 10 times more carbon in the system itself.

MARTIN: How does it work? How does it do what it does?

HOWARD: So seagrasses are just flowering grasses that live underwater. So, like all plants, they remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert that into the actual plant matter itself so the leaves, the flowers, the roots. And so, then, when those seagrasses die, all of that gets buried underneath¹⁰. And because of their root system, which is very intricate, it kind of locks it down and holds it in there.

But the unique thing about a blue carbon ecosystem⁴ is that saltwater really inhibits¹¹ bacterial¹² breakdown¹³ of that material. So, basically, once the plants die, they're preserved within the soil. And, again, in this study, particularly, these are seagrasses next to the Great Barrier Reef. And having the seagrasses that absorb that CO2 are actually protecting the reefs against ocean acidification degradation¹⁴.

MARTIN: So is the news, here, that this exists, or is the news here of what these carbon sinks actually can accomplish, can do for us?

HOWARD: Well, you know, the science behind what these systems are and what they can do for us is pretty well-established. The interesting thing about this study, in particular, is that seagrass beds are very hard to find. Because they're underwater, satellite imagery is - it's very difficult to pick them up and find where they are. So you usually have to throw somebody in the water with a scuba¹⁵ mask to go actually find them. So...

MARTIN: Couldn't you invite them, nicely, to go in with a scuba mask?

HOWARD: (Laughter).

MARTIN: You have to throw them in?

HOWARD: We could - I think most people don't mind scuba-diving in...

MARTIN: (Laughter).

HOWARD: ...Tropical locations...

MARTIN: Yeah.

HOWARD: ...For sure, near the Great Barrier Reef.

MARTIN: But this is something that requires some effort to find.

HOWARD: Yeah, absolutely. And, because of that, we just don't know how many of these large patches of seagrasses there actually are out there.

MARTIN: So tell me more about what's amazing. Is it that - is the - how much work is this particular patch? Or can you sort of quantify how much carbon this area is soaking up? Or what do we think it's contributing?

HOWARD: Probably on average. And I haven't done the calculations for this particular patch and its size. But, you know, we think that there's probably about several billion tons of carbon locked away in the seagrass meadows all over the world. And the unique thing about these ecosystems, as well, that I really want to mention is not only are they fantastic for removing carbon from the atmosphere, which makes them important for all climate change mitigation policy, but when you destroy those ecosystems, all that carbon can be rereleased back into the atmosphere.

MARTIN: That was going to be - my question is that - are these deep seagrasses endangered? Is this something that we should be concerned about?

HOWARD: So, again, we don't know that much about deep seagrasses. But, in general, looking globally, seagrasses are being lost at about 2 percent per year, which is very significant. But most of that loss is really coming from poor water quality. What happens when you have pollutants¹⁶ and too much sediment¹⁷ running down the river, it blocks out the light. It buries the seagrass, and they start to die. The solution to that is really going to be land-based. You're going to have to address the pollution component¹⁸ first.

MARTIN: And, finally, do scientists suggest that we should be cultivating seagrass? Is that even a thing? Can that be done?

HOWARD: It can be done. I think, though, that one thing to keep in mind is that seagrasses are very prolific¹⁹. And so, if they're not currently being seen there, there's a reason why. So if you just go and plant in these areas, it's probably not going to do very well.

MARTIN: That's Jennifer Howard, the marine climate change director at Conservation International. She was commenting on the findings of Peter Macreadie at Deakin University in Australia. Jennifer, thanks so much for talking to us.

HOWARD: Thank you. This was great.

1 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

4 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

5 ecosystems   

n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句

6 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 mangrove   

n.(植物)红树，红树林

参考例句：

• It is the world's largest tidal mangrove forest.它是世界上最大的红树林沼泽地。
• Many consider this the most beautiful mangrove forest in all Thailand.许多人认为这里是全泰国最美丽的红树林了。

8 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

9 sequester   

vt.使退隐，使隔绝

参考例句：

• Everything he owned was sequestered.他的所有财产都被扣押了。
• This jury is expected to be sequestered for at least two months.预计这个陪审团将至少被隔离两个月。

10 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

11 inhibits   

阻止，抑制( inhibit的第三人称单数 )； 使拘束，使尴尬

参考例句：

• A small manufacturing sector inhibits growth in the economy. 制造业规模太小有碍经济增长。
• His bad English inhibits him from speaking freely. 他英语学得不好，这使他不能表达自如。

12 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。

13 breakdown   

n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌

参考例句：

• She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
• The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障，但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。

14 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

15 scuba   

n.水中呼吸器

参考例句：

• I first got hooked on scuba diving when I was twelve.12岁时我开始迷上了带水中呼吸器潜水。
• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。

16 pollutants   

污染物质（尤指工业废物）( pollutant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Pollutants are constantly being released into the atmosphere. 污染物质正在不断地被排放到大气中去。
• The 1987 Amendments limit 301(g) discharges to a few well-studied nonconventional pollutants. 1987年的修正案把第301条（g）的普通排放限制施加在一些认真研究过的几种非常规污染物上。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

17 sediment   

n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物)

参考例句：

• The sediment settled and the water was clear.杂质沉淀后，水变清了。
• Sediment begins to choke the channel's opening.沉积物开始淤塞河道口。

18 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

19 prolific   

adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的

参考例句：

• She is a prolific writer of novels and short stories.她是一位多产的作家，写了很多小说和短篇故事。
• The last few pages of the document are prolific of mistakes.这个文件的最后几页错误很多。