New Study: Coral Reefs Thrive Near Acidic Waters (pH ~6.0) Where Seafloor Vents Emit Up To 95,000 ppm CO2

by K. Richard, March 30, 2020 in NoTricksZone


Though it’s believed the 130 ppm increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration since 1750 has caused the ocean waters to “acidify”, on a daily basis 50-380°C metallic acid enriched by CO2 concentrations reaching 60,000 to 95,000 ppm pours through seafloor vents. Nearby coral reefs “thrive” in these high-CO2 conditions.

50 times more CO2 in the oceans than in the atmosphere

Though many believe humans are “acidifying” the oceans by burning fossil fuels and emitting CO2, the ability of humans to impact the oceanic CO2 concentration is already compromised by the observation that the ocean waters contain about 50 times more CO2 (38,000 vs. 750 PgC) than the atmosphere does (North et al., 2014).