{"id":28455,"date":"2020-01-30T21:53:38","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T20:53:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/?p=28455"},"modified":"2020-02-03T17:26:52","modified_gmt":"2020-02-03T16:26:52","slug":"why-we-cant-fight-climate-change-without-healthy-oceans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/story\/28455\/why-we-cant-fight-climate-change-without-healthy-oceans\/","title":{"rendered":"Why we can\u2019t fight climate change without healthy oceans"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From a climate point of view, protecting the oceans is like building solar panels and taking cars off the road. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Climate change conjures images of traffic-choked cities and power station chimneys, or bedraggled polar bears and oil spills.<\/p>\n\n

But we often forget about the enormous power of natural systems like oceans that help keep the climate stable – and that means we don\u2019t look after them as well as we should. <\/p>\n\n

Whether we choose to protect or plunder the oceans will go a long way to deciding how climate change plays out, so let\u2019s dive in and find out how it\u2019s all connected.<\/p>\n\n

Microscopic marine plants guzzle CO2<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Healthy oceans are amazing at taking carbon dioxide out of the air and locking it away in its depths. This process starts when tiny floating plants called phytoplankton<\/a> suck carbon dioxide out of the air as they grow.<\/p>\n\n

As animals (like krill) eat the phytoplankton, and other animals (like whales<\/a>) eat those animals in turn, that carbon moves through the food chain until an animal dies and sinks to the bottom of the sea. (Sadly the circle of life doesn\u2019t always involve cute lion cubs).<\/p>\n\n