Scientists say this is roughly comparable in the amount of sugar to 32 billion cans of Coca-Cola.
A team of researchers led by the Max Planck Institute discovered that seaweeds release large amounts of sugars into their soil during photosynthesis. This is because they are among the most efficient carbon zinc on Earth, according to Earth.com.
In particular, one square kilometer can store almost twice as much carbon than forests on land. In addition, it happens 35 times faster.
“According to our estimates, the seagrass rhizosphere contains from 0.6 to 1.3 million tons of sugar worldwide, mainly in the form of sucrose. This is roughly comparable in the amount of sugar to 32 billion cans of Coca-Cola, “said one in the study. authors Manuel Liebeke.
It was noted that almost all germs eat sugars. Seaweeds, in turn, release phenolic compounds into sediments.
“Red wine, coffee and fruit are full of phenols and many people take them as health supplements. What is less known is that phenolic compounds are antimicrobials and inhibit the metabolism of most microorganisms,” he added. Maggie Sogin, the first author of the study.
In addition, experts say seagrass meadows are among the most endangered habitats on the planet. However, they are rapidly declining in all oceans. In turn, scientists fear that their loss will lead to the release of large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere and this will exacerbate global warming.
“By looking at how much blue carbon — that is, the carbon that the world’s oceans and coastal ecosystems capture — is lost when seaweed is damaged, our study clearly shows that it’s not just seagrass itself , but also large amounts of sucrose will take the lead. in the loss of stored carbon. Our calculations show that if the sucrose in the rhizosphere of algae is destroyed by germs, at least 1.54 million tons of carbon dioxide will be released into the atmosphere worldwide, ”summed up Professor Liebeke.
Recall that earlier scientists from the University of Bradford discovered the submerged Mesolithic world in the North Sea.
Japanese scientists predicted the multimeter sea level rise
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Source: korrespondent
