TEXTO:
Acidic oceans destroying sea life
Mankind is changing the chemistry of the oceans
and may be causing the decline of sea life. Experts
say the ocean is more acidic now than it has been at
any time in the past half-million years.
[5] Carbon dioxide is an acidic gas and scientists say
that, as it dissolves into the sea, it’s making seawater
more acidic. They calculate that ocean acidity is up
30% since the Industrial Revolution. A new study
shows the growth of some tiny shell forming creatures
[10] appears already to have been stopped by the change.
Research of this new branch of science suggests
that as CO2 emissions continue to increase, many
shell forming species may not survive the next 50 –
100 years. This would hit commercial fisheries and
[15] start to destroy the delicate balance of life in the seas.
Dr Carol Turkey, who is running an acidification
debate in Copenhagen, fears a mass extinction: “55
million years ago there was a big production of CO2.
That resulted in the mass extinction of seabed dwelling
[20] shell forming organisms.
What we’re doing now is far, far faster, so it may
not be possible for organisms to adapt.”
Skeptics say we can’t be sure how ocean
chemistry will respond in the future and whether
[25] creatures will adapt. The scientists in Denmark say
we simply shouldn’t take the risk.
Harrabin, Roger. Acidic oceans destroying sea life. Disponível em:. Acesso em: 2 nov. 2021.
“This would hit commercial fisheries” (l. 14)
This sentence means that this would
