Science-Gately et al. (2023): Coccolithophores and diatoms resilient to ocean alkalinity enhancement: A glimpse of hope?
James A. Gately, Sylvia M. Kim, Benjamin, Mark A. Brzezinski, Maria D. Iglesias-Rodriguez IN: Sci. Adv. 9, eadg6066(2023). DOI:10.1126/sciadv.adg6066
Ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) is an abiotic ocean CDR approach that aims to increase the ocean’s CO2 uptake capacity through the dispersal of pulverized mineral or dissolved alkali into the surface ocean. The authors investigate the impacts of moderate (~700 μmol kg−1) and high (~2700 μmol kg−1) limestone-inspired alkalinity additions on two biogeochemically and ecologically important phytoplankton functional group representatives: Emiliania huxleyi (calcium carbonate producer) and Chaetoceros sp. (silica producer). The growth rate and elemental ratios of both taxa showed a neutral response to limestone-inspired alkalinization.