As the Southern Ocean Heats Up, the Race Is on to Protect Antarctica’s Marine Life

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As Earth’s atmosphere continues to warm, biodiversity in the global ocean is increasingly at risk. 

As Earth’s atmosphere continues to warm, biodiversity in the global ocean is increasingly at risk. Previous studies have shown the Southern Ocean has absorbed the vast majority of excess heat and emissions to slow the effects of climate change. But that absorption comes at a cost.

Later this month, representatives from 27 nations representing the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) will meet in Santiago, Chile to try and establish additional marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Southern Ocean. Cassandra Brooks, an assistant professor in Environmental Studies, will be in attendance.

Brooks has spent the last 20 years working and researching ways to understand and advance marine conservation across the globe, with a focus on Antarctica. She sat down with CU Boulder Today to explain the importance of protecting the Southern Ocean in particular as the world races to conserve biodiversity across the globe.

Read more at University of Colorado at Boulder

Photo Credit: 10871402 via Pixabay