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A NEW study by scientists has established that the waters around Scotland are in good condition and should be able to survive the rising levels of carbon dioxide which are causing serious problems in other parts of the world.
The research was carried out by a team from Plymouth University which has been looking for some time at how acid can affect the sea, and ultimately the fish life within it. Plymouth University is building considerable expertise in the study of the condition of the world's seas and oceans.
But Dr Jason Hall-Spencer, who carried out the research, said waters around Scotland look to be more resilient. He told the BBC that as part of the research an international team of underwater divers focused on a series of giant underwater volcanoes, which omit CO2 into the seawater.
The scientists were then able to work out what dies and what can survive as coastal areas become more and more acidified. The research team found in other parts of the world that rising levels of CO2 were damaging seafood stocks, destroying coral reefs and in the long term could lead ultimately lead to the end of low lying places like the Maldives. But in Scotland the situation appeared to be different. Dr Hall Spencer said Scottish waters contained more food which is likely to make them less vulnerable to acidification.
Last year Dr Hall-Spencer said ocean acidification was one of the most important environmental issues facing people because seas covered 70 per cent of the planet. His team at Plymouth has conducted the very first ecosystem-scale study of the affects of acid on marine life and they have shown dramatic ecological consequences. The problem, he said, was that acidification would get worse as more chemical and materials were dumped into the sea.
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