Ocean acidification and coral reefs

Growth of Reef Corals and Sea Grass Around Shallow Water Geothermal Vents

Another of the IPCC-gate scares has been commented on recently, this one being the scare over increased atmospheric CO2 from our use of fossil fuels causing global ocean acidification leading to the destruction of coral reefs like the Australian Great Barrier Reef. Dr. Walter Starck (link), QUOTE: received a PhD in marine science from the University of Miami in 1964. He has over 40 years worldwide experience in reef studies and his work has encompassed the discovery of much of the basic nature of reef biology. UNQUOTE Dr. Starck draws attention to the evidence that shows that corals live happily within ocean environments where much higher than normal concentrations of CO2 exist, i.e. in the vicinity of geothermal vents.

He says (link) QUOTE: A never ending litany of purported environmental threats to the Great Barrier Reef has maintained a generous flow of funding for several generations of researchers and the reef salvation industry now brings about $100 million annually into the local economy in North Queensland. Although none of these threats has ever become manifest as a serious impact and all of the millions of dollars in research has never found any effective solution for anything, the charade never seems to lose credibility or support. The popular threat of the moment is ocean acidification from increasing atmospheric CO2. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority cite research claiming that coral calcification is in rapid decline from acidification despite the obvious contradiction of surprisingly rapid recovery from storm and bleaching damage. They also propagate predictions that oceanic pH may decrease (i.e. become less alkaline) by as much as 0.4 of a pH unit by 2100 and that this will be disastrous for coral calcification. .. oceanic pH would then be about 7.8 ..

Geological evidence indicates they thrived when CO2 was at 5-10 times current levels. This is far higher than we might reach before running out of fossil fuels. In some areas modern day reefs with healthy corals flourish where the pH is as low as 7.8 and disaster for the GBR at this level is more the perverse hope of alarmists than it is a probability. .. The Climategate affair and its ongoing revelations have exposed a deep systemic corruption at the heart of climate science. Unfortunately this corruption is not restricted to climate science but is endemic across the environmental sciences which have become more of an ideology and a scam than they are a science. It is time for society to wake up and begin to realise that we have been repeatedly and blatantly lied to. .. UNQUOTE.

The ICECAP blog (link) provides excellent bulletins on the sceptical scientists’ counters to the climate science propaganda presented by the UN through its IPCC, with the validity of the sceptical arguments are becoming increasingly recognised by the global community. ICECAP presents articles and opinions from many of the sceptics who are experts in many of the disciplines that are contribute to our better understanding of those highly complex global climate processes and drivers (link).

Regards, Pete