Third source of oceanic iron is found

upi.com ^ | March 25, 2008 | NA

[neverdem]

Published: at 12:34 PM

BERKELEY, Calif., March 25 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists are challenging a theory that assumes most iron needed to fertilize plankton blooms comes nearly entirely from wind-blown dust.

Phoebe Lam of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and James Bishop of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have shown the key source of iron in the Western North Pacific is not dust, but the volcanic continental margins of the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Kuril Islands.

Understanding the origins, transport mechanisms and fate of naturally occurring iron in high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll surface waters is important in calculating climate change, the scientists said.

"In the open ocean, the biopump wants to grab all the iron it can," said Bishop, a professor at the University of California-Berkeley. "There were two recognized natural sources of iron out there, atmospheric dust and upwelling from below. Where we've looked in the North Pacific, we're seeing a new and important third source -- the continental margins. The rules for the role of iron in the ocean carbon cycle need to be revised."

The study is to be reported in a forthcoming issue of the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

© 2008 United Press International

[coconutt2000]

When a global warming proponent/zealot finally admits that we don’t know enough about atmospheric/environmental/oceanic chemistry and physics and their impact on climate and climate change, I’ll probably rediscover how to smile...

As it is, instead of spending billions on wealth transfer schemes disguised as climate policy, we should enact policies along three lines:

1) Tax breaks for American businesses to continue to clean up their manufacturing processes and to switch to environmentally friendly materials.
2) Research and Development spending on infrastructure and technologies that will enable our nation to survive any severe swings in climate.
3) Research dedicated to expanding our knowledge of our planet, our solar system, and the dangers that naturally exist regardless of human activities.

The first point is based purely on the idea that we have to live on this planet, and pollution will generally come back around and bite us in the butt. The second point is based on the idea that civilization is fragile, and overspecialization of our defense efforts toward one threat or another without preparation for broader or different threats is just asking for a civilization ending event to stab us in the back. The third point is a natural progression from the second, in that we should be on the look out for things that can and will probably blind side us.

[Sawdring]

1) Tax breaks for American businesses to continue to clean up their manufacturing processes and to switch to environmentally friendly materials.

Could American companies get the tax breaks if they move their manufacturing processes to China to avoid EPA standards?