Compared to other types of carbon sink, seagrass in Kenya can absorb 35 times more carbon – a fact that is helping to kick-start poverty alleviation schemes in the regionIn order to control the climate and mitigate climate change, carbon sinks are a vital part and process of the planet. This is due to their ability to absorb carbon dioxide and, after some time, slowly release it back into the atmosphere.Now, a team of scientists from Edinburgh Napier University and East Africa, led by Professor Mark Huxham, has uncovered that underwater seagrass meadows, in southern Kenya’s Gazi Bay, absorb more carbon than other land-based carbon sinks, such as rainforests. Huxham and his team scientists discovered that ‘seagrass in Kenya locks in 50 per cent more carbon than is typical for seagrass meadows elsewhere.’ This indicates the important role that seagrass sites could play in the fight against climate change.The seagrass meadows and mangroves found in Gazi Bay are ‘blue carbon sinks’ as they are living coastal and marine organisms. Seagrasses are easily mistaken for seaweed but are actually closer in relation to flowering plants found on land. They are known as being one of the most productive ecosystems on the planet due to the shelter they provide the animals that live within it and the services they provide to humans such as carbon storing.
The importance of conserving Kenya’s seagrass meadows
