A new video released by Earth Corps details how river estuaries help combat climate change by sequestering huge amounts of carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide that becomes a part of this cycle is known as blue carbon (blue coming from the water involved in this cycle). Because of the incredibly fast cycle of growth, decay and soil buildup in river estuaries, carbon is absorbed and stored underground. In fact, if the Snohomish River Estuary, about a mile north of EvCC’s campus, were restored completely, it could sequester enough carbon to be equivalent to taking 1.7 million cars off the road by 2100. This means that estuaries are far better carbon sinks (the term for a biome that stores more carbon than it emits) than forests.
This new information proves how imperative it is that we continue the efforts to restore our river estuaries and improve our land management practices as we work toward averting the worst implications of climate change.
Watch Blue Carbon by clicking here!
Earth Corps has given us permission to circulate this video around campus, so if you’d like to use it in a presentation to students or staff, feel free and we encourage you to do so!