How pollution is changing the ocean's chemistry | Triona McGrath

譯者: Ming Lee 審譯者: 易帆 余

Do you ever think about how important the oceans are in our daily lives?

請問你們是否知道， 海洋對我們的生活有多重要嗎？

The oceans cover two-thirds of our planet.

地球有 2/3 的面積是海洋。

They provide half the oxygen we breathe.

我們呼吸的氧氣， 有一半是它們提供的。

They moderate our climate.

它們調節氣候。

And they provide jobs and medicine and food

提供人類就業機會和醫藥、食物，

including 20 percent of protein to feed the entire world population.

包括 20% 全人類食用的蛋白質。

People used to think that the oceans were so vast

人們認為海洋這麼的浩瀚，

that they wouldn't be affected by human activities.

應該不會受到人類活動的影響。

Well today I'm going to tell you about a serious reality

但今天我想告訴各位，

that is changing our oceans called ocean acidification,

關於「海洋酸化」的嚴重現實，

or the evil twin of climate change.

或稱之為「氣候改變的邪惡雙胞胎」。

Did you know that the oceans have absorbed 25 percent of all of the carbon dioxide

你是否知道海洋可以吸收 人類釋放到大氣中二氧化碳的 25%。

that we have emitted to the atmosphere?

Now this is just another great service provided by the oceans

這是海水提供的極大貢獻，

since carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases

因為二氧化碳， 是一種溫室效應氣體，

that's causing climate change.

會造成地球氣候的變遷。

But as we keep pumping more and more and more

由於我們繼續製造 更多的二氧化碳，

carbon dioxide into the atmosphere

並且釋放到空氣中，

more is dissolving into the oceans.

海洋就吸收了更多的二氧化碳。

And this is what's changing our ocean chemistry.

所以這是海洋化學正在改變的主因。

When carbon dioxide dissolves in seawater,

當二氧化碳溶解在海裡時，

it undergoes a number of chemical reactions.

它會產生一連串的化學反應。

Now lucky for you,

今天你們很幸運，

I don't have time to get into the details of the chemistry for today.

我不需要在此詳述化學的細節。

But I'll tell you as more carbon dioxide enters the ocean,

但我可以告訴你多一點， 有關二氧化碳溶入海水的事，

the seawater pH goes down.

它會造成海水酸鹼值 (pH) 的下降。

And this basically means that there is an increase in ocean acidity.

基本上來說就是海水會愈來愈酸。

And this whole process is called ocean acidification.

整個過程稱之為「海洋酸化」。

And it's happening alongside climate change.

同時也造成氣候的改變。

Scientists have been monitoring ocean acidification for over two decades.

科學家偵測海水酸化的時間， 已經長達 20年。

This figure is an important time series in Hawaii,

這是對夏威夷很重要的 一張時間序列圖，

and the top line shows steadily increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide,

最上面那條棕色曲線， 顯示二氧化碳濃度，

或大氣中的 CO2 氣體含量，

or CO2 gas, in the atmosphere.

呈現出穩定上升的趨勢。

And this is directly as a result of human activities.

直接來自人類活動造成的結果。

The line underneath shows the increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide

下面那藍色條線，

顯示 CO2 溶解在海洋表面的濃度，

that is dissolved in the surface of the ocean

which you can see is increasing at the same rate

可看出它也是以同樣速率在增加，

as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere since measurements began.

與開始測量大氣 CO2 含量時 具有相同的增加速率。

The line on the bottom shows then shows the change in chemistry.

最底下的綠色曲線， 顯示化學反應的變化。

As more carbon dioxide has entered the ocean,

當更多二氧化碳進入海洋時，

the seawater pH has gone down,

海水酸鹼值也降低，

which basically means there has been an increase in ocean acidity.

代表海水的酸度增加了。

Now in Ireland, scientists are also monitoring ocean acidification --

愛爾蘭的科學家 現在也在監視海洋酸化，

scientists at the Marine Institute and NUI Galway.

他們是愛爾蘭高威大學 海洋學院的研究員，

And we, too, are seeing acidification at the same rate

我們也看到 海洋以相同速度在酸化中，

as these main ocean time-series sites around the world.

跟全球其他海洋時間序列一樣。

So it's happening right at our doorstep.

所以它的問題迫在眉睫。

Now I'd like to give you an example of just how we collect our data

我給你們一個 關於我們如何收集資料，

to monitor a changing ocean.

監測海洋變化的例子。

Firstly we collect a lot of our samples in the middle of winter.

首先我們會在冬季中期取樣。

So as you can imagine, in the North Atlantic

你們知道北大西洋，

we get hit with some seriously stormy conditions --

常常被暴風雨襲擊……

so not for any of you who get a little motion sickness,

這工作不適合會暈船的人，

but we are collecting some very valuable data.

但我們必須收集一些有價值的數據。

So we lower this instrument over the side of the ship,

所以我們把偵測儀器 放到船身一側下方，

and there are sensors that are mounted on the bottom

另外船底也有偵測儀器，

that can tell us information about the surrounding water,

可以告訴我們周遭海裡的資訊，

such as temperature or dissolved oxygen.

例如溫度和溶氧量。

And then we can collect our seawater samples in these large bottles.

這樣就可以用 巨大的瓶子收集海水樣本。

So we start at the bottom, which can be over four kilometers deep

首先由 4 公里深的海水層開始，

just off our continental shelf,

作業地點在大陸棚外面一點，

and we take samples at regular intervals right up to the surface.

每隔一段深度收集一個樣本， 一路往上直到海水表面。

We take the seawater back on the deck,

收集到的海水被帶回甲板上，

and then we can either analyze them on the ship

然後直接在船上分析，

or back in the laboratory for the different chemicals parameters.

或是帶回實驗室， 研究相關的化學參數。

But why should we care?

但為什麼我們要關心這些？

How is ocean acidification going to affect all of us?

海洋酸化如何影響我們的未來？

Well, here are the worrying facts.

以下是令人擔心的事實。

There has already been an increase in ocean acidity of 26 percent

海洋酸化已經增加了26%，

since pre-industrial times, which is directly due to human activities.

相對於革命工業開始前，

可見這是由人類活動導致的。

Unless we can start slowing down our carbon dioxide emissions,

除非我們能把二氧化碳 排放的速度減緩下來，

we're expecting an increase in ocean acidity of 170 percent

否則到本世紀末的時候，

我們預期海洋的酸度 會增加 170%。

by the end of this century.

I mean this is within our children's lifetime.

我的意思是到了我們下一代，

This rate of acidification is 10 times faster

此種酸化的速度，

比五千五百萬年前， 海水酸化速度還快十倍。

than any acidification in our oceans for over 55 million years.

So our marine life have never, ever experienced

這是海洋生物從未有過的經驗，

such a fast rate of change before.

那種急遽的變化。

So we literally could not know how they're going to cope.

快速到我們無從知道， 牠們要如何去適應。

Now there was a natural acidification event millions of years ago,

數百萬年前， 曾發生過一件天然酸化事件，

which was much slower than what we're seeing today.

比今日看到的速度緩慢了很多。

And this coincided with a mass extinction of many marine species.

這事件恰好是 很多海洋物種大滅絕的時間。

So is that what we're headed for?

所以這是我們正在邁入的現象嗎？

Well, maybe.

或許是的。

Studies are showing some species are actually doing quite well

研究顯示有些物種適應得很好，

but many are showing a negative response.

但有些則顯出負面的反應。

One of the big concerns is as ocean acidity increases,

海洋酸化的大問題之一是；

the concentration of carbonate ions in seawater decrease.

海水中碳酸鹽離子的減少。

Now these ions are basically the building blocks

這些離子基本上像是一種建築材料，

for many marine species to make their shells,

是很多海洋生物製造外殼的物質，

for example crabs or mussels, oysters.

如螃蟹、孔雀蛤、牡蠣等。

Another example are corals.

另一例是珊瑚。

They also need these carbonate ions in seawater

牠們也需要這些碳酸鹽離子，

to make their coral structure in order to build coral reefs.

來組成珊瑚的結構和製造珊瑚礁。

As ocean acidity increases

當海洋酸性升高時，

and the concentration of carbonate ions decrease,

碳酸鹽離子的濃度降低了，

these species first find it more difficult to make their shells.

這些生物會更難製造外殼。

And at even even lower levels, they can actually begin to dissolve.

當酸性降低至更低的時後， 它們甚至會溶解掉。

This here is a pteropod, it's called a sea butterfly.

這是被喻為「海蝶」的 翼足類軟體動物。

And it's an important food source in the ocean for many species,

牠是很多海洋生物的重要食物來源，

from krill to salmon right up to whales.

從磷蝦、鮭魚到鯨魚都靠它生存。

The shell of the pteropod was placed into seawater

將翼足軟體動物的外殼，

放進我們預估本世紀末的 酸性海水樣本中，

at a pH that we're expecting by the end of this century.

After only 45 days at this very realistic pH,

在此種 pH 值非常酸的 海水裡只需 45 天，

you can see the shell has almost completely dissolved.

就可以看到貝殼幾乎完全被溶解。

So ocean acidification could affect right up through the food chain --

所以海洋酸化可以影響食物鏈，

and right onto our dinner plates.

一路影響到你和我的餐盤。

I mean who here likes shellfish? Or salmon?

我是說誰願意像貝類？鮭魚？

Or many other fish species

或很多其他魚種，

whose food source in the ocean could be affected?

牠們海洋中的食物來源受到影響？

These are cold-water corals.

這些是冷水珊瑚礁。

And did you know we actually have cold-water corals in Irish waters,

你知道愛爾蘭的外海， 也有冷水珊瑚礁嗎？

just off our continental shelf?

就在大陸棚外面一點的地方。

And they support rich biodiversity, including some very important fisheries.

它們支撐豐富多樣生態的存活， 包括非常重要的漁業。

It's projected that by the end of this century,

預估到了本世紀末，

70 percent of all known cold-water corals in the entire ocean

全球 70% 已知的所有冷水珊瑚礁，

在整個海洋裡， 將會通通被海水溶解掉。

will be surrounded by seawater that is dissolving their coral structure.

The last example I have are these healthy tropical corals.

我最近發現的例子 是這些熱帶海洋珊瑚，

They were placed in seawater at a pH we're expecting by the year 2100.

把牠放入預估的 2100 年 酸性海水樣本中時，

After six months, the coral has almost completely dissolved.

經過六個月後，牠們幾乎完全溶解。

Now coral reefs support

現在全球珊瑚礁支撐了

25 percent of all marine life in the entire ocean.

整個海洋 25% 的生態。

All marine life.

所有的海洋生物。

So you can see: ocean acidification is a global threat.

所以可想而知， 海洋酸化是全球性的威脅。

I have an eight-month-old baby boy.

我有個八個月大的嬰兒。

Unless we start now to slow this down,

除非我們現在開始減緩酸化速度，

I dread to think what our oceans will look like when he's a grown man.

我不敢想像未來他長大後， 海洋會變成怎樣。

We will see acidification.

我們將會繼續看到海水的酸化。

We have already put too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

因為釋放到空氣中的 二氧化碳已經太多了。

But we can slow this down.

但我們可以放慢酸化速度。

We can prevent the worst-case scenario.

可以預防此種最壞的結局。

The only way of doing that

要作到此點，唯一之道，

is by reducing our carbon dioxide emissions.

就是減少二氧化碳的排放量。

This is important for both you and I, for industry, for governments.

這對你我、工業界， 和政府都是非常重要的。

We need to work together, slow down global warming

我們必須同心協力減緩全球暖化，

slow down ocean acidification

減緩海洋酸化，

and help to maintain a healthy ocean and a healthy planet

一起努力維持海洋和地球的健康，

for our generation and for generations to come.

為了這一代和未來的世代。

(Applause)

（掌聲）