When it comes to saving the planet, one whale is worth thousands of trees.
Great whales are the carbon-capture titans of the animal world, absorbing an average of 33 tons of CO2 each throughout their lives before their carcasses sink to the bottom of the ocean and remain there for centuries. A tree, by contrast, absorbs no more than 48 pounds of the gas a year.
In addition to binding significant amounts of CO2 themselves, whales also support the production of phytoplankton, which contributes at least 50% of all oxygen to the Earth’s atmosphere and captures as much CO2 as 1.7 trillion trees, or four Amazon forests.
Whales have a multiplier effect of increasing phytoplankton production wherever they go. It turns out that whales’ waste products contain exactly the substances—notably iron and nitrogen—phytoplankton need to grow.
Increasing phytoplankton productivity by just 1% would have the same effect as the sudden appearance of 2 billion mature trees.
Enhancing protection of whales from human-made dangers would deliver benefits to ourselves, the planet, and of course, the whales themselves.
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