Carbon Emissions

Another big threat to coral reefs is carbon emissions. The ocean waters absorb carbon dioxide, which makes the water very acidic. These coral reefs cannot survive in these acidic waters filled with carbon dioxide, which is causing them to die out. Many scientists say that if these conditions continue to harm the coral reefs they will be completely gone by the year 2020. In open waters there is about a third of the carbon dioxide in the air that is absorbed into the water. The coral reefs need certain minerals to survive, and a specific one being aragonite. This aragonite is in the ocean water, but once it mixes with the carbonic acid from the air it reduces the amount of aragonite. As the coral reefs slowly begin to die out we have to do something to stop it.