A green sea turtle swims up for air after feeding on sea grass off the coast of the Pulau Perhentian Islands in north east Malaysia. A green sea turtle swims up for air after feeding on sea grass off the coast of the Pulau Perhentian Islands in north east Malaysia in this picture taken September 18, 2004. Named for the color of its cartilage and fat deposits around its internal organs, the endangered herbivorous green turtles are found throughout the tropics. Picture taken on September 18.

A green sea turtle swims up for air after feeding on sea grass off the coast of the Pulau Perhentian Islands in north east Malaysia. A green sea turtle swims up for air after feeding on sea grass off the coast of the Pulau Perhentian Islands in north east Malaysia in this picture taken September 18, 2004. Named for the color of its cartilage and fat deposits around its internal organs, the endangered herbivorous green turtles are found throughout the tropics. Picture taken on September 18. Reuters

Damaging seagrasses in coastal environments can release ancient carbon and reduce their capacity to offset carbon emissions in the future, a new Australian research reveals.

The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, claims that the tiny holes humans tear in the ocean floor on an almost daily basis have major generational consequences for global warming. According to the researchers, the problem becomes worse because it takes a long time for seagrasses to regrow once disturbed.

Seagrasses are among the earth’s most efficient and long-term carbon sinks, with the ability to sequester carbon at a rate 35 times faster than tropical rainforests. However, coastal development in recent years has threatened their capacity. Seagrass disturbance occurs around Australia and the world on a daily basis, says lead author Dr Peter Macreadie from Deakin University. According to him, approximately two football fields of seagrass area per hour have been lost since the 1980s.

However, the new research shows that seagrass areas that had recovered were once again capturing and storing carbon. “While I’m not surprised by this, as we’ve known for some time now that seagrasses are among the most powerful carbon sinks on the planet, this is important empirical evidence of the need to restore denuded seagrass ecosystems rather than wait and hope they recover,” Macreadie explains.

Macreadie says better regulations should be put in place to protect seagrasses, and hold those who destroy seagrass accountable for the damage they do. He also points out the importance of restoration, with some areas needing to re–plant seagrass. Other areas, meanwhile, require improvements on controlling upstream processes that negatively affect seagrass recovery, such as sediment and nutrient runoff.

One notable instance when seagrass meadows were destroyed was during the 1960s when Australia tested the suitability of a nuclear testing facility at Jervis Bay in NSW. According to Macreadie, soil carbon stocks in this area declined by 72 percent after the disturbance, which, according to radiocarbon dating, had taken hundreds to thousands of years to accumulate.

Macreadie says 29 percent of the world’s seagrasses have been destroyed, raising concerns that degraded seagrass meadows could leak vast amounts of ancient carbon back out into the atmosphere.

Seagrass communities provide habitats and nursery grounds for many marine animals, and act as substrate stabilisers, according to the Australian Institute of Marine Science. In northern Australia, seagrass meadows are important as they provide sheltered refuge and feeding areas for prawns and juvenile fish. Seagrass meadows are also a major food source for a number of grazing animals in the Great Barrier Reef region, such as the dugong and the green turtle.

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