The Southern Ocean may be Earth’s safest place to remove carbon from the atmosphere, scientists find

A new Nature study simulated 60 years of ocean iron fertilisation across ten major ocean biomes using a process-rich ocean biogeochemical model.

The Southern Ocean delivered the strongest balance between carbon removal and ecosystem protection among all regions examined.

Ocean iron fertilisation adds iron to iron-poor ocean regions to stimulate phytoplankton growth, which absorbs carbon dioxide during photosynthesis.

Some ocean regions could remove carbon efficiently with relatively limited ecological disruption, while others may experience significant and long-lasting impacts on marine ecosystems.

The study, led by Jun Yu and colleagues, compared climate benefits and ecological risks across the world's major ocean regions.