Study Warns Microplastics Undermine Ocean’s Climate Role

Study Warns Microplastics Undermine Ocean’s Climate Role
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Microplastics are increasingly undermining the ocean’s ability to absorb heat-trapping gases, weakening its role as a natural buffer against climate change, according to new scientific research reported by euronews. The United Nations says oceans produce half of Earth’s oxygen, absorb around 30 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions and trap most excess heat caused by global warming.

The findings come from a study published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials: Plastic, which highlights a previously overlooked connection between microplastic pollution and climate regulation. Researchers from the University of Sharjah reviewed 89 studies to assess how microplastics interact with marine ecosystems and the ocean’s carbon-absorbing processes.

The study concludes that microplastics disrupt marine life, emit greenhouse gases as they degrade, and weaken the “biological carbon pump” that transfers carbon to deep ocean layers. They reduce phytoplankton photosynthesis and impair zooplankton metabolism, processes essential for storing carbon and supporting marine food chains.

Scientists warn that a weakened ocean could eventually release stored carbon back into the atmosphere, shifting from a carbon sink to a carbon source. With plastic production exceeding 400 million tonnes annually, the study calls for urgent global action and integrated strategies to tackle plastic pollution and climate change together.