Seagrasses Store as Much Carbon as Forests

• William Dennison

Seagrasses are a vital part of the solution to climate change and can store up to twice as much carbon as the world's temperate and tropical forests, new research indicates.

"Seagrasses only take up a small percentage of global coastal area, but this assessment shows that they are a dynamic ecosystem for carbon transformation," study researcher James Fourqurean, of Florida International University, said in a statement. "Seagrasses have the unique ability to continue to store carbon in their roots and soil in coastal seas. We found instances where particular seagrass beds have been storing carbon for thousands of years."