Ocean-ICU Improving Carbon Understanding

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OceanICU will improve our understanding of the Ocean C Cycle. The Ocean carbon cycle plays a crucial role in regulating the global climate, taking up approximately 25% of the CO2 emitted into the atmosphere and separately storing massive quantities of carbon in the Ocean interior, much of it via a series of processes known as the biological carbon pump. Recent work suggests a much higher level of complexity in the biological carbon pump functioning than previously thought, including important roles for higher trophic level organisms and a broad range of fish associated processes. Looking to the future, humanity will become increasingly reliant on the Ocean for resources via fishing (protein), mining (trace metals) and energy extraction (wind). The European Green Deal demands that we develop ways to undertake these resource extraction activities in a climate neutral way. The consequences of these resource extraction activities (e.g. biomass removal via fishing or suspended sediment generation via industrial processes) disproportionately impact the higher Trophic levels, which are crucially important in the global carbon cycle but poorly understood. The project results will help fill these important knowledge gaps.