The climate is warming, and much of the increase is due to carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Researchers are scrambling to find ways to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and an article published in the journal Frontiers in Climate lays out one possible solution: ocean iron fertilization (OIF). This is a "technique where small amounts of micronutrient iron are released onto the surface of the sea to stimulate the growth of marine plants known as phytoplankton," said Euronews. "This rapid growth removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. When the plankton die or are eaten, some of that carbon is captured as it sinks deep into the ocean."
Geoengineering like OIF has long been in discussion as a way to mitigate carbon emissions. But not everyone is on board with investing in iron fertilization. Many worry that "fertilization could create 'dead zones' where rampant algal blooms would consume all the oxygen in the water, snuffing out other life," said Scientific American.
In addition, iron fertilization may not be as effective at removing carbon as some experts claim. "Even at its peak performance, the technique just can't store that much carbon," Alessandro Tagliabue, an ocean biogeochemist at the University of Liverpool, said to Hakai Magazine.
Proponents of OIF say some progress is better than none. "It's a small change in biology, relative to doing nothing and watching this planet boil," Ken Buesseler, the study's lead author and executive director of the Exploring Ocean Iron Solutions project, said to Scientific American. | 
