ANTHROPOGENIC CO2 - THE NATURAL CARBON-CYCLE RECLAIMS CENTER STAGE

Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are increasing by about 1.5 ppm every year. This 1.5 ppm increase integrated over the volume of the atmosphere accounts for about 50% of the CO2 released to the atmosphere from fossil fuel burning and deforestation (henceforth “anthropogenic” CO2). The rest of the anthropogenic release (the part that does not remain in the atmosphere) goes mainly into the oceans and the terrestrial biosphere and soils. Knowing how CO2 is partitioned between oceanic and terrestrial CO2 sinks is critical for making CO2 forecasts into the future. This paper provides a brief review concerning the oceanic uptake of anthropogenic CO2. (A more detailed review is provided by Siengenthaler and Sarmiento, 1993.) Copyright 1995 by the American Geophysical Union.