In chapter 7, Kolbert visits One Tree Island, an island on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. She meets a scientist named Ken Caldeira who studies the impact of carbon dioxide on the ocean’s pH level. During her trip, she learns how vulnerable coral reefs are to high pH levels in the ocean. In other words, the corals are suffering from acidification of the ocean. Nonetheless, there is still a lot to worry about due to overfishing and pollution, which briefly touches on the theme of humans altering natural systems.
More importantly, this chapter has deep connection with the APES theme that biogeochemical systems vary in ability to recover from disturbances. On page 138, Kolbert describes a study on the effect of the state of water on coral. She writes, “As the saturation state of the water dropped, coral diversity plunged. Coralline algae declined even more drastically, an ominous sign since coralline algae act like a kind of reef glue, cementing the structure together. Seagrass, meanwhile, thrived.” This quote highlights the theme because systems like coral reefs struggle to recover from the acidification of oceans meanwhile others like sea grass can thrive in it.
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