July 14, 2000
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THE UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA July 14, 2000 |
Apart from braving the conditions of their outdoor laboratories, two recent grads supervised by Whiticar have made important contributions to the bodies of research that deal with deep sea methane gas deposits and the relationship between forests and carbon dioxide — both key issues surrounding global climate change. In his research, master’s candidate Nick Grant went to sea to analyse the deep water behaviour of methane gas, a potentially enormous source of greenhouse gas. Lisa Barazzuol’s bachelor’s thesis took her to a forested region near Campbell River to measure the uptake and release of CO2. In both experiments, samples were brought to the Whiticar lab for analysis using an advanced Grant joined Whiticar on part of the German/American-led research effort off the Oregon coast where massive hydrate deposits are located along Hydrate Ridge, 80 km offshore. Global methane hydrates are thought to hold more energy than the world’s coal, oil and natural gas reserves combined. But methane is also a greenhouse gas with far greater heat-trapping power than CO2. “Ten thousand to 100,000 times more methane is trapped in hydrates below the ocean floor than exists in the atmosphere,” says Grant. “That makes what happens to methane found in hydrates of great interest to climate change scientists.” At Hydrate Ridge, methane is frozen under the seafloor but movements of the earth’s crust — either through subduction or earthquakes — can cause methane to bubble up from the sediment. Slight temperature changes may also destabilize methane hydrates. Grant’s study of water samples from hydrates and hydrothermal vents demonstrated how bacteria consume nearly all of the methane in the water column. His work, according to Whiticar, has moved the research field “forward to a tremendous degree.” Meanwhile, Barazzuol had the unfortunate bad timing to see the “Blair Witch Project” days before she set off for the Campbell River-area forest where she spent 24 hours alone measuring CO2 levels. “It was craziness and I was sleep-deprived.” But she made it through and her study showed how CO2 from the ground mixes with CO2 in the upper canopy. By first understanding small-scale ecosystems, scientists hope to get a better grasp of how the carbon cycle works on a global scale. “Her results are having a great impact on our research,” says Whiticar. Barazzuol developed a poster presentation, based on her thesis, for the recent GeoCanada 2000 meeting in Calgary, which attracted some 4,000 delegates. She’s currently on contract with the B.C. Ministry of Energy and Mines conducting environmental and safety analysis of historic mine sites around the province. |
