Saving the world’s largest animal can help reduce carbon emissions, study shows

The entire body biomass of a whale, which weighs up to 150 tons and can live over 100 years, is largely composed of carbon

Scientists have decoded the potential of the world’s largest animals – whales – to sequester the global warming-inducing greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the ocean.

Previous studies have found that the planet’s oceans are the greatest carbon sinks which absorb nearly a third of the atmosphere’s greenhouse gas emissions.

In a new study, scientists, including those from the University of Alaska Southeast in the US, analysed the role of whales in the global carbon cycle and how they can potentially contribute to the overall reduction of atmospheric carbon dioxide.