Can Seaweed Help Fight Climate Change?

This post comes to PBS Nature from World Wildlife Fund (WWF). WWF and Nature are collaborating on a series of blog posts from WWF conservation scientists that will share the stories and motivations behind cutting-edge conservation research.

Feeling the burn from the latest heatwave scorching the U.S.? Seaweed might be one of the unexpected heroes we need. This marine plant absorbs carbon dioxide, helping cool our oceans and the planet. By capturing greenhouse gasses, seaweed offers a natural defense against climate change and its impacts on people and the planet.

Seaweed is a jack of many trades when it comes to the benefits it provides. For starters, it can be used as a sustainable alternative to make many of the products we use every day.

Did you know that there’s seaweed in your toothpaste? That’s right, many toothpastes are made with a type of seaweed that’s grown in tropical areas. These days, seaweed is being used to make lotions, ink, and even textiles for our clothes. Seaweed is beautiful and diverse, with over 12,000 known species worldwide, and we are just beginning to learn its potential for different innovative uses.

Stockton Springs, ME, United States — Kelp farmer Greg Perkins, front, and sternman Brandon Hoogerhyde hang a line of sugar kelp as they check Perkins’ farm off the coast of Stockton Springs, ME on Monday, March 22, 2021. Perkins is a lobster fisherman who has diversified his income with crabbing and started growing kelp in the winter three years ago. He farms his kelp for Atlantic Sea Farms, a Saco-based kelp food company. (© Yoon S. Byun / WWF-US)

It’s also the least resource intensive food we can grow, so using it in more products in place of carbon-intensive materials can help reduce our footprint. If you’re like most people, when you hear “farm” you think of sprawling corn fields or acres of cleared land with roaming animals. But one of the things that makes seaweed farming unique is that you don’t need to convert land or an existing ecosystem to start a farm. Seaweed farming takes place in the ocean and doesn’t require any land, fertilizer, or freshwater. Nothing has to be cleared or cut down in order to grow seaweed. Instead, ropes are covered with seaweed seedlings and strung out at a farm site in the ocean where they grow quickly using sunlight and nutrients from the water. After about five to six months, the seaweed is harvested by pulling up the ropes and cutting the large blades off into a boat and bringing them back to shore for processing.

© Andres Jacobson / WWF-US

Part of what makes seaweed a sustainable resource is how quickly it grows in comparison to other crops. Seaweed is one of the fastest growing organisms on Earth because it doesn’t have to fight against gravity like land plants so it can put all its energy toward growth. Some species, like giant kelp on the West Coast, can grow as much as a foot a day! And as one of the only natural sources of iodine, seaweed is incredibly healthy for you. It’s rich in key vitamins and minerals like Vitamin K and B12, antioxidants, and fiber.

© Jeff Siebert/WWF-US

Seaweed helps combat climate change by reducing the amount of harmful greenhouse gasses we emit into the atmosphere. For example, livestock production is a huge contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Adding even small amounts of 5% or less of certain types of seaweed to livestock feed has been shown to significantly reduce the methane output from cows and improve animals’ health and growth.

This burgeoning industry is a source of hope for many coastal communities struggling economically due to declining fisheries. As climate change continues to negatively impact fisheries, seaweed farming is becoming an increasingly important alternative source of income for fishers in these areas. Last year, lobstermen I met in Maine actually made more money from farming seaweed than they did from their lobster harvest.

You don’t have to be a seaweed farmer to support the industry and all its benefits. Be on the lookout for products that use seaweed in innovative ways. Experiment with creative uses for seaweed in your kitchen, think about adding it into a smoothie to get that nutritious punch or snacking on the many varieties of seaweed. By tapping into the hidden power of these underwater forests, you can help turn the tide in the fight against climate change.

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