Page 287 - Melanesia

Dangers to Coral Reefs

S ince the beginning of the Industrial higher than experienced on Earth for at
Revolution, the release of carbon least the last 800,000 years and probably
dioxide (CO2) from human activities has over 20 million years, and is expected to
resulted in atmospheric CO2 concentra- continue to rise at an increasing rate, lead-
tions that have increased from approxi- ing to significant temperature increases in
mately 280 to 385 parts per million. The the atmosphere and oceans in the coming
atmospheric concentration of CO2 is now decades.