How do our urban estuaries and coastal ocean waters help in the fight against climate change? You can find a clue in Jamaica Bay's greenish-hue! 🔎 Many see the dark green waters of the NY-NJ Estuary as a signal of pollution. Really, it is a sign that our waters are teeming with life - specifically, phytoplankton! 🦠 Floating at the surface of the water where they have access to sunlight, these microscopic plants form the basis of marine food webs, feeding the menhadden seen here. Phytoplankton contain the photosynthetic-pigment chlorophyll, causing the water to appear green. During photosynthesis, phytoplankton capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to create energy and oxygen. When they die, many sink in a phenomena called "marine snow," trapping the carbon captured forever at the bottom of the ocean. For this reason, phytoplankton are #Carbonsinks, limiting the amount of free-floating atmospheric #greenhousegases, that are driving climate change. Climate change, however, is impacting phytoplankton processes in ways that are still being understood by scientists. To protect our futures, we need to #protectouroceans and #protectourestuaries. #ClimateWeek #ClimateWeekNYC