Saving the planet with appropriate biotechnology: 2. Cultivate shellfish to remediate the atmosphere

Shellfish cultivation is the only industry on the planet that (a) feeds us, (b) permanently removes CO2 from our atmosphere, and, with care, could (c) engineer our marine habitats to maintain the health and biodiversity of those ecosystems into the future. About 30-50% of shellfish biomass is represented by the animals’ shells, and shellfish shell is made by converting atmospheric CO2 into crystalline calcium carbonate which is stable for geological periods of time. The human tradition of eating shellfish is recorded in the ancient middens of shellfish shells that track migrations of early humans around the world. Recent history shows increasing exploitation of marine resources by an ever-growing human population. By the end of the 19th century oysters had become a cheap staple food on both sides of the Atlantic, but this oyster dredging destroyed 85% of the world’s oyster beds. In the tropics, Giant Clams have also been fished to extinction in many Indian Ocean and Pacific waters. In the 21st century, these animals deserve to have the same vigour applied to their restoration and conservation as we applied to dredging them from the seabed. In return they will cleanse our atmosphere by permanently sequestering its excess CO2 into limestone. And we must start now, before Homo sapiens is added to the list of organisms driven to extinction by humanity’s follies.