Frederick Sparber wrote:
> As soon as we get > back of the picture and stop polluting the water, we should also stop > harvesting the stuff. > Yes, otherwise it ends up in the ocean and rots.
If so, that is what it has been doing for millions of years, and that's what it is "supposed" to do. You can bet that if we interfere on a scale large enough to satisfy a significant fraction of our energy needs, we will also disrupt some aspect of the ecosystem, starting with the species that cause the rotting.
In other words, the scale of human energy production is simply too big for natural photosynethic processes. Not too big for wind or direct solar, or perhaps geothermal. Some natural energy sources are bigger than others. But I would prefer to see us use an unnatural source such as fission or cold fusion. As a rule, I think it is better for us and for the ecology if we step out of the loop, and no longer try to depend on nature for our needs.
- Jed
