Morto Mare

Global warming is threatening to turn the Mediterranean into a giant version of the dead sea according to researchers gathered in Rome:  

AP — Climate change is affecting Europe faster than the rest of the world and rising temperatures could transform the Mediterranean into a salty and stagnant sea, Italian experts said Wednesday. Warmer waters and increased salinity could doom many of the sea's plant and animal species and ravage the fishing industry, warned participants at a two-day climate change conference that brought together some 2,000 scientists and officials in Rome.

Seasonal formation and dissolution of thermoclines and chemoclines are critical to the complex, interdependent ecology and biochemical make up of the Med. Changes in sea surface temperatures affect the way in which deep water and shallow water exchange heat and chemical content. If those mechanisms fade or are switched off -- similar to what happened during the killer European heat wave of 2003-- the short-term results could be devastating to fish and other marine wildlife. In addition, such an event would mitigate the ability for the Med to absorb carbon, thus offsetting a crucial carbon sink and contributing to greater CO2 concentrations in the region -- which leads to even more greenhouse gas warming.