1. The role of the ocean in global change J.-P. Vanderborght ULB, Océanographie Chimique et Géochimie des Eaux (ULB-OCEAN)

2. Contributors Royal Museum for Central Africa – Geology and Mineralogy Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Science – MUMM UA – Micro- and Trace Analysis Centre UGent – Mariene Biologie ULB – Ecologie des Systèmes Aquatiques ULB – Laboratoire d’Océanographie Chimique et Géochimie des Eaux ULg – Laboratoire de Physique Atmosphérique et Planétaire ULg – Unité d’Océanographie Chimique VUB – Laboratorium voor Analytische Scheikunde

3. Context During recent geological time, the ocean was a source of CO 2 for the atmosphere. Following the modern increase of atmospheric CO 2, the ocean acts now as a sink, with a net uptake of 2 to 3 gigatons of C per year. ~ 30 % of the total CO 2 emitted by man has been transfered to the ocean.

4. Recent geological time scale ATMOSPHERE LANDOCEAN burial: 280 erosion rivers C org 400 HCO 3 - : 400 280 uplift 520

5. ATMOSPHERE LANDOCEAN accumulation 3300  200 Anthropogenic fluxes uptake 2000  800 emissions 7100  11001800  2000 ???

7. Some key contributions Behaviour of nutrients in estuarine and coastal systems (N – P – Si ) Direct measurement / modeling of CO 2 exchange at the sea surface

8. Evaluation of C fluxes in estuaries, coastal zones and the continental shelf, in the water column and in the sediments

9. Evaluation of organic carbon fluxes along the continental margin and in the Southern ocean

10. Role of siliceous and calcareous organisms Assessment of iron fertilisation in the Southern ocean Development of new tools: databases, indicators, models

11. At the individual level: International Scientific Committees and Research Institutes, etc. At the institutional level: the role of MUMM at the interface between science and the society. Belgian marine research: a long tradition of collaboration between scientists and policy preparing fora