There is plenty of calcium present in salt water! Removing shells does not have the effect the dive master worried about. 

John Timmerman 

Wilmington, North Carolina

-------------- Original message from Marcus Coltro <[log in to unmask]>: --------------


> That sounds like the dive master in Egypt who explained me why I should not
> remove shells from the
> sea:
>
> If I did so, it would change the PH on the water!
>
> Marcus
>
>
>
> I couldn't resist this one. Shell collecting as a way of sequestering
> carbon and thus reducing global warming! Scientific illiteracy is a
> major problem nowadays.
> A standard container weighs between 10 and 20 tons. To crane it onto a
> ship and move it from the Philippines to the USA consumes a considerable
> amount of marine diesel. To then truck it to the distribution center
> requires many further gallons of regular diesel. To then deliver the
> packet of shells to your home tak es some regular gasoline. Let's not
> mention manufacturing and transporting the packing materials (the bubble
> wrap, the box etc.) or the resources used by the original fishermen.
> That shell you buy for your collection is dragging behind it a ton of
> carbon dioxide that would have remained tied up in hydrocarbons lurking
> deep underground if you hadn't placed your order in the first place.
> Cheez. What do they teach people nowadays?
>
> Paul Callomon
>
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