Phytoplankton are microscopic marine plants that perform photosynthesis. They are responsible for removing the majority of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to the ocean. Phytoplankton prefer cooler water temperatures. With the increasing ocean temperatures, phytoplankton are traveling to cooler areas in the ocean. Phytoplankton are important to the marine food web. Many marine primary consumers rely on phytoplankton. Since phytoplankton remove more than half of the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and perform photosynthesis then they are responsible for releasing around 60%-70% of what essential element back into the atmosphere?

The phytoplankton and the microscopic marine plants are using the process of photosynthesis in order to produce energy for them. In order for this process to take place, two things are needed, sunlight and carbon dioxide. The consumed carbon dioxide is not totally used, but there's some waste from it. The waste is actually the oxygen. The oxygen is released and it gets back into the atmosphere. This gas is crucial for the survival of the living organisms on the planet, especially the animals, so it is extremely import that the environment of the phytoplankton and the microscopic marine plants is not destroyed, as they are the ones that release the biggest amount of oxygen into the atmosphere.