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Water from the Global Conveyor Belt Thousands of years ago around Greenland in the North Atlantic, gigantic icebergs began to melt as the result of a dramatic climate change. As the ice melted, the water quickly sank to the bottom of the ocean to depths exceeding 10,000 feet. As it sank it did not mix significantly with the surrounding ocean water because of a marked difference in temperature and salinity. Thus a huge volume of water, essentially the remnants of giant icebergs and thus virtually free of pathogens and chemicals was established and ready to begin a long journey. Deep undersea currents travel continually around the globe. These currents referred to as the “Global Conveyor Belt” move very slowly (a complete circumvention can take thousands of years)and the water moving in them rarely nears the surface. On the journey the water comes in contact with many undersea conditions and volcanic events and as a result picks up significant levels of nutrients and minerals. This phenomenon results in water that arrives in Hawaii (the extreme end of the “Global Conveyor Belt) that is very old, very cold and very rich in nutrients and minerals.
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