Unprecedented Rate and Scale of Ocean Acidification Found in the Arctic

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Acidification of the Arctic Ocean is occurring faster than projected according to new findings published in the journal PLOS ONE.  The increase in rate is being blamed on rapidly melting sea ice, a process that may have important consequences for health of the Arctic ecosystem.

Ocean acidification is the process by which pH levels of seawater decrease due to greater amounts of carbon dioxide being absorbed by the oceans from the atmosphere.  Currently oceans absorb about one-fourth of the greenhouse gas.  Lower pH levels make water more acidic and lab studies have shown that more acidic water decrease calcification rates in many calcifying organisms, reducing their ability to build shells or skeletons.  These changes, in species ranging from corals to shrimp, have the potential to impact species up and down the food web.

The team of federal and university researchers found that the decline of sea ice in the Arctic summer has important consequences for the surface layer of the Arctic Ocean.  As sea ice cover recedes to record lows, as it did late in the summer of 2012, the seawater beneath is exposed to carbon dioxide, which is the main driver of ocean acidification.

In addition, the freshwater melted from sea ice dilutes the seawater, lowering pH levels and reducing the concentrations of calcium and carbonate, which are the constituents, or building blocks, of the mineral aragonite. Aragonite and other carbonate minerals make up the hard part of many marine micro-organisms’ skeletons and shells. The lowering of calcium and carbonate concentrations may impact the growth of organisms that many species rely on for food.

The new research shows that acidification in surface waters of the Arctic Ocean is rapidly expanding into areas that were previously isolated from contact with the atmosphere due to the former widespread ice cover.

“A remarkable 20 percent of the Canadian Basin has become more corrosive to carbonate minerals in an unprecedented short period of time.  Nowhere on Earth have we documented such large scale, rapid ocean acidification” according to lead researcher and ocean acidification project chief, U.S. Geological Survey oceanographer Lisa Robbins.

Globally, Earth’s ocean surface is becoming acidified due to absorption of man-made carbon dioxide. Ocean acidification models show that with increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide, the Arctic Ocean will have crucially low concentrations of dissolved carbonate minerals, such as aragonite, in the next decade.

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Voyage to study effects of ocean acidification off U.S. West Coast

Scientists aboard the survey ship Fairweather will travel along the U.S. West Coast to study ocean acidification. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration / July 25, 2013)

A team of scientists is setting out on a research expedition along the U.S. West Coast to study ocean acidification, the greenhouse gas-driven change in the chemistry of seawater that has been called climate change’s “evil twin.”

Chemists and biologists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will board the survey ship Fairweather next week, sailing from Canada to Mexico to collect samples of water, algae and plankton, officials said Thursday. The goal of the monthlong voyage is to better understand how marine ecosystems are responding to water that is becoming more acidic as a result of the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

“We will for the first time not only study the chemistry of acidification but also study at the same time the biological impacts,” Richard Feely, an oceanographer with NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Research Laboratory, told reporters in a telephone briefing.

Oceans have absorbed about 25% of the greenhouse gases that have accumulated in the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels, buffering some of the effects of climate change, Feely said. But that comes at a great cost to marine life because when carbon dioxide dissolves in seawater, it lowers itsthe water’s. The gradual change in chemistry poses a particular threat to shellfish such as oysters and clams that require alkaline water to build their protective shells.

The research expedition could shed light on whether acidification is harming pteropods, marine snails that are especially sensitive to changing acidity and are a key food source for fish, birds and whales. Scientists also want to know whether acidification is making harmful algae blooms more toxic to marine life. Increased toxicity has been shown in laboratory experiments but not observed the field.

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Ocean acidification – changing planet (video)

As higher amounts of carbon dioxide become absorbed by the oceans, some marine organisms are finding it’s a struggle to adjust.

The Changing Planet series explores the impact that climate change is having on our planet, and is provided by the National Science Foundation & NBC Learn.

Upcoming Event: Ocean Acidification

The Aquarium of the Pacific is hosting a talk on Ocean Acidification on May 25, 2011.  Below is the background and how to attend:

Implications for West Coast Ecosystems

Dr. Richard Feely

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the most important “greenhouse” gases in the atmosphere affecting the radiative heat balance of the Earth. As a direct result of the industrial and agricultural activities of humans over the past two centuries, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased by about 100 parts per million.

The atmospheric concentration of CO2 is now higher than experienced on Earth for at least the last 800,000 years and is expected to continue to rise. This will lead to significant temperature increases in the atmosphere and ocean by the end of this century. The global ocean is the largest natural long-term reservoir for this excess heat and CO2. It absorbs approximately 85 percent of the heat and 30 percent of the anthropogenic (human-sourced) carbon released into the atmosphere since the beginning of the industrial era.

Recent studies have demonstrated that both the temperature increases and the increased concentrations of CO2 in the ocean are causing significant changes in marine ecosystems. Many marine organisms are already affected by these anthropogenic stresses, which have led to coral bleaching and ocean acidification. Dr. Feely will discuss the present and future implications of increased temperature and CO2 levels as they relate to the health of our West Coast ocean ecosystems. He will also conduct a live demonstration of ocean acidification.

Dr. Feely is a senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. He also holds an affiliate full professor faculty position at the University of Washington’s School of Oceanography. His major research areas are carbon cycling in the ocean and ocean acidification processes. He received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of St. Thomas, in St Paul, Minnesota in 1969. He then went on to Texas A&M University where he received both a master’s of science degree in 1971 and a Ph.D. in 1974. Both of his post-graduate degrees were in chemical oceanography.

He is the co-chair of the U.S. CLIVAR (Climate Variability and Prediction)/CO2 Repeat Hydrography Program. He is also a member of the steering committee for the U.S. Ocean Carbon and Biochemistry Program. He is a member of the American Geophysical Union and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Dr. Feely has authored more than 200 refereed research publications. He was awarded the Department of Commerce Gold Award in 2006 for his pioneering research on ocean acidification. In 2007 he was elected to be a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union.

What Role Is Ocean Acidification Playing In Shellfish Losses?

No new Pacific oysters recruiting to oyster “beds.”
Shellfish larvae dying at commercial hatcheries.
Corrosive, acidified seawater measured for the first time off the Pacific Coast.

These and other observations, beginning in 2005 on the West Coast, prompted members of the shellfish industry to seek help from scientists to explore what is causing the shellfish losses, what role ocean acidification (OA) and other factors might be playing, and how to adapt to sustain West Coast shellfish resources.

Scientists, oceanographers, state and federal agency managers, and industry members participated in a workshop in 2010 to frame the problems, assess what information is available and what is needed, and to suggest future actions.

Photo credit: Richard Wilson, Willapa Bay, WA

The California Current Acidification Network (C-CAN) evolved from that meeting as participants and others interested in ocean acidification agreed on the need to facilitate and enhance communications, education and research collaborations among scientists, academia, agencies and industry.

The need for education is clear:, Increasing levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions into the atmosphere, a consequence of fossil fuel use, are causing immediate, measurable impacts on ocean chemistry.

About one-third of the carbon dioxide produced every day around the world is absorbed by the oceans. As CO2 reacts with seawater, it lowers seawater pH and reduces the concentration of carbonate ions, an essential component in the calcium carbonate that makes up the shells of shellfish and the skeletons of corals. Recently scientists have begun measuring changes in ocean chemistry and investigating the possible consequences to marine life, food webs and people. These studies find that ocean acidification is ongoing and may have significant biological impacts. The West Coast is vulnerable to the enhanced ocean acidification associated with seasonal upwelling, potentially causing serious impacts to ecosystems and some recreationally and commercially important shellfish.

Watch this video produced by NBC Learn for more information.

Ocean acidity: Small change, catastrophic results

Sometimes, seemingly small numbers can have remarkably big consequences. Miss a single free throw, and your team loses the championship. The economy slows by few percent, and millions of Americans are out of work. Your temperature rises by a degree or two, and you are down and out with a fever.

Nowhere, however, are the big consequences of little numbers becoming clearer than in the health of our oceans. There, a chemical shift of just 0.1 that’s right, just one-tenth of a point – is already causing “ocean acidification,” a massive, fundamental change that has enormous implications for marine life.

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