Hello Friends,

In this article we will aim to see the true effects that ocean acidification has on wildlife. The problem as described in the last article was quite simple: the ocean uptake of CO₂ results in a lowering of pH in the oceans. This ?acidification? process has occurred to a point whereby acidity in the oceans has increased by 30% since the industrial revolution. But, the true shock regarding this problem may come when we take a look at the ecological impacts of this problem.

The ecological problem lies in the chemical reaction which causes ocean acidification. It is presented below:

CO2+H2O+CO3 – 2HCO3

As can be seen here the ?intake? of CO2 involves the reaction of CO2 with water and carbonate ion. This results in the production of carbonic acid. The problem is that not only this increases the acidity of the ocean, but also converts carbonate to this HCO3. Carbonate ions are required by many marine animals in the production of their shells which are made of calcium carbonate. Coral, shellfish, crabs and lobsters among other shell building or scavenging marine life would be at a loss because of the decrease in available carbonate to build or find shells.

In a report by the NOAA, the following is stated regarding coral specifically which is one of the hardest hit species by this problem: ?In a recent paper, coral biologists reported that ocean acidification could compromise the successful fertilization, larval settlement and survivorship of Elkhorn coral, an endangered species. These research results suggest that ocean acidification could severely impact the ability of coral reefs to recover from disturbance?. (NOAA, 2014).

Coral reefs are very important because they are also a habitat for other marine animals. The impacts of their loss would be enormous. Furthermore, in recent years there has been a near total collapse of the lobster and shellfish populations in many areas on the west coast of USA and Canada. This industry in the US alone is worth $100 million a year and perhaps more in Canada. Many people depend on this industry for income. However, due to the problem of ocean acidification this industry is suffering. The impacts also extend to oysters, clams, sea urchins, shallow water corals, deep sea corals, and calcareous plankton. With so many marine species at risk, it comes as no surprise that now the entire food chains are at risk. With more than a billion people worldwide dependant on food from the oceans, this could have severe impacts on humanity. So, the magnitude of the CO2 problem extends beyond the global warming into this equally disturbing phenomena. 

For more info please see NOAA reference link: http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/co2/story/What+is+Ocean+Acidification%3F

Photos show coral reef which are the most impacted and the shells which are the heart of the problem.

Photo credits: wikipedia.org and dreamstime.org