[May Free Report] Ocean Acidificationby Shreya Kaushik | 10-07-2023 19:43 |
|---|
 OUR OCEANS ARE IN DANGER!Thousands and thousands of meters away, deep in the ocean, there lies another world full of mysteries of beautiful creatures. While we may not understand the importance of the ocean due to our far reach. They are one of the important components of our survival as they regulate the environment, clean our coasts, and now, also absorb the contaminants on the land and in the air for us to breathe clean air and to live on a clean land. But, since the time the industrial revolution started, the environment has seen many adverse effects besides the advantages of development and one of them being an increase in the amount of carbon emissions leading to ocean acidification. Ocean acidification refers to the decrease in the pH level in seawater due to the excessive absorption of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Every day 22 million tons of carbon dioxide and 30% in total is absorbed by the ocean. The absorption of this carbon dioxide was initially not known to affect the ecosystem but when its concentration started to increase in several years. It started to affect the aquatic ecosystem. But, you must be wondering how? Isn¡¯t it good that the ocean is absorbing carbon dioxide? When an excessive amount of carbon dioxide is absorbed into the ocean, it reacts with water to form carbonic acid which further breaks down into hydrogen ions and bicarbonate ions. When it releases hydrogen ions, it makes the composition of the water more acidic. It is estimated that since the industrial revolution, the ocean has become 30% more acidic than ever. The pH level of the ocean currently on average is 8.1, even a small change in the pH means a higher increase or decrease in acid or base level in the ocean. Research shows that by 2100, the ocean's pH could drop to around 7.8, making it 150% more acidic. Apart from the carbon emissions due to human activities, several other factors also contribute to ocean acidification. When sea organisms die, from the collection of their remains corals are formed which releases calcium in the water as they contain carbon. Thus, contributing adversely to the acidity of the water. Moreover, since the ocean contains several compounds, there are numerous chemical reactions that keep happening on a regular basis leading sometimes to acidic contributions to the water. The improper disposal of waste in the seacoast causes water pollution and improper waste management on land release several greenhouse gasses in the air which also contributes to the issue. For us humans, the impact might be slight and must be more on the economic side, but for those whose survival depends on the ocean, it is a disaster. Several marine organisms such as oysters and corals make shells using molecules in the water through a calcification process. Now, since the concentration of the carbonate ions decreases in the water, they have to work harder to build their shells which in return results in lower energy levels in the collection of food, reproduction, and other life-sustaining activities leading to death or very soon extinction. Additionally, when the oyster larvae form shells due to higher growth in the first 48 hours of their life, due to high acidity, their shells are not formed leading to their death eventually. Hence, it is estimated that oysters will be growing less shells by 10 percent by the end of this century. Furthermore, corals and zooplanktons are the food of several big marine creatures but due to the increasing amount of acidity in the ocean, they start to dissolve leading to obstruction in the food web and ultimately leading to the death of several marine species due to starvation. Additionally, it also affects the large mass of the human population whose lives depend on seafood. The shortage of seafood due to ocean acidification may also lead to food scarcity. Therefore, we need to take appropriate action as soon as possible. To make sure that the ocean continues to live with its mystery and beauty and continues to help us in regulating the environment. We need to implement technologies such as carbon capture in order to remove carbon emissions, switch to renewable energy to cut off the carbon emissions by fossil fuels and invest time and energy in research in order to build more effective solutions. So, what are you waiting for? Let's take some small actions on a small scale to save our oceans. Resources used: [1]https://coastadapt.com.au/ocean-acidification-and-its-effects#:~:text=gif,form%20their%20 shells%20and%20 skeletons. [2]https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-ocean-acidification.php [3]https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/co2-and-ocean-acidification#:~:text=The%20most%20 effective%20way%20to,the%20hard%20to%20 marine%20 ecosystems. [4]https://www.epa.gov/ocean-acidification/effects-ocean-and-coastal-acidification-ecosystems [5]https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/quick-questions/what-causes-ocean-acidification.html#:~:text=Ocean%20 acidification%20is%20 mainly%20 caused,being%20 absorbed%20by%20the%20ocean. [6]https://byjusexamprep.com/upsc-exam/ocean-acidification#:~:text=Ocean%20 acidification%20is%20the%20 gradual,are%20 released%20into%20the%20ocean. [7]https://bg.copernicus.org/preprints/bg-2009-6/ |
