On Aug. 12, 2010, Dr. Richard Feely, Ph.D., of NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Lab delivered a slideshow presentation to the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission that should be interesting to those who want a more detailed look at the data and science behind ocean acidification. You can find the lecture at here or visit AlaskaFisheries.org's "Learn" page. NOTE: (In places on the website, Dr. Feely's name is misspelled. Here is a link to his information.
The White House Council on Environmental Quality today released the Final Recommendations of the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force, whose 24 senior-level officials spent the last year developing recommendations "to enhance our ability to maintain healthy, resilient, and sustainable ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes resources for the benefit of present and future generations." The report acknowledges ocean acidification as posing "serious threats" to ecosystems and coastal communities, and notes that ocean acidification is "expected to have significant and largely...
Scientists with NOAA and the University of Washington's Applied Physics Lab are adding more ocean acidification monitoring equipment off the coast of the Olympic Peninsula near LaPush, Wa, just douth of the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the gateway to Puget Sound. A recently release study showed pH levels in Puget Sound and Hood Canal that are sharply lower than normal -- that is, more acidic. Levels have been found as low as 7.4. Normal is around 8.1. While, the increased acidity has been linked to a combination of carbon dioxide emitted by industries, power plants and...
Scientist reviewing data collected in the winter and summer of 2008 have determined that Hood Canal and Puget Sound's main basin are becoming more acidic. The study, conducted by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory and School of Oceanography, along with the Washington State Department of Ecology and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, laid blame for much of the increasing acidification and corrosiveness of the waters on carbon dioxide absorption. They warn that the changing conditions could...
Recent research suggests ocean acidification may disrupt the ability of some species of fish to detect smells that allow them to avoid danger. In fact, some reef-dwelling species (clownfish and damselfish) tested under lab conditions resembling the acidity expected in the ocean by 2100 actually swam toward the scents of their natural predators. A control group swam the other way. Such olfactory disruption could be disastrous if fish species are unable to adapt and avoid real predators.
"At 850 ppm CO2, the ability to sense predators was completely impaired," the authors of a study...
OneWorld.net has web-published a thought-provoking article in its "GuidesWeek" section pointing out that despite recent attention ocean acidification remains "the silent scream of environmental protest." The lack of attention, the article notes, "is reflected in its negligible presence in international environmental policy." However, ocean acidification is now considered a "cross-cutting" issue in the development of the 5th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) due in 2014. According to the article, "cross-...
When Sen. Mark Begich, D-AK, rose to speak on the floor of the Senate on June 30, he said he hadn't planned to address his colleagues, adding, tongue in cheek, that his staff was probably nervous that he was speaking "without their knowledge."
Countering claims to the contrary made by some in the Republican leadership, Begich said steps being taken by the government to address the ongoing tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico represented a fully bipartisan effort. Then, turning to the Senate itself, he said he was sure the body was capable of doing more than one thing at a time, and...
The National Research Council, part of the National Academy of Sciences, has published a new book, "Ocean Acidification: A National Strategy to Meet the Challenges of a Changing Ocean," which recognizes the growing threat carbon dioxide poses to the pH levels of the world's oceans, and by extension, to the fish resources on which so much of the world's population depends. (Summary). The book notes that over the past 200 years the oceans have absorbed about one-third of all man-made CO2 emissions resulting from burning fossil fuels, cement manufacture, and changes in the way...
Alan Parks, AMCC's Homer Outreach Coordinator, was interviewed June 18 on KDGL-AM 670 public radio in Dillingham, Alaska, about the threat to Alaska's fisheries posed by ocean acidification. You can hear the entire interview here. Parks noted that about 30 percent of the daily anthropogenic emissions of CO2 is absorbed by the oceans. That's about 22 million tons a day worldwide. The U.S. is the largest emitter of CO2 per capita, Parks stated, though in terms of total CO2 emissions, China has surpassed the U.S. Parks also noted that arctic regions are most susceptible to the impact...
Wonderfully funny video by Todd Chance appeared recently on You Tube slamming BP and boardroom indecision. It's worth a look, if just to ease the pain of the oil spill for a moment. See it here.
