Scientists are still figuring out what the oceans are going to look like as they become more acidic due to the absorption of carbon dioxide. A couple of interesting papers digging into this are out this week.
John Guinotte of Bellevue’s Marine Conservation Biology Institute was co-author on this piece in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. It’s a very nice overview and summing up of what’s known at this point about the effects of ocean acidification.
It looks at seagrasses, coral reefs, snails, plankton, fish and other marine dwellers. It ends with a call to arms to slow the burning of fossil fuels. Said Guinotte in a statement:
“The risk of irreversible ecosystem changes due to ocean acidification should enlighten the ongoing CO2 emissions debate and make it clear that the human dependence on fossil fuels must end quickly.”
And for some in-the-field research check out this piece in Nature looking at corals growing near undersea volcanic vents, which simulates the conditions caused by higher CO2.