Washington State Creates Panel to Address Ocean Acidification

Ocean acidification is a symptom of climate change and the rate of ocean acidification has increased alongside the general disrespect of the environment modern society has, fortunately there are smart people looking into this issue. In Washington State the effects of ocean acidification are already evident so they have created a panel of scientists and policy experts to tackle the complexity of ocean acidification.

This is the first such panel in the world and let’s hope that it inspires more regions to begin looking into the depths of the seas.

Ocean acidification also has implications for the broader marine environment. Many calci- fiers provide habitat, shelter, and/or food for various plants and animals. For example, rockfish and sharks rely on habitat created by deepwater corals off the Washington coast. Pteropods, the delicate free-swimming snails eaten by seabirds, whales, and fish (especially Alaska pink salmon), can experience shell dissolution and grow more slowly in acidified waters (Figure S-1). Some species of copepods, the small crustaceans eaten by juvenile herring and salmon, experience similar problems with growth. Impacts on species like pteropods and copepods are a significant concern because of their ability to affect entire marine food webs.

Find out more at the panel’s website.
Via Reddit.