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Ocean Acidification: Consequences on Flora and Fauna

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Ocean Acidification: Consequences on Flora and Fauna
Chelsea Zeller Dr. Andre Droxler ESCI 107 10 December 2012 Ocean Acidification: Consequences on Flora and Fauna The prosperity and health of our Earth is held within a delicate balance, a balance easily disrupted by any interference from natural and unnatural forces alike. The environment is currently in a state of gravely precarious instability pushed to this edge by careless human activity. The impacts within the atmosphere are evident – temperature changes, increased storm activity, and melting ice – but less obvious is how the upset balance of our Earth’s systems affects our oceans. While the oceans certainly play into the atmospheric changes we see, they are also experiencing serious consequences distinct from those on the surface. As CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere continue to increase, seawater chemistry is being seriously and detrimentally altered. In a process called ocean acidification, chemical reactions between absorbed carbon dioxide and H2O occur that reduce the pH of seawater, as well as decrease carbonate ion concentration and saturation states of calcium carbonate minerals (“Ocean Acidification,” PMEL). This calcium carbonate is necessary for the formation of skeletons and shells of many marine organisms. Therefore, acidification is damaging, and likely killing, large amounts of sea life (Horsey, 2012). The consequences of destroying these organisms that serve as a base for marine ecosystems will have expansive impacts that go far beyond harming a few species. To understand how CO2 affects the chemical balance in the ocean, it’s necessary to first note the historical changes in CO2, and the consequent decrease in seawater pH. While carbon dioxide is naturally present in the atmosphere as part of the Earth’s carbon cycle (the circulation of carbon among the atmosphere, oceans, soil, plants and animals), the current levels and the

Zeller

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sustained increase in concentration far surpass their expected natural fluctuation (EPA, 2012).


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