Bigelow Senior Research Scientist Dr. Barney Balch will lead a discussion about ocean acidification after screening the 20-minute Natural Resources Defense Council film Acid Test: The Global Challenge of Ocean Acidification at the Laboratory’s Café Scientifique gathering at 6:00 p.m. on July 6 in the Opera House, 86 Townsend Avenue in Boothbay Harbor.
“It’s predicted that the acidity of the ocean is going to increase by about one and half times by the end of this century. This is going to impact the ability of many marine organisms to make their protective shells,” said Balch. “It’s too soon to tell whether this is a direct result of increased levels of carbon dioxide, but it’s clear that ocean acidification has the potential to profoundly change ocean ecosystems.”
Balch received a Bachelor’s degree in biology from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in biological oceanography from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego. Besides his work on ocean acidification, his research includes biocalcification, bio-optics, ocean color algorithms for satellite remote sensing, and algal viruses.
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Tatiana Brailovskaya, Bangor Daily News, Full article.
