Ocean Acidification

Would you like to know about on-going and planned ocean acidification research activities? Would you like to promote others to work with you?

One of the goals of the Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre (OA-ICC) is to promote collaborative research projects, such as joint experiments and access to research facilities. To this end, the OA-ICC is looking to compile a list of ongoing and planned research projects on ocean acidification where there is a possibility for other researchers to participate. The list will be shared online to promote information exchange and collaboration.

To contribute to this effort, please send an email including the information below to:

Lina Hansson & Marine Lebrec, OA-ICC Project Office, IAEA Environment laboratories (oaicc(at)iaea.org)

Information needed:

• location
• contact (name, institute, email)
• brief research focus
• potential collaborator focus
• start date
• end date
• web link (if available)

Continue reading ‘Help share information and collaborate on ocean acidification research!’

We are the 2018-2019 UCLA Undergraduate Research Team for Ocean Acidification in the Santa Monica Bay. Alongside the Bay Foundation and the Institute of Environmental Science (IoES) our team is working to continue this multi-year research project on kelp and sea grass. We aim to understand the effects of ocean acidification on these key underwater biomes and explore the future persistence of these ecosystem.

Continue reading ‘Turning the tides on ocean acidification’

Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). Credit: NOAA

This project began in 2018 and will end in 2021

We are integrating multiple areas of research on the impacts of ocean acidification (OA) and the influence of “tipping points” (i.e., regime shifts) on Alaska’s fisheries, particularly chum salmon in the Gulf of Alaska. We will develop indicators based on a range of information, from fish prices to harvest volume and average fish size. The project will use results from a bio-economic model to create decision tools and OA fisheries adaptation strategies for salmon managers to minimize the risk of OA for salmon populations and those who depend on them.

Why We Care

Alaska is expected to experience ocean acidification faster than any other coastal waters in the United States, primarily due to its colder water which absorbs more carbon dioxide than warmer waters. With seafood industry job incomes over $1.5 billion annually and communities that rely on healthy oceans for subsistence, nutrition, and culture, increased ocean acidification is expected to have significant implications in Alaska. For Alaskans dependent on salmon, it is critical to understand how salmon may fare in a higher-acidity environment, and the cultural and economic implications of their response. There is a potential for environmental thresholds, which, once crossed are difficult if not impossible to reverse. Further, there is a need to better understand the ramifications for humans from these effects and the implications of how human society responds.

Continue reading ‘Informing adaptation decisions for Alaska’s salmon fisheries’

Deadline: 4 March 2019

Description: The NOAA/OAR/Ocean Acidification Program (OAP) is soliciting proposals for studies investigating ocean acidification monitoring strategies that would offer an observing system design that best characterizes and tracks ocean acidification within U.S. Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) optimized towards characterizing the conditions most relevant to ecologically and economically important marine species. Funding is contingent upon the availability of Federal appropriations. It is anticipated that projects funded under this announcement will have a September 1, 2019 start date.

Total funding for this research: Applicants should submit proposals not to exceed $500,000 per year for projects generally 2-3 years in duration, with a total multi-year budget not to exceed $1,500,000 (Option 1: $350,000 per year for two years; Option 2: Up to $500,000 per year for three years). Should funds become available for this program, up to approximately $2,000,000 may be available in Fiscal Year 2019 for the first year of about 2-5 projects with expected start dates of September 1, 2019. Funding for this program is contingent upon availability of funds, which may not have been appropriated at the time of this announcement. While projects are expected to be 2-3 years in scope, funding may be spread over 4 federal fiscal years depending on how project timelines align with federal budgets. For proposals which involve a Regional Association of the Integrated Ocean Observing System, NOAA IOOS will contribute additional funding to cover RA costs to participate (up to 10% of the total project budget per year, over and above the OAP funding thresholds described above).

Continue reading ‘Request for proposals: regional ocean acidification observing optimization study’

The IAEA is launching a new 4-year Coordinated Research Project (CRP) starting in 2019 to advance understanding on the effects of ocean acidification on seafood around the world and to explore adaptation strategies for aquaculture and seafood industries.

Intensive fossil-fuel burning and deforestation over the last two centuries has increased atmospheric carbon dioxide by 50 % above pre-industrial values. The global ocean currently absorbs roughly one third of this anthropogenic carbon dioxide, and its carbonate chemistry is fundamentally altered in the process. By doing so, the ocean undergoes a decrease in pH, referred to as ocean acidification.

Ocean acidification has been recognized as a major threat to marine ecosystems. Concern about the impacts of ocean acidification on socioeconomically important seafood is increasing world-wide, and ocean acidification is now an integral part of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Furthermore, recent studies have demonstrated that ocean acidification may also impact the quality of seafood, and there is a growing body of literature documenting the biological response of seafood to ocean acidification. Long-term studies are essential to track the effects of ocean acidification, but there are few of these studies. Furthermore, data on economically and socially important seafood in developing countries are still largely lacking.

Continue reading ‘NEW CRP: Evaluating the impacts of ocean acidification on seafood – a global approach (K41018)’