The Canary Current is a potential hotspot for climate change impacts on the oceans where 63 million people depend upon marine resources for national economies and livelihoods. Their unique vulnerability highlights the key roles of climate services and capacity building in order to develop effective adaptation measures.
Continue reading ‘Expanding ocean observation and climate services to build resilience in West African fisheries’Posts Tagged 'policy'
Expanding ocean observation and climate services to build resilience in West African fisheries
Published 6 September 2021 Science ClosedTags: fisheries, mitigation, North Atlantic, policy, socio-economy
A review of sustainability concepts in marine spatial planning and the potential to supporting the UN sustainable development goal 14
Published 3 September 2021 Science ClosedTags: policy, review
Ecosystems all over the world are under increasing pressure from human uses. The UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 (UN SDG 14) seeks to ensure sustainability below water by 2020; however, the ongoing biodiversity loss and habitat deterioration challenge the achievement of this goal. Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) is a developing practice with a similar objective to the UN SDG 14, albeit research shows that most MSP cases prioritize economic objectives above environmental objectives. This paper presents an assessment of how MSP can contribute to achieving the UN SDG 14. Results are presented in three steps. First, a representative definition of MSP is presented. Secondly, activities that can be addressed through MSP are laid out. Lastly, results are used to assess how MSP can contribute to the achievement of the UN SDG 14 targets and indicators. This assessment shows great potential for MSP to play a role in the achievement of the UN SDG 14.
Continue reading ‘A review of sustainability concepts in marine spatial planning and the potential to supporting the UN sustainable development goal 14’Climate change effects on North American fish and fisheries to inform adaptation strategies.
Published 24 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: biological response, fish, fisheries, North Atlantic, North Pacific, policy, review
Climate change is a global persistent threat to fish and fish habitats throughout North America. Climate-induced modification of environmental regimes, including changes in streamflow, water temperature, salinity, storm surges, and habitat connectivity can change fish physiology, disrupt spawning cues, cause fish extinctions and invasions, and alter fish community structure. Reducing greenhouse emissions remains the primary mechanism to slow the pace of climate change, but local and regional management agencies and stakeholders have developed an arsenal of adaptation strategies to help partially mitigate the effects of climate change on fish. We summarise common stressors posed by climate change in North America, including (1) increased water temperature, (2) changes in precipitation, (3) sea level rise, and (4) ocean acidification, and present potential adaptation strategies that fishery professionals may apply to help vulnerable fish and fisheries cope with a changing climate. Although our adaptation strategies are primarily from North America, they have broader geographic applicability to fish and aquatic biota in other jurisdictions. These strategies provide opportunities for managers to mitigate the effects of climate change on fish and fish habitat while needed global policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions emerge, which may offer more lasting solutions.
Continue reading ‘Climate change effects on North American fish and fisheries to inform adaptation strategies.’Monitoring ocean acidification within State Borders: lessons from Washington State (USA)
Published 18 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: chemistry, field, laboratory, North Pacific, policy
The Washington State Department of Ecology conducted a large-scale ocean acidification (OA) study in greater Puget Sound to: (1) produce a marine carbon dioxide (CO2) system dataset capable of distinguishing between long-term anthropogenic changes and natural variability, (2) characterize how rivers and freshwater drive OA conditions in the region, and (3) understand the relative influence of cumulative anthropogenic forcing on regional OA conditions. Marine CO2 system data were collected monthly at 20 stations between October 2018 and February 2020. While additional data are still needed, the climate-level data collected thus far have uncovered novel insights into spatiotemporal distributions of and variability in the regional marine CO2 system, especially at low salinities in shallow, river-forced shelf regions. The data provide a strong foundation with which to continue monitoring OA conditions across the region. More importantly, this work represents the first successful long-term OA monitoring program undertaken at the state-level by a regulatory agency. Therefore, we offer the work described herein as a blueprint to help state and local scientists and environmental and natural resource managers develop, implement, and conduct long-term OA monitoring programs and studies in their own contexts and jurisdictions.
Continue reading ‘Monitoring ocean acidification within State Borders: lessons from Washington State (USA)’International and domestic leadership by U.S. States on ocean acidification
Published 18 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: policy
A method for studying acidification and eutrophication potentials of a residential neighbourhood
Published 12 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: North Pacific, policy, socio-economy
Acidification and eutrophication are two environmental impacts that have a significant effect on air pollution and human health. The quantitative analysis of these two impacts remains hitherto unknown at the scale of new neighbourhoods. The main purpose of this research is to evaluate, analysis and compare the acidification and eutrophication potentials of one neighbourhood initially located in Belgium. To perform this comparison, the same neighbourhood design is applied to in 150 countries, but four parameters are adapted to each country: energy mix, local climate, building materials, and occupants’ mobility. In addition, this research evaluates the induced environmental costs of the neighbourhood over 100 years and examines the impact of the photovoltaic panel on these environmental impacts. This research, extended to the scale of several nations, will enable new researchers, and especially policy-makers, to measure the effectiveness of sustainable neighbourhoods. Eutrophication and acidification potentials were assessed under different phases (construction, use, renovation, and demolition), with Pleiades ACV software. Among the four local parameters (energy mix, local materials, climate, and transport, the energy mix has the most significant effect on the two studied environmental impacts. The results show that 72 %, and 65% of acidification, and eutrophication potentials are produced during the operational phase of the neighbourhood. In the case of sustainable neighbourhoods, the acidification potential is 22.1% higher in the 10 top Low incomes countries than the 10 top High-income countries. At the neighbourhood scale the main eutrophication potential component is water (34.2%), while, the main source of acidification potential is electricity production (45.1%)
Continue reading ‘A method for studying acidification and eutrophication potentials of a residential neighbourhood’Opportunities for U.S. State Governments and in-region partners to address ocean acidification through management and policy frameworks
Published 10 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: policy
Increasing OA, combined with other stressors like warming and loss of oxygen, threatens marine species and ecosystems, including those that sustain jobs and support coastal economies. For the last 10 years, U.S. coastal states have played a key role in responding to OA specifically. In 2019, OA practitioners from the U.S. east and west coasts assembled for a multi-day conference focused on sharing and documenting advances in OA collaborations, governance and management strategies. Since that time, conference attendees, supported by conference organizer the International Alliance to Combat Ocean Acidification, have worked to distill the lessons learned and to synthesize collective experiences. To assist governments, agencies, and organizations in addressing OA, this paper describes state-level efforts to develop and implement OA actions within policy and management frameworks. We outline pathways to action and illustrate approaches that link OA with climate policy and environmental management.
Continue reading ‘Opportunities for U.S. State Governments and in-region partners to address ocean acidification through management and policy frameworks’Sustainable management of the coastal water pH of Pulau Tuba using the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) method
Published 5 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: chemistry, field, Indian, methods, modeling, policy, regionalmodeling, socio-economy
Ocean acidification can be managed and monitored effectively through the application of spatial interpolation methods. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the precision of the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) interpolation method to estimate and map the coastal water pH for the sustainability of Pulau Tuba, Langkawi, Kedah. About 30 sampling points have been set up during two sampling activities in November 2018. The pH meter has been calibrated and lowered to 1 meter below the water surface to measure the reading of pH. The development of the spatial model was developed using the spatial analyst tool available in ArcGIS Software. Several types of statistical analyses were carried out to compare the observed and predicted value of pH. such as correlation analysis, regression analysis, and error analysis. Accuracy assessment was conducted later after the transformation of a spatial model into a surface map. The study found that the IDW interpolation method successfully interpolated the pH readings. The result showed that there is a strong positive correlation between the observed and predicted values. For error analysis, Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) were recorded at 0.033 and 0.044, respectively. After the transformation of the spatial model to the surface map, the accuracy of the map is recorded at 81.25%. The study also outlines the sustainable mechanisms and opportunities for the government to implement in combatting the ocean acidification processes. The map produced can be used for social and economic development and the protection of biodiversity for the coastal water of Pulau Tuba.
Continue reading ‘Sustainable management of the coastal water pH of Pulau Tuba using the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) method’Understanding and advancing natural resource management in the context of changing ocean conditions
Published 3 August 2021 Science ClosedTags: education, methods, North Atlantic, policy, socio-economy
Changing ocean conditions, such as ocean acidification, hypoxia, and ocean warming, are impacting marine ecosystems and posing a variety of immediate and future challenges for natural resource managers and affiliated industries. In order to successfully facilitate adaptation and mitigation responses to changing ocean conditions, research efforts and synthesis products should be developed in collaboration with resource managers and decision makers. Using interviews and surveys, we sought to advance collaborative science approaches by identifying the most pressing concerns, barriers, and research and monitoring needs of natural resource managers in Washington State, USA, where marine waters are particularly vulnerable to changing ocean conditions. Survey participants indicated that they are most concerned by ocean acidification, followed by water temperature and hypoxia. Our findings reveal a desire to prioritize laboratory and in situ studies to identify survival thresholds of ecologically or commercially important organisms, specifically zooplankton, fish, Dungeness crab, and conditions that promote harmful algal blooms. Scientific literature and in-person workshops and meetings were the preferred way for survey participants to learn about new science and affiliated results. Our findings highlight a need for continued and expanded monitoring and research efforts, the development of interpretive science products for resource managers, and enhanced communication between entities before information on changing ocean conditions can be effectively incorporated into resource management and policy decisions.
Continue reading ‘Understanding and advancing natural resource management in the context of changing ocean conditions’Evaluating the impact of climate and demographic variation on future prospects for fish stocks: an application for northern rock sole in Alaska
Published 28 July 2021 Science ClosedTags: Arctic, chemistry, field, fish, fisheries, modeling, morphology, mortality, policy, regionalmodeling, reproduction, socio-economy
Climate-enhanced stock assessment models represent potentially vital tools for managing living marine resources under climate change. We present a climate-enhanced stock assessment where environmental variables are integrated within a population dynamics model assessment of biomass, fishing mortality and recruitment that also accounts for process error in demographic parameters. Probability distributions for the impact of the associated environmental factors on recruitment and growth can either be obtained from Bayesian analyses that involve fitting the population dynamics model to the available data or from auxiliary analyses. The results of the assessment form the basis for the calculation of biological and economic target and limit reference points, and projections under alternative harvest strategies. The approach is applied to northern rock sole (Lepidopsetta polyxystra), an important component of the flatfish fisheries in the Eastern Bering Sea. The assessment involves fitting to data on catches, a survey index of abundance, fishery and survey age-compositions and survey weight-at-age, with the relationship between recruitment and cold pool extent and that between growth increment in weight and temperature integrated into the assessment. The projections also allow for an impact of ocean pH on expected recruitment based on auxiliary analyses. Several alternative models are explored to assess the consequences of different ways to model environmental impacts on population demography. The estimates of historical biomass, recruitment and fishing mortality for northern rock sole are not markedly impacted by including climate and environmental factors, but estimates of target and limit reference points are sensitive to whether and how environmental variables are included in stock assessments and projections.
Continue reading ‘Evaluating the impact of climate and demographic variation on future prospects for fish stocks: an application for northern rock sole in Alaska’Chapter 22 – Legal tools in combating marine pollution and mitigating the effects of acidification (1st edition)
Published 15 July 2021 Science ClosedTags: mitigation, policy
After almost three decades, too little progress has been achieved in protecting, preserving, and promoting the sustainable use of the ocean and its resources for the benefit of mankind. Many efforts, however, have been deployed within conferences, summits, and meetings with highly competent experts, such as scientists, diplomats, and international lawyers covering a wide range of fields. After all these years, the state of the marine environment is not improving as fast as it should be. The question to ask is why has so little progress been achieved? The answer belongs once more to the international community, as well as to national policymakers. They should take more forceful actions in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) contained in the 2030 Agenda.
Continue reading ‘Chapter 22 – Legal tools in combating marine pollution and mitigating the effects of acidification (1st edition)’Plastic and toxic chemical induced ocean acidification will cause a plankton crisis that will devastate humanity over the next 25 Years, unless we act now to stop the pollution
Published 22 June 2021 Newsletters and reports , Science ClosedTags: policy, review
Planktonic plants and animals at the base of the marine food chain make all life on Earth possible. Without them the atmosphere would be toxic from carbon dioxide, we would have no oxygen and there would be no whales, birds or fish in the oceans.
Over the last 70 years, more than 50% of all marine life has been lost from the world’s oceans, and it continues to decline at rate of 1% year on year. Atmospheric carbon dioxide causes ocean acidification, and a loss of marine plants and animals accelerates the process.
A small increase in acidity caused by carbon dioxide dissolves magnesium calcite and aragonite, forms of calcium carbonate upon which 50% of all marine life including plankton and coral reefs are composed. Over the next 25 years, the pH will continue to drop from pH8.04 to pH7.95, and an estimated 80% to 90% of all marine life will be lost from the oceans. Even if the world achieves net zero by 2045, atmospheric carbon dioxide will still exceed 500ppm and the oceans will still drop to pH 7.95.
Based on current climate change policy of carbon mitigation, we will not be able to stop the loss of most marine life, which includes fish and the food supply for 3 billion people. In addition, we lose the life support system for the planet. This decline has gone largely unnoticed because most of the plants and animals in the oceans are under 1 mm in size and they are not closely monitored. By way of an example: Prochlorococcus, a cyanobacteria responsible for making 20% of our oxygen, was only discovered in the 1985.
Ocean acidification and climate change cannot adequately describe the loss of marine life. 30% of the ocean have high nutrient (nitrate) concentrations but zero or only low plant growth. If it is not the lack of nutrients or trace nutrients, responsible for the loss of marine life, then this just leaves aquatic environmental pollution as the last plausible explanation. The impact of chemical and micro-plastic pollution on planktonic marine life has been almost completed ignored by the scientific community, and as such industry and governments have not been alerted to the impending threat to the oceans.
This is potentially a good news story, because the solution will be to eliminate pollution from plastic and toxic chemicals or develop green alternatives that do not harm to the environment or humans. We still need to reduce carbon from the burning of fossil fuels, but the priority over the next 25 years should be to protect the oceans, because all life on earth depends upon marine life in the world’s oceans.
Questions and answer on GOES Report.
Continue reading ‘Plastic and toxic chemical induced ocean acidification will cause a plankton crisis that will devastate humanity over the next 25 Years, unless we act now to stop the pollution’Taxing interacting externalities of ocean acidification, global warming, and eutrophication
Published 22 June 2021 Science ClosedTags: globalmodeling, modeling, policy, socio-economy
We model a stylized economy dependent on agriculture and fisheries to study optimal environmental policy in the face of interacting external effects of ocean acidification, global warming, and eutrophication. This allows us to capture some of the latest insights from research on ocean acidification. Using a static two-sector general equilibrium model we derive optimal rules for national taxes on 
emissions and agricultural run-off and show how they depend on both isolated and interacting damage effects. In addition, we derive a second-best rule for a tax on agricultural run-off of fertilizers for the realistic case that effective internalization of 
externalities is lacking. The results contribute to a better understanding of the social costs of ocean acidification in coastal economies when there is interaction with other environmental stressors.
Recommendations for Resource Managers:
- Marginal environmental damages from
emissions should be internalized by a tax on 
emissions that is high enough to not only reflect marginal damages from temperature increases, but also marginal damages from ocean acidification and the interaction of both with regional sources of acidification like nutrient run-off from agriculture. - In the absence of serious national policies that fully internalize externalities, a sufficiently high tax on regional nutrient run-off of fertilizers used in agricultural production can limit not only marginal environmental damages from nutrient run-off but also account for unregulated carbon emissions.
- Putting such regional policies in place that consider multiple important drivers of environmental change will be of particular importance for developing coastal economies that are likely to suffer the most from ocean acidification.
Physiology, niche characteristics and extreme events: current and future habitat suitability of a rhodolith-forming species in the Southwestern Atlantic
Published 18 June 2021 Science ClosedTags: algae, biological response, individualmodeling, laboratory, modeling, mortality, multiple factors, nutrients, performance, photosynthesis, physiology, policy, reproduction, South Atlantic, temperature
Highlights
- Global climate change and local stressors are the main threats to reef-building organisms and habitats they build, such as rhodolith beds.
- Through an experimental essay and ecological niche modelling, we were able to determine the environmental factors that determine the distribution and affect the physiology of an important rhodolith-forming species in the southwestern Atlantic.
- Our results raise the possibility of some rhodolith-forming species being resilient to future environmental change based on our current understanding of their distributions, a perspective that will need to be further explored by future studies.
- This information is helpful in informing policies for the conservation of priority areas, aiding the preservation of marine biodiversity in the South Atlantic.
Abstract
Given the ecological and biogeochemical importance of rhodolith beds, it is necessary to investigate how future environmental conditions will affect these organisms. We investigated the impacts of increased nutrient concentrations, acidification, and marine heatwaves on the performance of the rhodolith-forming species Lithothamnion crispatum in a short-term experiment, including the recovery of individuals after stressor removal. Furthermore, we developed an ecological niche model to establish which environmental conditions determine its current distribution along the Brazilian coast and to project responses to future climate scenarios. Although L. crispatum suffered a reduction in photosynthetic performance when exposed to stressors, they returned to pre-experiment values following the return of individuals to control conditions. The model showed that the most important variables in explaining the current distribution of L. crispatum on the Brazilian coast were maximum nitrate and temperature. In future ocean conditions, the model predicted a range expansion of habitat suitability for this species of approximately 58.5% under RCP 8.5. Physiological responses to experimental future environmental conditions corroborated model predictions of the expansion of this species’ habitat suitability in the future. This study, therefore, demonstrates the benefits of applying combined approaches to examine potential species responses to climate-change drivers from multiple angles.
Continue reading ‘Physiology, niche characteristics and extreme events: current and future habitat suitability of a rhodolith-forming species in the Southwestern Atlantic’Nonlinearity, irreversibility, and surprise – managing Atlantic cod under climate change
Published 9 June 2021 Science ClosedTags: biological response, fish, fisheries, individualmodeling, modeling, policy, socio-economy
Climate change is at the forefront of today’s global challenges with its potential to turn into a runaway process. Fishing pressure acts in concert and exacerbates the impacts of climate change. The North Atlantic Ocean is no exemption of the increasing anthropogenic stress with Atlantic cod, Gadus Morhua, one of its most prominent fish species, displaying the ocean’s state. Most Atlantic cod stocks have experienced high rates of fishing and biomass declines, leading to renovation of fishing regulations and the implementation of rebuilding strategies. Today, the cod stocks differ considerably in trends and commercial status with 8 stocks considered collapsed and 57 % of today’s landings supplied by one single stock, the North East Arctic cod. What drives the collapse and what drives the recovery of a stock? Elucidating drivers of Atlantic cod productivity at low abundance is inevitable for sustainably managing the species in its changing habitat. This thesis attempts a comprehensive study on climate change impacts by addressing rising ocean temperature (paper I-III), temperature variability (paper II), acidification (paper III) and uncertainty (of the biology and as risk in management under the precautionary approach [paper IV]). Individual and synergistic impacts of climate change are discussed with a particular focus on nonlinear dynamics, including the potential for Allee effects (paper I-III). Allee effects describe the decrease in per capita growth rate at small population size, which can hinder population recovery by reinforcing degradation. Such a shift in the underlying biology can be irreversible and demands proactive and precautionary management measures. Application of precautionary measures to protect the environment and manage risks in situations of high uncertainty is a central tenet of the “precautionary approach”, a guiding principle in fisheries management. The poor state of various commercial fish stocks worldwide stands in contrast to the precautionary approach and suggests a subordinate role of science in fisheries management. In paper IV, Canada’s fisheries policy and advisory process is contrasted with the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy in regard to the precautionary approach and the role of science, in order to identify policy and institutional constraints that have hindered sustainable, precautionary management practices. Drawing from insights on climate change driven productivity changes (paper I-III) and the importance of a policy and institutional framework that acknowledges these (paper IV), this thesis ends with suggestions for scientifically informed, precautionary and sustainable fisheries management practices that can speed up recovery and allow for a vital fishery in the future.
Continue reading ‘Nonlinearity, irreversibility, and surprise – managing Atlantic cod under climate change’Online-coupling of widely-ranged timescales to model coral reef development
Published 4 June 2021 Science ClosedTags: biological response, calcification, corals, individualmodeling, light, methods, modeling, morphology, mortality, multiple factors, photosynthesis, physiology, policy, temperature
Highlights
- A biophysical model framework for coral reef evolution is developed.
- The model can be used to predict the coral response to the environment via process-based relations.
- The model bridges the gap in timescales of processes from seconds to millennia.
- Model predictions are within the accuracy of climate projections.
- The model is an efficient tool for forecasting coral reef development to inform policy makers.
Abstract
The increasing pressure on Earth’s ecosystems due to climate change is becoming more and more evident and the impacts of climate change are especially visible on coral reefs. Understanding how climate change interacts with the physical environment of reefs to impact coral growth and reef development is critically important to predicting the persistence of reefs into the future. In this study, a biophysical model was developed including four environmental factors in a feedback loop with the coral’s biology: (1) light; (2) hydrodynamics; (3) temperature; and (4) pH. The submodels are online coupled, i.e. regularly exchanging information and feedbacks while the model runs. This ensures computational efficiency despite the widely-ranged timescales. The composed biophysical model provides a significant step forward in understanding the processes that modulate the evolution of coral reefs, as it is the first construction of a model in which the hydrodynamics are included in the feedback loop.
Continue reading ‘Online-coupling of widely-ranged timescales to model coral reef development’Responses of Southern ocean seafloor habitats and communities to global and local drivers of change
Published 17 May 2021 Science ClosedTags: Antarctic, policy, review, socio-economy
Knowledge of life on the Southern Ocean seafloor has substantially grown since the beginning of this century with increasing ship-based surveys and regular monitoring sites, new technologies and greatly enhanced data sharing. However, seafloor habitats and their communities exhibit high spatial variability and heterogeneity that challenges the way in which we assess the state of the Southern Ocean benthos on larger scales. The Antarctic shelf is rich in diversity compared with deeper water areas, important for storing carbon (“blue carbon”) and provides habitat for commercial fish species. In this paper, we focus on the seafloor habitats of the Antarctic shelf, which are vulnerable to drivers of change including increasing ocean temperatures, iceberg scour, sea ice melt, ocean acidification, fishing pressures, pollution and non-indigenous species. Some of the most vulnerable areas include the West Antarctic Peninsula, which is experiencing rapid regional warming and increased iceberg-scouring, subantarctic islands and tourist destinations where human activities and environmental conditions increase the potential for the establishment of non-indigenous species and active fishing areas around South Georgia, Heard and MacDonald Islands. Vulnerable species include those in areas of regional warming with low thermal tolerance, calcifying species susceptible to increasing ocean acidity as well as slow-growing habitat-forming species that can be damaged by fishing gears e.g., sponges, bryozoan, and coral species. Management regimes can protect seafloor habitats and key species from fishing activities; some areas will need more protection than others, accounting for specific traits that make species vulnerable, slow growing and long-lived species, restricted locations with optimum physiological conditions and available food, and restricted distributions of rare species. Ecosystem-based management practices and long-term, highly protected areas may be the most effective tools in the preservation of vulnerable seafloor habitats. Here, we focus on outlining seafloor responses to drivers of change observed to date and projections for the future. We discuss the need for action to preserve seafloor habitats under climate change, fishing pressures and other anthropogenic impacts.
Continue reading ‘Responses of Southern ocean seafloor habitats and communities to global and local drivers of change’Exploring coastal acidification and oyster restoration activities on the United States Atlantic coast
Published 7 May 2021 Science ClosedTags: biological response, mollusks, North Atlantic, policy, review
Executive Summary
The global ocean mediates the effect of climate change and anthropogenic carbon emissions by absorbing atmospheric carbon dioxide (Ellis et al., 2017). The ocean’s absorption of carbon dioxide results in a change in ocean chemistry and decline in seawater pH known as ocean acidification (Kapsenberg and Cyronak, 2018). Changes in ocean chemistry and pH may also be driven by primary production activity, upwelling, and river runoff into marine environments (Richards et al., 2014). Ocean acidification has the potential to adversely affect numerous marine organisms (Kapsenberg and Cyronak, 2018), however, it can be especially problematic for calcifying shellfish species (Swezey et al., 2020) like the Eastern Oyster and larval or juvenile stage organisms (Mangi et al., 2018). Temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen levels, and acidification impact the health and longevity of oysters and oyster reefs. Oyster reefs offer numerous ecosystem services. These reefs provide habitat for benthic invertebrates, seabirds and fish that rely on reefs for feeding, nursery, and breeding grounds (Burrows et al., 2005). The Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica) is a native oyster species of the U.S. Atlantic Coast. Although oysters reefs support coastal livelihoods and offer numerous ecosystem services, many reefs have been degraded by anthropogenic activities (Burrows et al., 2005). Pollution, over-harvest, and an increase in loading of suspended sediments are key threats to oyster reef health (Burrows et al., 2005). Oyster reef restoration projects focus on returning reefs to their natural state. Given the role of oysters as ecosystem engineers, and the many benefits that may be derived from healthy oyster reefs, restoration projects are a priority for communities throughout the U.S. Atlantic Coast.
Cooley et al. 2016 recommends several effective community actions that may be taken to help address ocean acidification today. This project focuses on two non-legislative actions discussed by Cooley et al. 2016. These are public education related to coastal acidification and resilience management through oyster reef restoration projects. The purpose of this project is to support coastal resource-reliant communities on the U.S. Atlantic Coast in preparing for the potential future impacts of ocean acidification on C. virginica. The project examines trends in the oyster reef restoration projects presently underway at the state and local level along the U.S. Atlantic Coast, and it considers how coastal acidification may affect the longevity of the region’s oyster reefs. Finally, the project considers the future research and management considerations needed to adequately protect oyster reefs under changing climatic conditions.
Continue reading ‘Exploring coastal acidification and oyster restoration activities on the United States Atlantic coast’CO2 capture by pumping surface acidity to the deep ocean
Published 5 May 2021 Science ClosedTags: biogeochemistry, globalmodeling, mitigation, policy
The majority of IPCC scenarios call for active CO2 removal (CDR) to remain below 2oC of warm- ing. On geological timescales, ocean uptake regulates atmospheric CO2 concentration, with two homeostats driving CO2 uptake: dissolution of deep ocean calcite deposits and terrestrial weathering of silicate rocks, acting on 1ka to 100ka timescales, respectively. Many current ocean-based CDR proposals effectively act to accelerate the latter. Here we present a method which relies purely on the redistribution and dilution of acidity from a thin layer of the surface ocean to a thicker layer of deep ocean, with the aim of reducing surface acidification and accelerating the former carbonate homeostasis. This downward transport could be seen analogous to the action of the natural biological carbon pump. The method offers advantages over other ocean CDR methods and direct air capture approaches (DAC): the conveyance of mass is minimized (acidity is pumped in situ to depth), and expensive mining, grinding and distribution of alkaline material is eliminated. No dilute substance needs to be concentrated, avoiding the Sherwood’s Rule costs typically encountered in DAC. Finally, no terrestrial material is added to the ocean, avoiding significant alteration of seawater ion concentrations or issues with heavy metal toxicity encountered in mineral-based alkalinity schemes. The artificial transport of acidity accelerates the natural deep ocean compensation by calcium carbonate. It has been estimated that the total compensation capacity of the ocean is on the order of 1500GtC. We show through simulation that pumping of ocean acidity could remove up to 150GtC from the atmosphere by 2100 with- out excessive increase of local ocean pH. For an acidity release below 2000m, the relaxation half-life of CO2 return to the atmosphere was found to be ∼2500 years (∼1000yr without account- ing for carbonate dissolution), with ∼85% retained for at least 300 years. The uptake efficiency and residence time were found to vary with the location of acidity pumping, and optimal areas were determined. Requiring only local resources (ocean water and energy), this method could be uniquely suited to utilize otherwise-unusable open ocean energy sources at scale. We examine technological pathways that could be used to implement it and present a brief techno-economic estimate of 130-250$/tCO2 at current prices and as low as 93$/tCO2 under modest learning-curve assumptions.
Continue reading ‘CO2 capture by pumping surface acidity to the deep ocean’Large-scale interventions may delay decline of the Great Barrier Reef
Published 5 May 2021 Science ClosedTags: adaptation, biogeochemistry, BRcommunity, corals, mitigation, morphology, mortality, policy, reproduction, South Pacific
On the iconic Great Barrier Reef (GBR), the cumulative impacts of tropical cyclones, marine heatwaves and regular outbreaks of coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish (CoTS) have severely depleted coral cover. Climate change will further exacerbate this situation over the coming decades unless effective interventions are implemented. Evaluating the efficacy of alternative interventions in a complex system experiencing major cumulative impacts can only be achieved through a systems modelling approach. We have evaluated combinations of interventions using a coral reef meta-community model. The model consisted of a dynamic network of 3753 reefs supporting communities of corals and CoTS connected through ocean larval dispersal, and exposed to changing regimes of tropical cyclones, flood plumes, marine heatwaves and ocean acidification. Interventions included reducing flood plume impacts, expanding control of CoTS populations, stabilizing coral rubble, managing solar radiation and introducing heat-tolerant coral strains. Without intervention, all climate scenarios resulted in precipitous declines in GBR coral cover over the next 50 years. The most effective strategies in delaying decline were combinations that protected coral from both predation (CoTS control) and thermal stress (solar radiation management) deployed at large scale. Successful implementation could expand opportunities for climate action, natural adaptation and socioeconomic adjustment by at least one to two decades.
Continue reading ‘Large-scale interventions may delay decline of the Great Barrier Reef’
