Ocean Acidification And Its Effect On The Environment

Ocean Acidification is a process that occurs everyday and majorly affects our planet, but most people don’t even realize it exists. Though it can technically be argued that Ocean Acidification has some benefits for the planet, most of the time the effects of this process are very poor and negatively affect the entire world around us. Human evolution has played a major role in contributing to Ocean Acidification. Whenever humans use energy we release Carbon Dioxide into the atmosphere or also known as CO2. This can be in the form of burning fossil fuels from the ground or the removal of national forest by burning. CO2 is a greenhouse gas, which means whenever we can emit it in large quantities or unnatural amounts it can have negative effects on the atmosphere. These high levels of CO2 in the atmosphere result in climate change and more specifically Ocean Acidification. Ocean Acidification occurs when excess Carbon Dioxide is absorbed into the ocean. When this process takes place it can completely disturb the chemical balances of the water. For example, it can reduce pH levels, Biodiversity, and the abundance of calcifying species.

This increase in oceanic inorganic carbon has offset the seawater carbonate chemistry by causing increasing concentrations of CO2 and bicarbonate, while causing decreasing concentrations of carbonate and pH levels (Dedmer 2013). Rost and colleagues (2008) express that emissions of fossil fuel have caused an immense increase in the levels of atmospheric CO2, which are then deposited into the surface water of oceans. This increase in carbonic acid is in turn decreasing the pH balance, which poses a threat to marine organisms.

Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, mankind has slowly increased the total greenhouse gas emissions that enter the atmosphere. Over time, this pollution began to add up. Now planet Earth is struggling to maintain its health with the combined forces of global warming and ocean acidification looking to bring demise. From all portions of the world, troubling changes are emerging in the chemistry of our oceans’ waters. The oceans takes in around a quarter of the Carbon Dioxide that mankind releases into the atmosphere every year, so as atmospheric Carbon Dioxide levels rise, so do the

Ocean acidification is becoming on of the most concerning subjects compared to global climate change. pH is the level of acidity, seven being neutral fourteen being most basic and zero being most acidic. The pH levels in the ocean are dropping and becoming more acidic. This is happening because of increasing carbon dioxide emissions. The ocean is taking in the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

increases. When carbon dioxide dissolves at the ocean’s surface it reacts with the water and then

Over the past couple of years, no other issue has received more attention in the marine community than ocean acidification. Marine biologists have been constantly working towards solving this issue and are hoping to see improvement’s very soon. Ocean acidification refers to the relentless growth in acidity of the Earth’s oceans. This on-going acidity has attributed to an important element; a constant rise of carbon dioxide levels in the Earth. The number one reason this issue is still happening is because of burning fossil fuels. In addition to burning fossil fuels, it has come to a point where it has enlarged a large amount of carbon dioxide by releasing it into the atmosphere. Chemists have taken this issue into attention that carbon enters the ocean and combines with seawater to fallout acid, which boosts the level of acidity. This process is known as ocean acidification.

The ocean has became nearly 150% more acidic. Which the ocean has experienced in nearly 20 million years.

Sometimes called “climate change’s equivalently destructive twin”, ocean acidification is becoming more and more noticeable as the seawater’s changing chemistry begins to cause environmental and economical problems. When the Industrial Revolution began around 1760, fossil fuel–powered machines gained an immense amount of accessibility and popularity. Since then, carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere have risen enough to change the pH of the world’s oceans. Given that the ocean absorbs almost half of the CO2 that is released into our atmosphere, ocean acidification is inclining into an even greater problem as fossil fuels become a more common energy source in our society. Higher acid levels can harm wildlife, disrupt the food chain, and negatively impact industries that rely on the ocean for business. Ocean acidification is causing growing dilemmas for both marine ecosystems and ocean-based economies. Although many companies and organizations are attempting to fix this problem, acidification is still threatening to cause increasingly harmful issues for the future.

Ocean acidification is the process in which the ocean soaks up carbon dioxide and its pH lowers. At the current point in time, the pH in the ocean has dropped 0.1 pH. ALthough this doesn’t seem like much, since pH is logarithmic, this means that the ocean is 30% more acidic than before. This jump in acidity will literally melt the shells of oysters, and sometimes even fish. What causes ocean acidification is carbon dioxide. Normally, carbon dioxide wouldn’t be that much of a problem as the ocean has a natural buffering system. The carbon dioxide would combine with the water molecules and create a bicarbonate ion then it would gain another H+ molecule and would create a carbonic acid. This acid replaces the much needed carbonate molecules which

The main effect of climate change on our oceans, apart from temperature increases, is acidification—that is, an increase in the acidity of the water (or a decrease in its pH). And the cause of this increase in acidity is the same CO2

The unique circumstances of planet earth are due to one special ecological feature: liquid H2O. Our planet is far enough away from the sun to keep all of the water on its surface from evaporation yet close enough to prevent it all from freezing. This water is the source and sustaining factor of life as we know it. In fact, the earth is seventy five percent water. Most of that water in contained in earth’s oceans. However, the last few centuries of global industrialization have brought major changes to our shores. Changes that need to be addressed.

Ocean acidification means an ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earth’s oceans, caused by the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Around 30-40% of the CO2 released by humans into the atmosphere dissolves into oceans, rivers and lakes.

Our Oceans are a vital bloodline carrying humans, water, and different types of animals and plants. Now more than ever our oceans are in peril due to the disastrous effects of Ocean Acidification. According to, NOAA Director Dr. Jane Lubchenco (2016), “Ocean Acidification is often referred to as global warming’s equally evil twin” (The Osprey pg.1). Ocean Acidification is an issue that the general public knows very little about yet is just as dangerous. Our Oceans are like a gigantic beaker with a mix of different solutions but because of ocean acidification this might disturb the balance for the planet. According to, Ludwig of The Science Teacher (2015), “OA is a harmful consequence of excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and poses a threat to marine life” (p.42). The high amount of carbon dioxide creates a toxic environment for sea life. As a society, it is our duty to help restore our oceans and prevent the dangerous possibility of massive sea loss, economic downfall, and coral bleaching.

As earth’s carbon dioxide levels are expected to continue to grow in an exponential fashion they will, ultimately, facilitate large shifts in seawater carbonate chemistry (Doney, Fabry, Feely, & Kleypas, 2008). It has been shown that surplus amounts of atmospheric CO2 decreases the pH level in oceans- disrupting the delicate balance of the stable acidity levels that have maintained the rich and varied web of life in today’s seas (Kleypas & Yates, 2009). This phenomenon is referred to as ocean acidification and is predicted to have rapid and devastating consequences to entire marine ecosystems.

Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that we exhale in our daily lives. Plants use carbon dioxide to create oxygen that all mammals use. However, carbon dioxide can also change the chemistry of the ocean, this is often referred to as ocean acidification. The excess carbon dissolves into oxygen in the water, producing a chemical called carbonic acid. This acid causes the ocean to become more acidic. In the eighteenth century, the pH was 8.07 which was slightly basic. Currently, the pH is around 8.01 this is about a twenty-five percent increase in acidity. (National geographic) While this slight change may not seem outrageous, it is causing multiple marine life struggles. The acid melts the shells of pteropods causing a low supply of food that would support larger fish.