Perhaps you’ve heard about ocean acidification – a truly frightening term with equally scary consequences. Ocean acidification is caused by a PH decrease within the world’s oceans. While there’s a lot to it, the main cause is the uptake of a substance called anthropogenic carbon dioxide (greenhouse gases) from the planet’s atmosphere. As the substance’s name suggests, this form of carbon dioxide is the stuff we humans emit. Like it or not, we’re the ones responsible for ocean acidification – and now, the results of this phenomenon are more undeniable than ever. In the Southern Ocean encircling Antarctica, scientists have captured images of shelled animals dissolving right before our very eyes.
Why Are Marine Animals Corroding?
Scientists working with the British Antarctic Survey, which is affiliated with UK’s Cambridge, were the first to see the evidence. During a 2008 study, they captured tiny free-swimming marine snails with substantial areas of corrosion visible on their protective outer shells. These animals, called Pteropods, are related to Sea Angels and Sea Butterflies. All these creatures are pelagic gastropods first described in the 1800s. Though tiny and seemingly insignificant to those not familiar with the importance of every creature in the great web of life, these animals led researchers to an amazing discovery that ultimately informed science of the true urgency of solving the ocean acidification problem.
Besides causing our planet to get warmer, the carbon dioxide we are emitting is causing devastating changes to the ocean’s chemistry. When CO2 dissolves in water, a substance called carbonic acid forms. In addition, this makes the water less alkaline, and has a negative effect on animals and other life forms that rely on stable water chemistry for survival. To compound the problem, when carbonic acid levels increase, so do the number of hydrogen ions present in water. These in turn react with carbonate ions, preventing the calcium carbonate shelled animals rely on from forming. Another essential shell-building substance called Aragonite, which is a form of calcium carbonate, is also running short as a result of increased ocean acidity. While still plentiful in most places, scientists focusing on decreased ocean PH are concerned that unless the trend is reversed, Aragonite depletion will be widespread by the year 2050.
In subsequent experiments, researchers have discovered that any organism with a hard shell is capable of suffering the dissolving effects water that is too acidic causes. These animals include mollusks and hard corals, among others. These animals filter the water, provide habitat for other species, and serve as food for many others. It goes without saying that if these important animals are lost, the entire ocean ecosystem will be adversely affected, and as a result, so will life on our planet.
Like weird weather patterns and rising water levels, this consequence of global warming is something that is happening right now. It’s not some distant “maybe” – it is a real, actual occurrence. The only way to stop this phenomenon from worsening and spreading to affect marine life all over the planet is to reduce the planet’s greenhouse gas load. We know how to do it – it’s the action that seems to be missing from the overall accomplishment of the goal.