Impacts of anthropogenic SOx, NOx and NH3 on acidification of coastal waters and shipping lanes

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Hunter, Keith A., Liss, Peter S., Surapipith, Vanisa, Dentener, Frank, Duce, Robert, Kanakidou, Maria, Kubilay, Nilgun, Mahowald, Natalie, Okin, Greg, Sarin, Manmohan, Uematsu, Mitsuo, Zhu, Tong
• Other Authors: Hunter, KA (reprint author), Univ Otago, Div Sci, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand., Univ Otago, Div Sci, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand., Univ E Anglia, Sch Environm Sci, Norwich NR4 7TJ, Norfolk, England., Minist Nat Resources & Environm, Pollut Control Dept, Bangkok 10400, Thailand., European Commiss Joint Res Ctr, Inst Environm & Sustainabil, I-21020 Ispra, Italy., Texas A&M Univ, Dept Oceanog, College Stn, TX 77843 USA., Texas A&M Univ, Dept Atmospher Sci, College Stn, TX 77843 USA., Univ Crete, Environm Chem Proc Lab, Dept Chem, Iraklion 71409, Greece., Middle E Tech Univ, Inst Marine Sci, TR-33731 Erdemli, Turkey., Cornell Univ, Dept Earth & Atmospher Sci, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA., Univ Calif Los Angeles, Dept Geog, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA., Phys Res Lab, Dept Geosci, Ahmadabad 380009, Gujarat, India., Univ Tokyo, Ocean Res Inst, Nakano Ku, Tokyo 1648639, Japan., Peking Univ, Coll Environm Sci & Engn, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China.
• Format: Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: geophysical research letters 2011
• Subjects: OCEAN ACIDIFICATION; SULFUR DEPOSITION; INORGANIC CARBON; ACID DEPOSITION; ASIAN WATERS; ALKALINITY; EMISSIONS; CO2; DISSOCIATION; CONSTANTS; Lanes; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11897/394544; https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL047720

The acidification of the ocean by anthropogenic CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere is now well-recognized and is considered to have lowered surface ocean pH by 0.1 since the mid-18th century. Future acidification may lead to undersaturation of CaCO3 making growth of calcifying organisms difficult. However, other anthropogenic gases also have the potential to alter ocean pH and CO2 chemistry, specifically SOx and NOx and NH3. We demonstrate using a simple chemical model that in coastal water regions with high atmospheric inputs of these gases, their pH reduction is almost completely canceled out by buffering reactions involving seawater HCO3- and CO32- ions. However, a consequence of this buffering is a significant decrease in the uptake of anthropogenic CO2 by the atmosphere in these areas. Citation: Hunter, K. A., et al. (2011), Impacts of anthropogenic SOx, NOx and NH3 on acidification of coastal waters and shipping lanes, Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L13602, doi:10.1029/2011GL047720. Geosciences, Multidisciplinary SCI(E) 12 ARTICLE null 38