Polar waters: the challenges of accelerated acidification

• Main Author: Roberts, D
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: BNP Paribas Foundation 2013
• Subjects: Environmental Sciences; Ecological Applications; Ecological Impacts of Climate Change; Champagne; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: http://ecite.utas.edu.au/89611

Dr Donna Roberts, an Australian scientist from the University of Tasmania, is head of the FOCEAntarctic project. In partnership with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) inCalifornia, she wants to evaluate the effects of the acidification of polar waters on marine organisms.A real challenge since the drop in pH, which is twice as rapid as elsewhere, could prefigure the futureof the other oceans. She talks about her procedure.Why measure the effects of ocean acidification in Antarctica?Temperature is an important parameter in the oceans chemistry. CO2 is more soluble in cold waters.Exactly like champagne, which keeps its bubbles better in the refrigerator! Cold polar waters thus absorb thelargest quantity of CO2 emitted by human activities. This means that the process of acidification of themarine environment is more significant at the poles: the pH changes twice as quickly here as in tropical andtemperate waters. It is therefore crucial to evaluate the impact of this accelerated acidification on polarecosystems. That is what we plan to do in Antarctica. Our observations will also enable us to predict whatcould happen in the rest of the worlds oceans if CO2 emissions continue to rise.