buffer zone

New data suggests that the ocean acidity levels are raising 10 times faster than previously thought.

Professor Timothy Wootton from the department of ecology and evolution, University of Chicago, in Illinois, says such dramatic results were unexpected as it was thought that the huge ocean systems had the ability to absorb large quantities of CO2.

“It’s been thought pH in the open oceans is well buffered, so it’s surprising to see these fluctuations,” he said.

The findings showed that CO2 had lowered the water pH over time, demonstrating a year-on-year increase in acidity.

As a result, mollusks like barnacles and muscles are being affected. Most of their shells are made of calcium carbonate, which cannot be sustained in high acid environments. The populations are shrinking at very high rates. In fact, the scientists feel that all of our past models on ocean acidification need to be erased, since the ocean is not buffering the CO2 absorption as thought.

The entire article can be found HERE, via BBC.