Scientists, economists, and stakeholders from all eight Arctic countries forge a path forward in adapting to ocean acidification in the Arctic

Arctic waters are rapidly changing. In the coming decades, these high-latitude waters will undergo significant shifts that could affect fish, shellfish, marine mammals, along with the livelihoods and well-being of communities dependent on these resources.

The impacts of ocean acidification on marine species may be occurring earlier than expected. Scientists from the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC), Bill Peterson​, and NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL), Dr. Simone Alin and Dr. Nina Bednarsek,​ are featured in an article by The Rolling Stone discussing the imminent threat of ocean acidification on marine species in the most vulnerable regions around the globe, such as the Pacific Northwest.

The report by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program on Arctic Ocean Acidification was recently released and identifies the risks to Arctic ecosystems, including indigenous tribes and Arctic residents.

The shells of marine snails – known as pteropods – living in the seas around Antarctica are being dissolved by ocean acidification according to a new study published this week in the journal Nature Geoscience.  These tiny animals are a valuable food source for fish and birds and play an important role in the oceanic carbon cycle*.

During a science cruise in 2008, researchers from British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and the University of East Anglia (UEA), in collaboration with colleagues from the US Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), discovered severe dissolution of the shells of living pteropods in Southern Ocean waters.

Scientists have known for years that greenhouse gasses are altering the chemical makeup of our oceans.

More and more carbon dioxide is dissolving into salt water, creating carbonic acid. That changes the ocean’s pH, or acid-alkaline balance.

And it’s hitting harder in Alaska.