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The Northeast Coastal Acidification Network: A Force for Ocean Acidification Coordination

Background image: Demonstration preceding  NECAN Shell day

“We need to do this in the Northeast!”

Dwight Gledhill, Deputy Director of NOAA’s Ocean Acidification Program, and Ru Morrison, Executive Director of Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS), exclaimed after listening to a presentation on the newly formed California Current Acidification Network. Seeing how the West Coast was creating a collaboration of scientists, industry members, and managers on the West Coast inspired them to start a similar effort on the other side of the country in the Northeast US.

They recruited a small group to join their planning calls and discuss how they could raise the profile of ocean acidification activities in the Northeast, including Beth Turner from NOAA’s National Center for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS). Turner explains, “We saw that there was a lot of ocean acidification work going on in the region, but there was a need for coordination.”

Industry representatives, including shellfish grower Bill Mook, were involved from the beginning. While the shellfish industry in the Northeast had not seen impacts from ocean acidification yet, they wanted to get ahead of the problem and avoid an event like the catastrophic oyster hatchery failures in the Pacific Northwest.

Eventually this group evolved into the steering committee for the Northeast Coastal Acidification Network (NECAN) in 2013. For the past 8 years, the group has brought together individuals from different sectors working on ocean acidification through its four working groups: Science, Education and Outreach, Industry, and Management and Policy. NECAN’s region includes waters from Long Island Sound all the way to Nova Scotia; NECAN is unique in that it collaborates internationally with colleagues in Canada.

Background Image: NECAN steering committee

Listening

One of the first activities NECAN undertook was holding four stakeholder listening sessions across the Northeast coastline to understand what environmental changes people were most concerned about. While ocean acidification was on people’s radar, it wasn’t necessarily their top concern. Communities in Maine were deeply alarmed by ocean warming and how that might affect the vital lobster industry, in addition to being concerned about invasive species. Communities further south were most worried about increasing pollution, nutrient enrichment, and habitat destruction. These meetings included a wide variety of stakeholders, including representatives from aquaculture, the shellfish industry, wild catch fisheries, and non-governmental organizations.

Background Image: Shellfishermen at Mook Sea Farm

Learning

NECAN continues to work with communities across the Northeast region to try to answer the question of how marine resources in the area will fare under increasing ocean acidification. Since these first sessions, new groups have become interested in ocean acidification, including water quality monitoring groups and state legislatures. Many water quality monitoring groups were engaged in “Shell Day” in 2019, a region-wide event that engaged citizen scientists to collect over 500 water samples and measurements of temperature, salinity, and pH. Many states in the area have taken legislative action leading to ocean acidification being incorporated into climate action plans or addressed through stand-alone reports. Emily Silva, the coordinator for NECAN, shared that a current focus for the group is increasing engagement with local tribal communities.

NECAN has also continued to engage and learn from the industry stakeholders in the region. The industry working group recently released a report on an industry survey from 2018 that gauged what impacts the aquaculture industry and wild harvest fishermen are experiencing from ocean acidification and what monitoring or research efforts they would like to see.

Background Image: Demonstration at NECAN Shell Day

Looking ahead

Going forward, NECAN will continue to galvanize ocean acidification monitoring and research in the region. Communicating about ocean acidification also remains a top priority; a new working group was recently created to develop an infographic showing the impacts from ocean acidification to key resources in the Gulf of Maine. Additionally, NECAN is planning a second workshop to address the state of ocean acidification science. Their first workshop in 2014 included a number of recommendations for monitoring and research. Silva shares, “These recommendations led to a number of projects being funded and was a great success.”

They are looking forward to gathering members to take actionable steps to address ocean acidification in Northeast communities.

Background Image: 

Credits

Title image: Demonstration at workshop prior to Shell Day, an initiative created by the Northeast Coastal Acidification Network Credit: Beth Turner Image 1: The Northeast Coastal Acidification Network’s Steering Committee Image 2: Shellfishermen at work at Mook Sea Farms in Maine Credit: NOAA Sea Grant Image 3: A demonstration at a workshop preceding NECAN’s Shell Day effort Image 4: Sunrise on a coastal town in Maine Credit: Maine Sea Grant

 

Effects of ocean acidification and temperature on Alaskan crabs

Red King Crab
Image credit: David Csepp, NMFS AKFSC ABL

Long-term declines of red king crab in Bristol Bay, Alaska may be partially attributed to ocean acidification conditions. These impacts may be partially responsible for the fishery closures during the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 seasons. Researchers found that ocean acidification negatively impacts Alaskan crabs generally by changing physiological processes, decreasing growth, increasing death rates and reducing shell thickness. Funded by the Ocean Acidification Program, scientists at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center continue to investigate the responses of early life history stages and study the potential of various Alaska crabs to acclimate to changing conditions. Results will inform models that will use the parameters studied to predict the effects of future ocean acidification on the populations of red king crab in Bristol Bay as well as on the fisheries that depend on them. Fishery managers will better be able to anticipate and manage stocks if changing ocean chemistry affects stock productivity and thus the maximum sustainable yield.

More about this work

Forecasts for Alaska Fisheries

Crab pots and fishing nets in Alaska's Dutch Harbor
Image credit: Michael Theberge

Understanding seasonal changes in ocean acidification in Alaskan waters and the potential impacts to the multi-billion-dollar fishery sector is a main priority. Through work funded by NOAA’s Ocean Acidification Program, the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory developed a model capable of depicting past ocean chemistry conditions for the Bering Sea and is now testing the ability of this model to forecast future conditions. This model is being used to develop an ocean acidification indicator provided to fisheries managers in the annual NOAA Eastern Bering Sea Ecosystem Status Report.

ADAPTING TO OCEAN ACIDIFICATION

The NOAA Ocean Acidification Program (OAP) works to prepare society to adapt to the consequences of ocean acidification and conserve marine ecosystems as acidification occurs. Learn more about the human connections and adaptation strategies from these efforts.

Adaptation approaches fostered by the OAP include:

FORECASTING

Using models and research to understand the sensitivity of organisms and ecosystems to ocean acidification to make predictions about the future, allowing communities and industries to prepare

Closeup of oysters cupped in someone's hands

MANAGEMENT

Using these models and predictions as tools to facilitate management strategies that will protect marine resources and communities from future changes

TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT

Developing innovative tools to help monitor ocean acidification and mitigate changing ocean chemistry locally

REDUCING OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

50 more ways to reduce your carbon footprint >

On the Road

Drive fuel-efficient vehicles or choose public transportation. Choose your bike or walk! Don't sit idle for more than 30 seconds. Keep your tires properly inflated.

With your Food Choices

Eat local- this helps cut down on production and transport! Reduce your meat and dairy. Compost to avoid food waste ending up in the landfill

With your Food Choices

Make energy-efficient choices for your appliances and lighting. Heat and cool efficiently! Change your air filters and program your thermostat, seal and insulate your home, and support clean energy sources

By Reducing Coastal Acidification

Reduce your use of fertilizers, Improve sewage treatment and run off, and Protect and restore coastal habitats

TAKE ACTION WITH YOUR COMMUNITY

You've taken the first step to learn more about ocean acidification - why not spread this knowledge to your community?

Every community has their unique culture, economy and ecology and what’s at stake from ocean acidification may be different depending on where you live.  As a community member, you can take a larger role in educating the public about ocean acidification. Creating awareness is the first step to taking action.  As communities gain traction, neighboring regions that share marine resources can build larger coalitions to address ocean acidification.  Here are some ideas to get started:

  1. Work with informal educators, such as aquarium outreach programs and local non-profits, to teach the public about ocean acidification. Visit our Education & Outreach page to find the newest tools!
  2. Participate in habitat restoration efforts to restore habitats that help mitigate the effects of coastal acidification
  3. Facilitate conversations with local businesses that might be affected by ocean acidification, building a plan for the future.
  4. Partner with local community efforts to mitigate the driver behind ocean acidification  – excess CO2 – such as community supported agriculture, bike & car shares and other public transportation options.
  5. Contact your regional Coastal Acidification Network (CAN) to learn how OA is affecting your region and more ideas about how you can get involved in your community
       More for Taking Community Action