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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/environment-and-nature/20160407/west-coast-scientists-urge-immediate-action-to-combat-ocean-acidification">http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/environment-and-nature/20160407/west-coast-scientists-urge-immediate-action-to-combat-ocean-acidification</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span lang=EN style='font-size:14.0pt'>West Coast scientists urge immediate action to combat ocean acidification<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>By <a href="http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/environment-and-nature/20160407/west-coast-scientists-urge-immediate-action-to-combat-ocean-acidification#author1"><span style='color:blue'>Samantha Clark</span></a>, Santa Cruz Sentinel <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Posted: 04/07/16, 7:56 PM PDT | <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>SANTA CRUZ >> A group of scientists is warning that waters off the West Coast are quickly becoming more acidic. In a new <a href="http://westcoastoah.org/executivesummary/" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>report</span></a> out this week from the West Coast Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Science Panel, they urge swift and coordinated action in the region, which is among the hardest hit by the global problem.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>The ocean is absorbing increasing amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to such a degree that it’s throwing the chemical balance of seawater out of whack and in turn threatening marine ecosystems and posing severe economic consequences.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>While ocean acidification and the related problem of hypoxia — when there’s a depleted amount of oxygen in the water — are worldwide problems, the panel of 20 scientists says it’s important to fight them on the home front as well. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>“The goal of this document is to provide a road map for managers on things that they can do now to address the issue of ocean acidification,” said Alexandria, Boehm, panel co-chair and professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Because of how the Pacific Ocean circulates, the West Coast is exposed disproportionately to water with higher acidity levels.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Already shellfish, corals and other organisms are having a harder time reproducing and growing their skeletons and outer protective shells. As a result, the West Coast shellfish industry is seeing high mortality rates during the early life stages when shell formation is important. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>And increased acidity has shown to give rise to harmful algae blooms in the lab. The toxins can cause sickness and even death up the food chain as contaminated fish and shellfish are consumed by larger fish, marine mammals and even people. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>“Ocean acidification is very alarming if you look at what’s going to happen to the ocean’s pH if we don’t reduce carbon emissions,” Boehm said.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>In the report, the panel makes calls for action that are coordinated and collaborative between ocean management and natural resource agencies. Its recommendations include exploring the use of sea grass to remove carbon dioxide from seawater, reducing land-based pollution from entering coastal waters and revising water-quality criteria.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>In addition, the panel suggests policymakers create a West Coast monitoring program for gathering more data and create a scientific task force to help management stay effective.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span lang=EN style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'> “They make some really tangible recommendations that science suggests could have an impact,” said Kristy Kroeker, an expert on ocean acidification and assistant professor at UC Santa Cruz who is not part of the panel. “The West Coast and the Monterey Bay are really sitting in a hot spot for acidification. It’s happening here twice as fast as it’s happening in the rest of the world. Understanding the problem and things we can do is really critical for our community.” To read the report, go to <a href="http://westcoastoah.org/executivesummary" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>westcoastoah.org/executivesummary</span></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:14.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:14.0pt'>West Coast Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Science Panel report<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://westcoastoah.org/executivesummary/">http://westcoastoah.org/executivesummary/</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-MediumCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'><a href="http://westcoastoah.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/OAH-Panel-Ecosystems-3.30.16-FINAL.pdf">http://westcoastoah.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/OAH-Panel-Ecosystems-3.30.16-FINAL.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:13.0pt;font-family:"Formata-MediumCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:13.0pt;font-family:"Formata-MediumCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>Summary<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>Ocean acidification and hypoxia (OAH) together are changing the chemistry of the world’s<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>oceans. Despite good evidence of species-level effects of OAH, we have little resolution regarding<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>the scale and magnitude of ecosystem-level effects. Yet, such ecosystem effects are likely to<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>significantly affect economically and culturally important resources, and the services and benefits<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>that marine ecosystems provide to society. Focusing on the West Coast of North America, we first<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>ask how insights gained from the past decade of research can inform and bound our predictions<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>of the direction and magnitude of the ecosystem changes ahead. Although abrupt and significant<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>ecosystem changes can reasonably be expected, predicting the timing of these changes (e.g.,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>1, 5, 10 years) and how they will manifest is challenging. We then propose that sustaining<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>ecological resilience through the use of ecosystem approaches that are already embedded<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>in natural resource management frameworks provides a pragmatic path forward and offers<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>opportunities for decision-makers to take action now to address OAH. We illustrate this approach<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>with three case studies from the U.S. West Coast: marine protected areas, ecosystem-based<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>fi sheries management, and coastal EBM initiatives. Such actions can potentially ameliorate OAH<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>effects over the near-term and forestall abrupt ecosystem changes, “buying time” as scientific<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Formata-LightCondensed","sans-serif";color:#000104'>understanding and management options improve.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:14.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p></div></body></html>