The Acidification of the Ocean off California’s Coast

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The California coast is a thriving ecosystem, both beneath the sea and in the cities that line its shore. For the purposes of our discussion, we will focus on mussels as an example species. Mussels, as we speak are being harmed by ocean acidification, and the damage is becoming more and more costly to our ecosystem. Global climate change, more commonly referred to as global warming, is an important factor in ocean acidification. At its most basic, climate change is the result of previously unheard of levels of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere and creating a greenhouse effect within the earth’s atmosphere. This causes the average temperature of the planet to increase over time. The full effects of this kind of temperature increase are still being explored, but it is already clear that our planet is being harmed as a result. Ocean acidification is an extension of global climate change. It is the result of about a third of the carbon dioxide in the air seeping into the earth’s oceans. Ocean Acidification Our ocean, consisting of approximately 70% water and 30% land, is a vast surplus habitat that is unexplored and uncontrollable. Although humanity has achieved much in advancement in technology, resources, food, and more, nature is a factor that humanity cannot predict and manipulate. Nevertheless, our society has caused a grand shift in our global climate, a shift that is costly to our environment. One major reason to account for this shift is the utilization of fossil fuels into the environment. This process creates a multitude of carbon atoms that are released into the atmosphere, which is detrimental to our environment. To be exact, global warming is the process where there is an increase amount of greenhouse gases (such... ... middle of paper ... ...ze the importance of this issue and the urgent need for a resolution to climate change. Works Cited Dictionary.com. (2014, May 13). euphotic zone. Retrieved from Dictionary.com: http://dictionary .reference.com/browse/euphotic+zone Gruber, N., Hauri, C., Lachkar, Z,. Loher, D., Frölicher, T. L., & Plattner, G. (2012). Rapid progression of ocean acidification in the California Current System. Science, 220-223. doi:10.1126/science.1216773 Mackenzie, C. L., Ormondroyd, G. A., Curling, S. F., & Ball, R. J., Whiteley, N. M., & Malham, S.K. (2014). Ocean warming, more than acidification, reduces shell strength in a commercial shellfish species during food limitation. PloS One, 1-9. doi:10.1371 /journal.pone.0086764 Robles, C. (2014). Interview with Dr. Carlos Robles. Personal Collection of C. Robles, California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.

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