Your CO2 killed my oysters

Human CO2 is killing oysters on the US west coast. It's the early stages of our CO2 assault on the ocean.

CO2 makes carbonic acid in water. Since we're responsible for the excess CO2 in the air, then there is absolutely no debate about the human causes of the ocean acid monster.

Here's an interesting and scary article about how oyster growers on the west coast have been hit hard by the ocean acid monster, and how they've responded with a good adaptation strategy. They only take low CO2 water into their oyster tanks. BTW, the strategy works for an oyster farm, but not for wild oysters, they're stuck living in the water no matter how much CO2 it contains.

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Ocean acid experiment

The great ocean acid experiment has a new front line...Puget Sound, near Seattle.

That's right, my home waters are going to show the world what an acidifying ocean means. Already, ocean waters in Washington are going more and more acid, thanks to the interaction of man-made CO2 and natural conditions.

By the way, oysters are having a hard time reproducing, there hasn't been a good spawn in more than 5 years. Tough news for an oyster-producing region and for oyster lovers everywhere (and who doesn't love a good oyster!).

But hey, let's just ignore it and go blithely ahead loving our fossil fuels. And maybe I can dip my silver spoons in Puget Sound for cleaning in a few years.

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Our oceans are on fire

and the Flat Earth Society can't deny it. Human CO2 production is causing the scary Ocean Acid problem, and it's simple chemistry. There is scientific consensus, and the effects are bad.

I'm proud of my federal elected representatives for highlighting the ocean acid problem at a US Congress field hearing in Seattle yesterday. Senator Maria Cantwell chaired a Senate hearing, and invited Representative Jay Inslee to participate. Both of them prodded the scientific witnesses to offer their candid views of the problem.

Jay Inslee offered the memorable line that our oceans are on fire, I think he's right. Carbonic acid from CO2 dissolving in seawater is making our oceans more acid. It's happening NOW, and the risks to ocean food webs are very real and very scary. Ocean acid can dissolved calcium carbonate (bones and shells) when it gets severe, and recent studies show it has reached the shallow water off the US west coast.

This story is just beginning.

image: Planet Views

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