Advances in OA science in Washington: A overview and summary from the Washington Ocean Acidification Center
Presentation Abstract
The Washington Ocean Acidification Center (WOAC; coenv.uw.edu/oacenter) serves the state from its base in the College of the Environment at the University of Washington. The Center was established by the Washington State Legislature in 2013 to connect researchers, policymakers, industry, and others across Washington to advance the science of ocean acidification (OA) and provide a foundation for proactive strategies and policies to protect marine ecosystems and the people connected to them. To date, the Center has supported OA research in three areas: monitoring, modeling, and biological experiments on Washington species. Through interactions with the Marine Resource Advisory Council, the information and products from the research are provided to policy makers and managers.
We present a synthesis of key findings from many of the investigators funded through WOAC. These findings corroborate and extend earlier reports of impacts outside Washington state. Early results from biological experiments show that impacts may be most acute at earlier life stages and on zooplankton. Research performed by investigators from by UW and WWU found that krill experienced lower survival at higher levels of CO2. Research by NOAA scientists showed that crab experienced delayed development in early stages under conditions of both higher levels of CO2 and lower oxygen, a combination commonly found in benthic habitats of Washington. Monitoring of Washington waters by scientists from UW and NOAA revealed that aragonite saturation state in the Salish Sea is commonly corrosive to pteropods, a planktonic species that serves as an important prey item for fish, with hot spots of high corrosion in some productive sub-basins of Puget Sound. The variation in the water chemistry revealed by monitoring is being used by UW modelers to forecast conditions off the coast and within Puget Sound. The model results will provide an important additional adaptation tool for shellfish growers in Washington.
Session Title
Ocean Acidification in the Salish Sea
Conference Track
Climate Change and Ocean Acidification
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2016 12:00 AM
End Date
2016 12:00 AM
Location
2016SSEC
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Marine ecology--Research--Washington (State)--Puget Sound; Marine plankton--Washington (State)--Puget Sound
Subjects – Names (LCNAF)
University of Washington. College of the Environment; United States. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Geographic Coverage
Puget Sound (Wash.); Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Advances in OA science in Washington: A overview and summary from the Washington Ocean Acidification Center
2016SSEC
The Washington Ocean Acidification Center (WOAC; coenv.uw.edu/oacenter) serves the state from its base in the College of the Environment at the University of Washington. The Center was established by the Washington State Legislature in 2013 to connect researchers, policymakers, industry, and others across Washington to advance the science of ocean acidification (OA) and provide a foundation for proactive strategies and policies to protect marine ecosystems and the people connected to them. To date, the Center has supported OA research in three areas: monitoring, modeling, and biological experiments on Washington species. Through interactions with the Marine Resource Advisory Council, the information and products from the research are provided to policy makers and managers.
We present a synthesis of key findings from many of the investigators funded through WOAC. These findings corroborate and extend earlier reports of impacts outside Washington state. Early results from biological experiments show that impacts may be most acute at earlier life stages and on zooplankton. Research performed by investigators from by UW and WWU found that krill experienced lower survival at higher levels of CO2. Research by NOAA scientists showed that crab experienced delayed development in early stages under conditions of both higher levels of CO2 and lower oxygen, a combination commonly found in benthic habitats of Washington. Monitoring of Washington waters by scientists from UW and NOAA revealed that aragonite saturation state in the Salish Sea is commonly corrosive to pteropods, a planktonic species that serves as an important prey item for fish, with hot spots of high corrosion in some productive sub-basins of Puget Sound. The variation in the water chemistry revealed by monitoring is being used by UW modelers to forecast conditions off the coast and within Puget Sound. The model results will provide an important additional adaptation tool for shellfish growers in Washington.
Comments
coenv.uw.edu/oacenter