For those sushi lovers over fishing is a serious problem but what about the acidification of the sea waters. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is increasing because of the fossil fuels we’re burning. It’s less well-known that the ocean soaks up a lot of this carbon dioxide, buffering humans from some of the impacts of climate change. However in acting as a giant CO2 sponge, the ocean’s chemistry is affected, causing ocean acidification.

Dissolved CO2 reacts with ocean water to form carbonic acid. Until the industrial revolution this chemical reaction had not been a problem because it was quite literally, a drop in the ocean. But then humans started burning fossil fuels more rapidly which ramped up CO2 production.

The only way to prevent ocean acidification is reduce CO2 emissions……