Not Cool Ep 21: Libby Jewett on ocean acidification

The increase of CO2 in the atmosphere is doing more than just warming the planet and threatening the lives of many terrestrial species. A large percentage of that carbon is actually reabsorbed by the oceans, causing a phenomenon known as ocean acidification — that is, our carbon emissions are literally changing the chemistry of ocean water and threatening ocean ecosystems worldwide. On Not Cool episode 21, Ariel is joined by Libby Jewett, founding Director of the Ocean Acidification Program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), who explains the chemistry behind ocean acidification, its impact on animals and plant life, and the strategies for helping organisms adapt to its effects. She also discusses the vulnerability of human communities that depend on marine resources, the implications for people who don't live near the ocean, and the relationship between ocean acidification and climate change.

Topics discussed include:

-Chemistry of ocean acidification

-Impact on animals and plant life

-Coral reefs

-Variation in acidification between oceans

-Economic repercussions

-Vulnerability of resources and human communities

-Global effects of ocean acidification

-Adaptation and management

-Mitigation

-Acidification of freshwater bodies

-Geoengineering