What will be the challenges for commercial species under ocean acidification conditions?

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Evidence indicates that absorption of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) in the ocean has already decreased pH levels by 0.1 pH units since 1750, and CO2 concentrations are projected to rise further by the end of the century as fossil fuel reserves continue to be exploited. To date, a large proportion of ocean acidification (OA) research undertaken has tended to concentrate on benthic or planktonic species which are of limited direct importance to fisheries and aquaculture. Furthermore, some of the available evidence is contradictory with some studies demonstrating that species are robust to lower pH whilst others show marked sensitivity. There is still much research needed to understand some of the observed organisms’ responses to changes in pH under laboratory and under their natural environment. In the UK, fisheries generate more than £800 million of revenue per year and support 30,000 jobs. Aquaculture generates £350 million and supports a further 4,200 jobs. It is important to document the effects of ocean acidification on species of commercial importance. This presentation concentrates mainly on experimental work conducted on lobsters, cockles and scallops, providing further understanding on the effects of ocean acidification in connection to co-stressors, such as temperature and/or food availability. This work considers the main changes in the growth, development and shell composition of different species. This work also provides the contextual environmental variability observed in some of these areas, which is necessary to place the results into wider context. The outcomes of this research are paramount to understand the future climate change scenarios, which could have important economic and environmental consequences in commercially important shellfish. This information is deemed important for policy makers, scientists and conservation colleagues working on ocean acidification research.