Project: CAREER: Biogeochemical Modification of Seawater CO2 Chemistry in Near-Shore Environments: Effect of Ocean Acidification

NSF Award Abstract:
Because of well-known chemical principles, changes in the CO2 chemistry of seawater in the open ocean as a result of rising atmospheric CO2 can be predicted very accurately. On the other hand, in near-shore environments, these projections are much more difficult because the CO2 chemistry is largely modified by biogeochemical processes operating on timescales of hours to months. To make predictions on how near-shore seawater CO2 chemistry will change in response to ocean acidification (OA), it is critical to consider the relative influence of net ecosystem production (NEP) and net ecosystem calcification (NEC), and how these processes might change in response to this major perturbation. Understanding how future OA will alter near-shore seawater CO2 chemistry and variability was identified as a major critical knowledge gap at the recent IPCC WG II/WG I workshop on impacts of ocean acidification on marine biology and ecosystems in January of 2011, and also at the International Ocean Acidification Network workshop in Seattle in June of 2012.

With funding from this CAREER award, a researcher at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography and his students will study how biogeochemical processes and the relative contributions from NEP and NEC modify seawater CO2 chemistry in near-shore environments influenced by different benthic communities under well-characterized environmental and physical conditions, and how these processes might change in response to OA. The team will investigate a limited number of contrasting habitats in subtropical (reef crest, back/patch reef, lagoon, seagrass bed, algal mat) and temperate (kelp bed, inter- and sub-tidal, marsh) environments during summer and winter, employing a method that evaluates the function and performance of the carbon cycle of a system using a stoichiometric vector approach based on changes in total dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA). These field studies will be complemented by controlled mesocosm experiments with contrasting and mixed benthic communities under different OA scenarios.

The project has two educational components: (1) developing a research-driven OA and biogeochemistry course based on inquiry-, experience-, and collaborative-based learning; and (2) working with the Ocean Discovery Institute (ODI) to engage individuals from a local underrepresented minority community in science through educational activities focused on OA, and also providing a moderate number of internships for high school and college students to engage in this research project.

Broader Impacts: This project will directly support one PhD student, one junior research technician, and two high school and college interns from underrepresented minorities (URM) each summer of the project. It will contribute to the education of 80 undergraduate and graduate students participating in the research based ocean acidification/biogeochemistry course offered four times throughout the duration of the project at SIO/UCSD. Education and curricular material on the topics of OA, including hands-on laboratories, classroom and field-based activities will be developed through the collaboration with the ODI and brought to hundreds of URM students and their teachers in the City Heights area, a community with the highest poverty and ethnic diversity in the San Diego region. This collaboration will enable URM students to directly engage in a rapidly evolving field of research that has high relevance at both the local and global scales. To ensure broad dissemination of this project and the topic of OA, the research team will work with the Google Ocean team to incorporate information and educational material in the Google Ocean Explorer.