1. Environmental impact
1.1. Changes in the food webs due to the loss of animal species.
1.1.1. High acidity makes it more difficult for calcifying species to make their calcium structures such as shells, reefs, and exoskeletons. this provoques the loss of many species.
1.2. Migration of animals to unexpected regions due to the loss of coral reefs. 25 percent of all marine life and over 4,000 species of fish, are dependent on coral reefs.
1.2.1. Acidification decrease reef growth by reducing calcification rates & reproduction.
2. Society and economy
2.1. Humans have always relied on the ocean's resources for food, recreation, transportation and medicines. The important thing is to help people realize how they are personally connected to the ocean, and then to be able to explain to them how that connection is being jeopardized by ocean acidification. One of the most obvious connections people have with the ocean is seafood. For example, the food chain: Pteropods may seem insignificant to many people, but since they are a major food source for fish, their survival is very important to us, humans.
2.1.1. According to a U.N. report, Ocean acidification will cost the world economy more than $1 trillion annually by 2100. The report warns that various services to the economy provided by the ocean's ecosystem will be compromised by increased acidity due to increased carbon production.
3. Causes
3.1. The causes of the acidification of the water are the ones related to the emission of high concentrations of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere that directly affects the oceans. The main causes are:
3.1.1. * Burning of fossil fuels
3.1.2. * Deforestation
3.1.3. * Transportation
3.1.4. * Improper land management
3.1.5. * Industrialization
4. How it happens
4.1. Acidification is caused by CO2 absorption in the ocean water, and it happens through this process:
4.1.1. 1. As CO2 is dissolved into the ocean, H+ are released to the water.
4.1.2. 2. An increase in H+ increases acidity (pH decreases).
4.1.3. 3. The ion H+ combines with carbonate ions and form bicarbonate.