Puget Sound's Acid Test

You've heard of ocean acidification - the pH drop in our oceans caused by the uptake of all that carbon we're pumping into the atmosphere.

Atmospheric carbon dioxide dissolves in seawater, producing dilute acids that raise the water's corrosiveness. As seawater becomes more corrosive, it can essentially dissolve the shells of small crustaceans, shellfish larvae and other tiny creatures at the base of the food chain

Marine scientists have now begun looking at the effect of acidification in an urbanized estuary, i.e. Puget Sound. After all, the Sound is subject to the same atmospheric carbon that's turning the Pacific Ocean's acidity up. The Sound, however, gets a double whammy. Not only is there the effect of uptake, but the Sound receives water flow from the Pacific Ocean. Whatever acidity problems the Pacific has, the Sound gets as well. The study found that ocean input was a significant contributor to Puget Sound acidification. A quarter to half of the decline in pH in the deep waters of the Hood Canal basin are attributed to the water flushed in to the Sound.