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Ocean Acidification

The National Sea Grant College Program (Sea Grant) funds research, education, and extension projects to improve community understanding of ocean and coastal acidification.

Industries depending on living marine resources are increasingly concerned about impacts of ocean acidification (OA) on marine ecosystems and subsequent social and economic impacts. Sea Grant funded research projects are designed to respond to stakeholder research questions and evaluate local environmental impacts and societal dependence on impacted species, to facilitate adaptive management strategies. As part of a broader NOAA-wide ocean acidification initiative, Sea Grant provides resource to coordinate regional and state efforts and clearly communicate how OA is affecting U.S. waters and living marine resources.

Ocean Acidification Research Projects (PDF)

Meet the Experts

Wei-Jun Cai, Ph.D.
Professor, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, University of DelawareDr. Wei-Jun Cai is a co-prinicpal investigator on a Delaware Sea Grant-funded project exploring the relationships of nutrients, pH and acidification to explain and possibly predict Delaware Bay water quality shifts over time.
Professor, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, University of Delaware
George Waldbusser, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State UniversityDr. George Waldbusser is currently the principal investigator of an Oregon Sea Grant-funded project examining the response of Oregon pink shrimp larvae to ocean acidification and warming.
Associate Professor, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University
Rob Hein
Aquaculture Technician, Georgia Sea GrantRob Hein provides technical assistance to Georgia Sea Grant's oyster hatchery that is the sole provider of seed to oyster growers in the state.
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Wei-Jun Cai, Ph.D.
Professor, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, University of DelawareDr. Wei-Jun Cai is a co-prinicpal investigator on a Delaware Sea Grant-funded project exploring the relationships of nutrients, pH and acidification to explain and possibly predict Delaware Bay water quality shifts over time.
Professor, College of Earth, Ocean and Environment, University of Delaware
George Waldbusser, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State UniversityDr. George Waldbusser is currently the principal investigator of an Oregon Sea Grant-funded project examining the response of Oregon pink shrimp larvae to ocean acidification and warming.
Associate Professor, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University
Carolyn Friedman, Ph.D.
Rob HeinAquaculture Technician, Georgia Sea Grant - Rob Hein provides technical assistance to Georgia Sea Grant's oyster hatchery that is the sole provider of seed to oyster growers in the state.
Rob Hein
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SINCE 2008, SEA GRANT HAS PROVIDED

$110,000,000

in research funding 

Sea Grant provides this funding to support innovative research that furthers the understanding of the effects of OA and related impacts on coastal communities, economies, fisheries and ecosystems

Featured Ocean Acidification Impacts

Sea Grant & Ocean Acidification Program Partnership

NOAA’s Ocean Acidification Program (OAP) and Sea Grant began a partnership in 2016 to prioritize and invest in regional ocean and coastal acidification research to help coastal communities better adapt to ocean change. This partnership has helped address regional priority research needs and increased regional awareness of OA concerns.

In 2018, the Mid Atlantic Sea Grant Programs and OAP funded a new regional Ocean Acidification Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Six fellowships were awarded through a competitive selection process to provide Masters and Doctoral students two years of funding during the 2018 and 2019 academic years. The fellowship will support student academic expenses, provide professional development opportunities, and facilitate interaction with ocean, coastal, and estuarine acidification stakeholders in the region.  For more information please see the fellowship announcement here:  https://spark.adobe.com/page/Ks4E6iiEfHLwG/ The following students and projects were funded through this regional initiative:
 Amanda Zahorik  Delaware Sea Grant  Ocean Acidification and microbially-mediated shell calcification in the Eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica
 Anthony Himes  Virginia Sea Grant  Influence of salinity history on future ocean acidification tolerance in larval Eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica, in Chesapeake Bay
 Caroline Schwaner  New York Sea Grant  Identifying Molecular Markers associated with Resilience to Ocean Acidification in the Eastern oyster and the Northern quahog
 Elizabeth Wright-Fairbanks  New Jersey Sea Grant  Assessing the susceptibility of Atlantic sea scallops and surf clams to ocean acidification using glider-based monitoring and larval transport models
 Fei Da  Virginia Sea Grant  Chesapeake Bay acidification: From daily forecasts to half-century projections
 Teresa Schwemmer  New York Sea Grant  Physiology-based modeling of estuarine fishes and ecosystems under ocean acidification
In 2016, the Northeast Sea Grant Consortium, in partnership with OAP, funded four 2-year research projects to address the impacts of OA on key resource species in the northeast as an aid to assist coastal communities in adapting to current and future OA conditions in the region. The following ongoing research projects were funded through this regional initiative:
 Diana Padilla  New York Sea Grant  Flexing mussels: Does Mytilus edulis have the capacity to overcome effects of Ocean Acidification?
 Bassem Allam  New York Sea Grant  Probing molecular determinants of bivalve resilience to ocean acidification
 Richard Wahle  Maine Sea Grant  Genetic and phenotypic response of larval American lobster to ocean warming and acidification across new England’s steep thermal gradient
 Hannes Baumann  Connecticut Sea Grant   Sensitivity of larval and juvenile sand lance Ammodytes dubius on Stellwagen Bank to predicted ocean warming, acidification and deoxygenation

Ocean Acidification News
Aquaculture

NOAA Sea Grant and Ocean Acidification Program projects to examine impacts of stressors on shellfish aquaculture

NOAA Sea Grant and the Ocean Acidification Program awarded more than $2.4 million to support projects that will address the impacts of multiple stressors on and increase resilience in shellfish aquaculture through research and industry partnerships. These projects will expand collaborations between researchers and the shellfish aquaculture industry throughout all aspects of the scientific process.

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September 29, 2021
Functional Areas

Sea Grant Makes Waves at Ocean Sciences 2020

Sea Grant is excited to share its research, education and extension work from across the nation at the Ocean Sciences Meeting 2020. The gathering of ocean scientists and other professionals will take place in San Diego, CA from February 16-21, 2020.

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February 12, 2020
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