Great Barrier Reef's Waters Acidifying Rapidly - Taking "Decades Rather Than Centuries"

[hatrack]

WATERS around the Great Barrier Reef are becoming acidic at a higher-than-expected rate.

Ocean acidification, a side-effect of global warming, occurs when excess carbon dioxide dissolves into the ocean and becomes carbonic acid. It is potentially devastating for the marine environment, affecting corals, crustaceans and plankton in particular.

Professor Malcolm McCulloch of the Australian National University said the findings were worrying. "It appears this acidification is now taking place over decades rather than centuries as originally predicted." he said.

Researchers studied a type of reef coral called porites off Cairns and found pH levels were falling faster than previously thought, meaning acidity levels were increasing.

EDIT

http://www.theage.com.au/news/climate-watch/warming-turns-barrier-reef-acidic/2007/10/17/1192300858496.html

[kestrel91316]

1. ".......higher-than-expected rate......." Hmmm.....

this sounds vaguely familiar.

[XemaSab]

3. Deja vu all over again.

n/t

[tom_paine]

2. LOL, the Earth's "immuine system" is getting ready to turn on.

Wouldn't it be funny if the Earth spawned big fucking macrophages to come out of the ground and phagocysotsize us all?



I am trying to find more humor in the impending Dark Ages and extinction.