Ocean Acidification: getting the word out in ads and film

Ocean Acidification: a new piece of jargon in the ocean conservation vernacular but potentially a very big one. Many of you may already be aware of its implications; the increase in CO2 absorbed by the oceans producing everything from weakened shells to the overall destruction of corals, all due to an upset in the ocean's balance of calcium.

This is a relatively new discovery and many decision-makers are, for the most part, in the dark regarding the issue. Oceana.org is taking a step to correct that with an advertisement to run in Energy and Environment Daily, a publication read by many in the energy policy arena.

But it's been a tough year for non-profits and Oceana is in need of outside funding to cover the cost of running the ad. If you can make a contribution, click on this link to learn more.

"Congress needs to address ocean acidification now. The oceans have absorbed 500 billion tons of carbon dioxide since the Industrial Revolution and scientists predict a mass extinction of corals by the middle to end of this century - including a collapse of the world's largest barrier reef systems in Australia and Belize.

Help Protect Corals. Help put ocean acidification on Congress's agenda by supporting a new ad targeted at Congress.

More acidic oceans threaten the one-quarter of marine life that depends on coral reefs for food and shelter, as well as all animals that depend on carbonate to build their shells and skeletons, like corals, pteropods, and shellfish like oysters.

Help Oceana Advocacy Resources raise $5,000 by September 1 to run the new "This is Your Ocean on Acid" ad and to get this issue before Congress today.

The ad will run in Energy and Environment Daily, a news source read by thousands of the major players in energy policy in the U.S. and abroad, including congressional and federal agency leaders. We need to shift energy policy away from fossil fuels and mitigate the effects of ocean acidification now if we want coral reefs and other carbonate-dependent marine life to survive.

Did you know that the oceans are more acidic than they have been in 800,000 years and this change occurred one-hundred-times faster than ever before? There has been no time for marine life to adapt and if corals and shellfish disappear, it will have repercussions for sharks, sea turtles, marine mammals and many other animals that depend on them."

Also, whether you are well-versed or new to the issue of ocean acidification, check out the documentary A Sea Change, which has been playing in select theaters recently. Very enlightening and informative.