Ocean acidification

Names and classification

Record type

threat

Kauaʻi occurrence and status

Recorded state

Ongoing

Threats and conservation

Pressure source

Ocean uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide

Exposure pathway

Lower pH/carbonate availability can reduce calcification and affect marine organisms

Consequences

Reduced calcification, weaker reef-building capacity and altered physiology

Affected requirements

Coral and calcifier growth, reef accretion and physiological performance

Susceptibility

Corals, calcifying algae, molluscs and reef food webs

Reversibility

Not locally reversible; local stress reduction may improve resilience

Early warning indicators

pH; aragonite saturation; calcification/growth; carbonate chemistry

Conservation interventions

Implementation limits

Magnitude, exposure and trend are not assumed uniform across Kauaʻi; local evidence governs.

Sources and further reading

• https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/habitat-conservation/shallow-coral-reef-habitat

Connected Atlas records

• Coral reef & colonized hardbottom ecosystem · Ecosystems
• Reef flat, backreef & lagoon mosaic · Ecosystems
• Nearshore pelagic coastal-water ecosystem · Ecosystems