Press release from the California Coastkeeper Alliance and the Natural Resources Defense Council:
Recently, California Coastkeeper Alliance, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and a coalition of environmental organizations called on Governor Newsom, the State Legislature and state agencies to take immediate and decisive action to protect California’s coast from the alarming impact of ocean acidification and hypoxia.
Recent research has shown that land-based nutrients discharged to the ocean from large coastal wastewater facilities are linked to ocean acidification and the loss of oxygen, creating ocean acidification and hypoxia hot spots. During late summer months, magnified by daily coastal sewage treatment plant discharges, ocean acidification and hypoxia hot spots form, causing marine habitat compression on average of 20% but up to 60% (vertically) for 25% (horizontally – over 1,000 square miles) of the Southern California Bight; even at distances of up to 50 miles offshore.
Under current climate change conditions, and getting worse with the growing amounts of CO2, shellforming organisms including Dungeness crab larvae and oysters are having a tougher time building their shells, and fish are experiencing behavioral changes that make them more vulnerable to predation. California’s OAH hot spots have acidified to the point that some plankton – tiny marine snails called pteropods – and Dungeness Crab larvae can experience “shell dissolution”. In common language, in these hot spots, ocean water has become so acidic that it causes shells to dissolve. Further, northern
anchovies do not have enough oxygen to thrive in large swaths of southern California’s coastal waters.
These disturbing impacts led environmental groups to urge the state to develop an Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Policy to prevent further exacerbation of hot spots along the California coast. “The science is alarming,” said Sean Bothwell, Executive Director of California Coastkeeper Alliance. “We know that coastal wastewater facilities are exacerbating the impacts of climate change and creating ocean acidification and hypoxia hot spots along the California coast – it’s time to act now to
stave off this pending environmental disaster. The good news is that this scientific research shows that water recycling with nutrient reduction, which can make Southern California’s water supply more reliable, can also help clean up our ocean waters.”
“Coastal nutrient pollution and rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere and ocean have led to habitat degradation at an unprecedented spatial scale off of California,” said Dr. Mark Gold of NRDC. “California must act quickly to stem the growing impacts of Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia on the state’s fisheries and marine biodiversity.”
Environmental advocates are calling on the state to develop an Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Policy to prevent further habitat degradation of our ocean and coastline. Specifically, the groups are asking that:
- The Governor and the Legislature allocate Budget funding for the State Water Board to develop an Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Policy that sets a technology-based water quality objective to remove nutrients from ocean wastewater discharges and reduce and stop ocean acidification and hypoxia hot spots.
- The State Water Board act immediately to begin establishing water quality limits and a policy for nutrient removal of ocean wastewater discharges. The 2020-2025 Ocean Protection Council Strategic Plan for California Coast and Ocean included the objective to “Minimize Causes and Impacts of Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia” with the target: “Based on the latest scientific research, advance adoption of regulations, as needed, establishing water quality objectives for ocean acidification and hypoxia that include, but are not limited to, publicly owned treatment works, stormwater, and non-point source pollution, by 2025.”
- The Legislature consider future Water Bond requirements for all ocean wastewater and associated water recycling facilities to include planning for denitrification as a prerequisite for Bond funding.
- The state to make bold resource investments within the next year to help build coastal advanced water treatment facilities in southern California (Pure Water San Diego, Pure Water Southern California and Operation Next/Hyperion 2035) that include denitrification in order to provide up to 500K acre feet per year of new water supply and reduce the impacts of ocean acidification and hypoxia.
While mitigating the widespread impacts of ocean acidification will take a generational and global effort to reduce CO2 emissions, California must act now to reduce and prevent ocean acidification hot spots through large reductions in nitrogen discharges to coastal waters. “With the help of the Clean Water Act, California can take clear steps to prevent ocean acidification and reduce direct harms to our ocean,” added Bothwell, “The ocean and coast is the heart of California’s economy and way of life – now is the time to act.”
ABOUT CALIFORNIA COASTKEEPER ALLIANCE – California Coastkeeper Alliance represents Waterkeepers programs statewide as they fight for drinkable, swimmable, fishable waters for all Californians. CCKA defends and expands California’s protective legislation and strengthens the function of our State Water Board. For more information, visit www.cacoastkeeper.org or @CA_Waterkeepers on social media.
ABOUT THE NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL – The NRDC is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 1.4 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world’s natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDCWater.
A Call to Action_Stop Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Hot Spots_4.8.2024_FINAL
