PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 22, 2023
A new study co-authored by federal scientists and Massachusetts Maritime Academy staff and students suggests that increased ocean acidification could pose a threat to the sea scalloping industry in the Gulf of Maine and elsewhere along the Atlantic seaboard. It marks the first time that the impact of ocean acidification on sea scallops has been studied to this extent. Their study, which was published March 1, also found that pH levels – the measure of acidity – in the Gulf of Maine are dropping faster than at other locations on the East Coast, meaning acidity is increasing. Ocean acidification rises as the ocean absorbs more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.