FY 2020 West Coast region acidification research Busch, D.S., S. Alin, R.A. Feely, P. McElhany, M. Poe, B. Carter, J. Leonard, D. Lipski, J. Roletto, C. Stepien, and J. Waddell Chapter 5 in NOAA Ocean, Coastal, and Great Lakes Acidification Research Plan: 2020-2029, Jewett, E.B., E.B. Osborne, K.M. Arzayus, K. Osgood, B.J. DeAngelo, and J.M. Mintz (eds.), https://oceanacidification.noaa.gov/ResearchPlan2020 (2020) The West Coast Region includes the U.S. coastal waters off of Washington, Oregon, and California including the continental shelf and inland seas. These waters are influenced by adjacent regions and are collectively referred to as the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME). This region is an eastern boundary current system marked by seasonal upwelling, which brings old, cold, and low-pH, carbon-rich subsurface waters to the ocean surface and drives significant regional pH and temperature variability. The CCLME is home to a highly productive ecosystem yielding economically and culturally significant fisheries including salmon and Dungeness crab. NOAA’s West Coast Region research goals are to: Sustain and develop time-series that integrate carbonate chemistry and biological observations in habitats that are critical to commercially and ecologically important species, and use this knowledge to improve high-resolution regional models; Characterize species sensitivity to direct and indirect impacts of ocean acidification (OA) and evaluate the potential for species adaptation and acclimation; and Improve the understanding of the socieoconomic risk and vulnerability of fishing and coastal communities to OA in order to develop informed adaptation strategies. Feature Publications | Outstanding Scientific Publications Contact Sandra Bigley | Help