Study: Global Warming To Blame For Lower Oyster Harvests

Scientists are blaming slightly higher levels of carbon dioxide
in Pacific Ocean waters caused by global warming for the failure of
oyster larvae to survive in an Oregon hatchery.
     They say the increasing acid levels in the water that comes with
more carbon dioxide makes it harder for young oysters to form their
shells, dooming them in a matter of days.
     The study appears in the online edition of the journal Limnology
and Oceanography.
     Lead author Alan Barton, production manager at the Whiskey Creek
Shellfish Hatchery on Netarts Bay, says the study was the first to
take the issue out of the laboratory and look at real-life
conditions in ocean water.
     He adds that oyster farms up and down the coast have been hit by
the problem.