OACIS opens its call for projects

Call for projects

Ocean alkalinity enhancement – potential impacts on marine life and on society

 

The Ocean Acidification and other ocean Changes – Impacts and Solutions (OACIS) Initiative launches its second call for research projects on the potential biological and/or socio-economic and legal impacts of ocean alkalinity enhancement. This information is crucially lacking for making informed policy decisions.

Far from being just a victim of climate change, the ocean can also be part of the solution. A range of ocean-based measures have been proposed to counter the effects of climate change on the ocean, such as the development of marine renewable energy or the protection and restoration of blue carbon ecosystems (mangroves, seagrass beds, etc.). Another group of measures involve the active manipulation of Earth’s systems, such as ocean fertilization to increase carbon uptake by marine plankton, or ocean alkalinity enhancement: adding alkaline material to promote CO2 uptake and long-term carbon storage in a chemically neutral form. To date there are few studies on the impact that these types of measures might have on marine life, the governance around their implementation, and potential legal and socio-economic consequences.

While the chemical consequences of ocean alkalinity enhancement are relatively well known, many questions remain regarding technical implementation, cost effectiveness, legal aspects, and potential impacts on marine life. Despite its high potential effectiveness, this method is therefore considered a measure at concept stage.

This call for projects aims to promote the science needed to advance our understanding about the biological and ecological impacts of ocean alkalinity enhancement and/or potential socio-economic consequences.

 

The call will seek to respond to key questions such as (non-exhaustive list):

• Could ocean alkalinity enhancement trigger the deposition of calcium carbonate on plants and animals and if so, what are the consequences and how could it be avoided?
• Could ocean alkalinity enhancement overcome the negative impacts of ocean acidification in naturally acidified locations?
• What are the positive and/or negative impacts on shellfish and finfish aquaculture?
• What are the potential socio-economic and legal consequences and implications?

Selection criteria :

• Financial support in the range of €100,000 to €200,000 maximum, for a duration of 2 to 3 years.
• The contribution from OACIS should not exceed 70% of the total project budget.
• Projects must start no later than March 2024.
• Both laboratory and field studies as well as modeling approaches will be considered. Studies of legal and socio-economic consequences will also be considered.
• All ocean regions are eligible.

 

Timeline:

Step 1: The pre-application form must be sent by 2 May 2023 to the following email address: oacis@fpa2.org.

Step 2: Selected pre-applications will be informed rapidly after 2 May and invited to submit a full application form by 25 May 2023.

 

Instructions for downloading the files:

Download the pre-application form in pdf and fill it in (you need Adobe Acrobat Reader). To download: Right click on the document – Download.

 

 

About OACIS: The Ocean Acidification and other ocean Changes – Impacts and Solutions (OACIS) Initiative coordinated by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation is advancing science on the impacts of multiple climate stressors, including ocean acidification, on marine organisms and ecosystems, as well as potential ocean-based solutions to counter these impacts.

 

OACIS organizes expert workshops and round tables to promote the synthesis of the latest research. The initiative supports innovative research projects and capacity building activities to train the new generation of researchers on these topics, as well as the communication of scientific results to decision-makers and the general public.

 

Partners: Government of Monaco, IAEA Marine Environmental Laboratories, Monaco Scientific Centre, Oceanographic Institute, Villefranche-sur-mer Oceanographic Laboratory, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI).