Why the [U.S.] EPA Doesn’t Regulate Ocean Acidification

| September 13, 2016 | Leave a Comment

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Date of Publication: September 13, 2016

Year of Publication: 2016

Publisher: The Atlantic Monthly Group

Author(s): Robinson Meyer

Journal: The Atlantic

Robinson Meyer reports on the Center for Biological Diversity‘s recent suit of the US federal government:

The Center for Biological Diversity, a major American climate advocacy group, has been trying to force the U.S. to more aggressively track and test for the phenomenon almost a decade. Last Thursday, the nonprofit sued the federal government to force the EPA to regulate ocean acidification under the Clean Water Act.

Specifically, the Center wants the agency to release a water-quality standard for ocean acidification—a move that will force all 50 states to adopted either the EPA’s standard or a more stringent one.

Even if successful, having an established water-quality standard for acidification will face two challenges: (1) the best way to measure ocean acidification remains unclear; and (2) the standard would not allow regulation of carbon dioxide emissions –a major cause of acidification.

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