Indicator Methodology for SDG 14.3.1: Indicator description; Metadata template; Data template; Metadata instructions.[ 4 files]

Abstract

This indicator is based on observations that constrain the carbon system, which are required to capture the variability in ocean acidity at locations providing ocean services. The carbon system in this context refers mainly to the four measurable parameters: pH (the concentration of hydrogen ions on a logarithmic scale), CT (total dissolved inorganic carbon), pCO2 (carbon dioxide partial pressure), and AT (total alkalinity). Ocean acidification is a reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period of typically decades or longer, which is caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere1. Ocean services are the benefits the ocean provides to people, which may be recreational, economic, environmental (by providing coastal protection) or cultural. Average2 as used herein is the equally weighted annual mean. A agreed suite of representative sampling stations are sites that: 1) have a measurement frequency adequate to describe variability and trends in carbonate chemistry to deliver critical information on the exposure of and impacts on marine systems to ocean acidification, 2) provide data of sufficient quality and with comprehensive metadata information to enable integration with data from other sites in the country.