1. what can WE do about ocean acidification?
Lesson 5 of 5
Developed by Brian Erickson ©2019

2. What have we learned?
Ocean acidification is a change in ocean chemistry due to increasing levels of anthropogenic CO2 in the atmosphere
Lots of things change when CO2 enters seawater: pH, carbonate, Ω…
There will likely be changes to ecosystems & impacts to humans
but…
The entire ocean won’t die
The ocean won’t be acidic (below pH < 7)
Most living marine organisms won’t have their shells dissolve
Oceans and people are interconnected
Say: Today we’re going to think about solutions to ocean acidification, things that people like you can do to reduce ocean acidification. I wanted to start with a short video clip. I wanted you all to hear what I think is a pretty powerful message from Mark, one of the owners of Whiskey Creek Shellfish Hatchery.

3. Lesson 5 video

4. What can we do? Deal with the cause Short-term fixes Learn more
Reduce anthropogenic CO2
Short-term fixes
restoring local water chemistry
Learn more
Citizen science
Support research Be a scientist
Say: When I think about trying to “fix” ocean acidification, I put ideas into three big buckets: dealing with the cause, buying time, and learning more about the problem. We’ll spend our time thinking about carbon dioxide, ways to reduce it, and which actions have the greatest impact. We don’t have time today to discuss ways to improve local water chemistry while CO2 emissions are being addressed, nor do we really have time to discuss ways to support efforts to better understand ocean acidification.
Improving water chemistry:
Increase photosynthesis
Reduce sewage pollution

5. Brainstorm (on your own):
What actions could be taken to reduce CO2 emissions in the U.S.?
What might prevent someone from taking one or more of the actions you listed?
List your ideas in your notes
We’re going to start by brainstorming on our own. Work on group creativity suggests that groups come up with more ideas and a larger variety of ideas when individuals are given a chance to think on their own first before sharing as a group.
Take 2 minutes to list actions that could be taken to reduce CO2 emissions in the U.S. and things that might prevent people from taking these actions.
(teacher: Draw a line down the middle of the board. At the top of the left side, write “Actions,” on the right side write “Barriers.” After giving students 2 minutes to work on their own, ask students to share out ideas, write them on the board.)
(note- Possible barriers include: knowledge of problem, knowledge/skills of how to help, time, money, political power, forgetting, motivation, convenience, it’s up to someone else (lack of ownership)…)

6. What is the most effective thing you could do to conserve energy?
Say: You’ve just listed several actions that could be taken to reduce CO2 emissions, and thus reduce ocean acidification since anthropogenic CO2 is the main cause of ocean acidification. You’ve also come up with numerous explanations for why people, even people who care and want to do something, might not take action.
Say: Now we are going to go beyond just thinking of possible actions and move toward being strategic about prioritizing which actions to take. It’s not very common to talk about the impact of different CO2 reduction actions. Usually we talk about what would be easy, or inexpensive, or what’s in our control, we don’t talk about how much CO2 is removed or prevented by actions.
Take seconds to write an answer in your notes. You don’t need to be right, I’m just trying to figure out what you initially think of.
(Note- energy is meant as a broad term that includes electricity as well as energy used to fuel cars, natural gas for heating and cooking, etc. Don’t clarify for students before brainstorming, but be aware of whether they interpret energy as electricity, fuel, or something else)
Write your best guess in your notes

7. The Short List
Back in 2008, there was a research study published that sorted through possible actions American households could take and came up with a list of 9 low-cost actions that would have the largest impact. We are going to explore some of the ideas from this paper. We are trying to think about how we can get the most bang for our buck, or in other words, how we can be sure that the actions we are taking make a difference.
What are the most effective actions U.S. households can take to reduce their CO2 emissions?

8. Card sort: Each group gets a stack of cards
Each card lists an action you could take to reduce household energy use
Organize the cards from the most effective to least effective actions to reduce energy use
Most energy saved  least energy saved
You might not know the “right” answers; take your best guess
Say: Each group will get a stack of cards. Each card lists an action you could take to reduce household CO2 emissions. With your group, organize the action cards from the most effective to least effective actions to reduce energy use. In other words, from the actions that would save the most energy to the actions that would save the least energy.
Give student groups 3-5 minutes for this initial card sort, then show them data of where energy was used in a typical U.S. home in 2008 (next slide)

9. Transportation is 43% of U.S. household energy use
Typical U.S. household energy use
Of energy used on transportation…
Say: Now that you have an initial guess, I wanted to show you some data about how households use energy.
43% of typical household energy use goes to transportation. The vast majority of which goes to driving personal cars and trucks. Thus transportation habits have a large impact on household energy use.
Mostly from driving personal cars/trucks
Data modified from Gardner & Stern The Short List…

10. Heating & cooling is 44% of in-home energy use
In-Home Uses
% of In-home Energy Used
Space heating/cooling 44
Electronics (small appliances, motors, TVs…) 12
Water heating 11
Lighting
Refrigeration & freezing 8
Clothes washing/drying 4
Cooking 3
Dishwashers
0.4
Of the energy that is used inside a home, 44% goes to heating and cooling spaces, followed by electronics, water heating, lighting, refrigeration, washing, and cook. Notice how little of total household energy goes to dishwashers.
Say: With this new information, take 1-2 minutes to make any adjustments to the order of your action cards.
Data modified from Gardner & Stern The Short List…

11. 1. Buy a more fuel-efficient vehicle 13.5
Action
Energy Saved (%)
1. Buy a more fuel-efficient vehicle
13.5
2. Adjust your driving habits
8.3
3. Insulate your attic
7.0
4. Install a more efficient heater/AC unit
5.1
4. Maintain your vehicle
6. Carpool to school with one other person
4.2
7. Replace 85% of incandescent lightbulbs with LEDs
4.0
8. Replace old windows with high-efficiency ones
3.7
9. Use less heat/ air conditioning
3.4
10. Wash clothes in cold water
1.2
11. Install a more efficient washing machine
1.1
11. Line dry clothes 5-months of the year
Discuss: How does your list compare to this actual table of results? Were there any surprises?
What’s the main point? While we often talk about actions that could reduce impacts, we don’t often talk about the ones that would be the most effective.
Many of the actions on this list are expensive (like buying a new car; although if you were already buying a car, getting one with higher gas mileage might not change the upfront cost at all). What are the most effective low-cost actions you could take to reduce your household energy use, and thus, your CO2 emissions?
Data modified from Gardner & Stern The Short List…

12. You can affordably reduce home energy use by ~27%
Action
Energy Saved (%)
Adjust driving style
5.6
Maintain your car
5.1
Carpool to school/work
4.2
Combine errands
2.7
Adjusting driving habits saves ~18% Strategic in-home adjustments saves ~9%
Switch to 85% CFL bulbs
4.0
Adjust your home temp.
3.4
Cold-wash clothes water
1.2
Hang clothes to dry
1.1
(Students have this list in their notes.)
Right now you could affordably reduce household energy use by ~27%
Adjusting your driving habits saves ~18% of household energy use
Switching to CFL (or LEDs!), slightly adjusting your thermostat, and washing clothes in cold water saves ~9% more
Switching to a fuel efficient vehicle and insulating your home could reduce energy use by an additional ~21%

13. You could reduce home energy use by nearly 50%
Action
Energy Saved (%)
Adjust driving style
5.6
Maintain your car
5.1
Carpool to school/work
4.2
Combine errands
2.7
Adjusting driving habits saves ~18% Strategic in-home adjustments saves ~9% Buying a more fuel efficient vehicle and insulating your home saves ~23%
Switch to 85% CFL bulbs
4.0
Adjust your home temp.
3.4
Cold-wash clothes water
1.2
Hang clothes to dry
1.1
(Students have this list in their notes.)
Right now you could affordably reduce household energy use by ~27%
Adjusting your driving habits saves ~18% of household energy use
Switching to LEDs, slightly adjusting your thermostat, and washing clothes in cold water, and hang-drying clothes 5 months/year saves ~9% more
Switching to a fuel efficient vehicle and insulating your home could reduce energy use by an additional ~21%
30+ MPG vehicle
13.5
Home insulation
9.5

14. What saves more CO2 over a year?
A side note about the impact of planting trees. While replanting forests is one way to increase the amount of CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere, the impact of planting one tree (and keeping it alive for 30 years) is likely less than what most students expect:You would have to plant, and keep alive, about 6 trees to roughly equal the CO2 emissions saved by changing one 43-watt incandescent light to a CFL.
(according to the EPA, changing one 43 watt incandescent light to a 9 watt LED saves .03 metric tons CO2/bulb replaced over the course of a year. Based on calculations from the EPA:
Planting 1 tree
removes ~10 lbs CO2/ year
Planting 1 tree?
Changing 1 lightbulb
saves ~60 lbs CO2/ year
Changing 1 lightbulb?

15. You’d have to plant 6 trees to equal the CO2 savings of changing 1 lightbulb
A side note about the impact of planting trees. While replanting forests is one way to increase the amount of CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere, the impact of planting one tree (and keeping it alive for 30 years) is likely less than what most students expect:You would have to plant, and keep alive, about 6 trees to roughly equal the CO2 emissions saved by changing one 43-watt incandescent light to a CFL.
(according to the EPA, changing one 43 watt incandescent light to a 9 watt LED saves .03 metric tons CO2/bulb replaced over the course of a year. Based on calculations from the EPA:

16. You can be one of those people who help us find a way to tackle ocean acidification