Fossil fuel use, land use change and cement production have perturbed the global carbon cycle and have led to the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This has two major consequences, namely global warming and ocean acidification (?the other CO2 problem?). Sea surface water pH has decreased already by 0.1 unit since pre-industrial time, and based on atmospheric CO2 scenarios, it is projected to further decline by 0.0015-0.002 unit per year over the coming century. However, observations on the Washington coast and in the North Sea (Rijkswaterstaat monitoring) show stronger decreases of 0.045 and 0.02 unit per year, respectively. The North Sea is apparently acidifying 10 times faster than global ocean model predictions. Here we propose a detailed investigation of the spatial and temporal patterns of pH in the North Sea at a basin-wide scale using the high quality methodology in use by the international CO2 research community. This will generate the needed data to see whether the acidification of the North Sea is indeed occurring at such high pace. In addition, we will also elucidate the biogeochemical mechanisms governing the pH in North Sea waters, in particular the balance between production and respiration and the generation of alkalinity. As part of this investigation, we will apply a recently developed modelling technique to attribute pH changes to changing environmental parameters.

Phosphorus in an acidifying ocean. Ocean acidification from increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations is a global problem. It has potential negative, but currently poorly understood consequences for microscopic organisms (plankton) that live in the ocean and take up huge amounts of CO2, thereby affecting the functioning of the ocean as CO2 sink. In this project, researchers will shed light on a completely new aspect of this problem: what happens to the essential nutrient phosphorus in an acidifying ocean? By combining field work, laboratory experiments and computer models, the coupling between CO2, ocean acidification and phosphorus availability for plankton will be evaluated.

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What is the impact of climate change on monsoon precipitation? Climate models predict that global warming will lead to increased monsoon precipitation. However, instrumental records indicate that the strength of the Asian monsoon is actually weakening. The applicant will determine the influence of temperature change on monsoon precipitation based on climate shifts in the past.

Research conducted showed that metal nodules have an important function in deep-sea ecosystem as they provide hard substrate for different organisms, such as stalked sponges. Removing these nodules leads to a loss of the fauna that is directly or indirectly dependent on them which can be 20% in the Peru Basin and in the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone. However, nodule associated fauna has a very limited role in abyssal carbon cycling. Hence, depending on whether the impacts of deep-seabed mining on biodiversity or on carbon cycling are studied, research should either focus on fauna (biodiversity) or the microbial loop (carbon cycling)