What can be done first and foremost is to prevent any further damage. This requires making a conscious effort to reduce our carbon footprint. There are many ways that can be done and here are a few:
-Walk, bike, or take public transit
-Avoid allowing your car to idle
-Install compact fluorescent bulbs in all your home light fixtures
-Unplug your electronics when not in use
-Eat more local, organic, in-season foods
-Plant a garden to produce the most local food possible
-Choose foods with less packaging to reduce waste
-Eat lower on the food chain more often
-Use second hand, recycled, or sustainably produced products
-Take shorter, less frequent showers
-Compost [10]
For more steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, click here
Secondly, we can create more marine protected areas and stop destructive fishing practices and pollution to help stabilize ecosystems so they can withstand acidification and temperature changes. Stricter policy should be enforced in regards to coastal development to mitigate habitat loss [9].
The Puget Sound Restoration Fund is a Washington-based non-profit organization aiming to restore marine habitat. Their goal is to mobilize funding and support from diverse sources to complete priority projects. This organization has made efforts to recover the Pinto Abalone in Washington, which is just one among many other marine-focused projects. For more information, visit their website.
I think more research on how rising water temperatures affect the prevalence of disease-causing organisms would be interesting.
