[Coral-List] pH or acidity?

[Charles Delbeek]

The Waikiki Aquarium has been growing stony and soft corals in open 
systems with low pH water from a saltwater well since the 1970s. The pH 
out of the ground is 5 and after aeration in a separate chamber climbs 
to about 7.6 and is then pumped to the exhibits, by the time the water 
exits the coral systems the pH is maybe 8. Coral grow wonderfully, 
calcium is about 380 ppm and alkalinity around 1.5 meq/L.

These systems were documented in:

Atkinson, Carlson and Crow. 1995. Coral growth in high nutrient, low-pH 
seawater: a case study of corals cultured at the Waikiki Aquarium, 
Honolulu, Hawaii. Coral Reefs 14(4):215-223.

If you're out there Marlin maybe you can elaborate on the followup work 
you did at Biosphere II?

Aloha!

-- 
J. Charles Delbeek M.Sc.
Aquarium Biologist III
Waikiki Aquarium
University of Hawaii
2777 Kalakaua Ave.
Honolulu, HI, 96815

(808) 923-9741 VOICE
(808) 923-1771 FAX