TIME FOR ACTION
In this report, we have set out how important the ocean and ocean ecosystems are for carbon cycling, sequestration and storage. We have explored how the oceans contribute to the regulation of the Earth’s climate, how they are currently under assault from a range of threats associated with the rapid increase of human-induced emissions of CO2, and how other destructive and extractive human activities, such as deep sea mining and overfishing, compound these threats. The ways in which climate change and these threats interact is unpredictable and worrying. Major disruption of ocean ecosystems is already occurring with knock-on consequences for the ecosystem services they provide. The need for urgent action could not be more stark. The science is crystal clear: climate-related risks for natural and human systems are lower for global warming of 1.5°C than at 2°C. These risks will be shaped by a multitude of factors, including the magnitude and rate of warming, geographic location, levels of development and vulnerability, and the choices and implementation of adaptation and mitigation options.274 For example, the probability of a sea-ice-free Arctic summer increases tenfold, from once a century at 1.5oC warming to once a decade at 2oC. 2oC virtually wipes out coral reefs, compared to a 70-90% decline at 1.5oC.275 Taking in the magnitude and pace of the climate emergency, it is therefore incumbent on the Parties to the Paris Agreement to both ramp up ambition and take drastic action to slash emissions. Current pledges won’t limit climate change to 2oC, let alone 1.5oC. Countries must commit, as soon as possible and no later than 2020, to strengthening national climate plans and associated NDCs in line with the 1.5oC limit. It is also vital that finance and support for poor and vulnerable countries is both scaled-up and assured. However, a fundamental shortcoming of the Paris Agreement is that it does not safeguard the diversity of life on Earth. Many scientists and others believe that unless there is concerted action to save the Earth’s biodiversity, conducted together with the efforts to slash
A Weddell seal and gentoo penguin on Greenwich Antarctica 64 Island, IN HOT WATER: THE CLIMATE CRISIS AND THE URGENT NEED FOR OCEAN PROTECTION © Paul Hilton / Greenpeace
before have we "Never had such awareness of
what we are doing to the planet. Never before have we had such power to do something about it." —David Attenborough
emissions, the ambitions of the Paris Agreement will not be met, not least because protecting and restoring natural ecosystems, including those in the marine realm, are essential for sequestering and storing carbon. Beginning with the UNFCCC COP 25 in December 2019 and running up until the CBD meeting in October 2020, the next year sees a series of global political meetings that collectively constitute a unique window of opportunity for the world’s governments. They must take the necessary steps to integrate the various political processes, harness synergies and make decisions that will bring about transformative changes. These changes must address climate breakdown, biodiversity loss and ocean protection at a global scale and make significant progress towards achieving a number of the agreed SDGs. Increasingly, 2020 is being seen as a once in a generation opportunity that we cannot squander or, as David Attenborough said at the end of his Blue Planet 2 series, 'Never before have we had such awareness of what we are doing to the planet. Never before have we had such power to do something about it.’ A failure to act immediately will not only have dire repercussions for marine life, but for each and every one of us.
TIME FOR ACTION
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