We have received increasingly alarming diagnoses about the health of the seas. Responsible for absorbing more than 90% of excess heat and nearly a quarter of global carbon dioxide emissions, the oceans are one of our greatest allies in the fight against climate change. Recently, a new warning shows the scale of the crisis: according to a report by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, marine acidification has become the seventh of nine planetary limits already crossed by global warming.
Since the beginning of the industrial era, the pH of the ocean surface has decreased, becoming 30% to 40% more acidic. This shift endangers marine ecosystems from beginning to end, threatens biodiversity and the entire food chain, and directly impacts human well-being. The main cause is the burning of fossil fuels, coupled with deforestation and predatory land use.
This is just one of the pressures on the oceans, which also face plastic pollution, overfishing, habitat destruction, and other current and future threats. All of this reinforces the urgency of putting oceans and coastal ecosystems at the center of discussions at the COP30, which begins on Monday (10) and continues until 21 November in Belém. The conference promises to be decisive given the seriousness of the climate crisis: it must be a COP for implementation!
The good news is that there are already open paths to follow and confront this negative and dangerous situation. In recent months, discussions have advanced on ongoing solutions that deliver measurable results – from mangrove restoration to marine planning – and that can and should serve as examples for countries anywhere on the planet.
Many of them will be showcased in Belém, within the plan to accelerate solutions to Goal 7 (“Efforts to restore and protect coastal and ocean ecosystems”) being developed in the context of the COP30 agenda.
Also in recent months, authorities and experts from around the world have intensified discussions on measures to protect the marine environment. In June, the “Blue NDC Challenge” (NDCs in Portuguese) was launched, led by Brazil and France, which expects solutions to the climate crisis based on oceans and coastal ecosystems – such as mangrove restoration and coastal and marine planning – to be included in national climate goals. Several countries have already joined, including Australia, Fiji, Kenya, Mexico, Palau and Seychelles. The goal is for more countries to do the same.
It is important to highlight that such measures not only protect the environment and combat global warming, but will be sufficient to defend it. But it also takes into account all the economic and social potential that the ocean offers, which is essential for human well-being to also be a key element.
Now, Brazil is expected to lead the “blue shift” at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30). The ocean must feature prominently in climate discussions, alongside topics such as forests and the energy transition, which deserve and should remain prominent, but with the ocean at their side.
The “Global Mutairao for the Ocean” proposal calls on governments, science, youth, traditional peoples and communities, the private sector and civil society to work together in a collaborative and inclusive effort.
Once again: There are already effective and implemented solutions that include protecting and restoring the marine environment. We don’t need to “invent the wheel” again. Of course, the task is not easy, as there are interests of all kinds. But with the help of political will on the part of all concerned sectors, we can achieve this goal.
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