OCEANSWhy bother about the sustainability of the

world’s

OCEANSCOMPRISE

72%OF THESURFACE OF

THEEARTH

OCEANSSUPPORT MARINE BIODIVERSITY

OCEANSPROVIDENATURAL RESOURCES

OCEANSDRIVE

CLIMATE

HYDROLOGICAL CYCLES&

Oceans, seas, islands and coastal areas form an integrated and essential component of the Earth’s ecosystem and are critical for global food security and for sustainable economic prosperity and the well‐being of many national economies, particularly in developing countries.

-Johannesburg Plan of Implementation

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Oceans contribute to poverty eradication by creating sustainable livelihoods and decent work. Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal resources for their livelihoods. In addition, oceans are crucial for global food security and human health.

-UNDESA 2015

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In 2008, fish provided 3 billion people with at least 15 per cent of their animal protein. The same year, fish and aquatic plant sales amounted to $106 billion, and the fisheries industry provided livelihoods for about 540 million people, or 8 per cent of the world’s population.

-UNCSD 2012 In 2012, fisheries produced roughly 160 million tons of fish and generated over US$129 billion in exports while securing access to nutrition for billions of people and accounting for 16 percent of total global animal protein.

-World Bank 2015

ISSUES on OCEAN SUSTAINABILITY

Humans have developed and maintained strong ties with the marine environment for health, survival and recreation, utilizing the seemingly endless ocean resources available to us. But ocean resources and its resilience are finite. Unfortunately many of our daily activities, whether they intimately involve the ocean or take place hundreds of miles from the nearest coast, threaten the ocean.

-SeaWeb 

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A total 634 million people in the world live in coastal areas that lie at or below ten meters above sea level. Although these so-called Low Elevation Coastal Zones (LECZ) constitute only 2 percent of the Earth's land mass, they contain 10 percent of its population and have a higher rate of urbanization than the rest of the world. The economic boom of many countries in Asia is largely driven by policies that promote coastal development and encourage coastward migration.

-McGranahan, Balk & Anderson 2007 ”

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Recent estimates suggest that Indonesia may rapidly approach the limits to harvest growth in the fishery sector. The rising numbers of boats and industrial vessels has significantly increased the industry’s capacity to harvest fish stocks. The marine fishing fleet tripled in numbers in the last 20 years and now amounts to an estimated total of 460,000 vessels.

-World Bank 2009

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Pervasive poverty in coastal communities is coupled with extensive degradation of coastal resources. In the past 50 years, the proportion of degraded coral reefs in Indonesia has increased from 10 to 50 percent.

-World Bank 2009

Minerals and energy. Businesses turn to the oceans as a source of minerals and rare earth elements and natural

gas as resources on land start to decline.

Genetic materials. Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology breakthrough create demand for marine genetic resources.

Living marine resources. Global fish catch, deep-sea species such as corals and sponge, and other marine

organisms are transformed into around 18,000 products for human consumption.

Interconnected-Global Ocean Commission

INCREASING DEMAND FOR RESOURCES

drivers of ocean decline

Deep-sea access and exploitation. Deep-sea oil extraction and mineral mining have been expanding across

vast areas of the ocean including the Arctic.Vessels (distance and depth). Advancement in fishing vessel engine and equipment technology allows

for the operation of bigger trawls to catch greater quantities of fish.Increased (over-) extraction. Large scale commercial fishing in the high seas is made possible through more

sophisticated equipment such as sonar and fish aggregation devices.

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES

Interconnected-Global Ocean Commission

drivers of ocean decline

Overfishing. FAO reports that 2/3 of ocean fish stock are exploited to their maximum sustainable capacity, while 1/3 is already depleted beyond limit. The World Bank added the about USD50 billion is wasted annually due to mismanagement in the fisheries sector. are below 10% of their historical level.

Overcapacity. While global fish stocks is already on constant decline, the global fishing capacity is continuously increasing due to heightening competition.

Subsidies. Governments (Japan, China, EU, Russia and the US) issue at least USD30 billion in subsidies to the fisheries sector, encouraging unsustainable fishing practices.

Illegal Unreported Unregulated (IUU) Fishing. 35%o the global wild marine catch are illegal, unregulated and unreported, posting annual losses of USD23.5 billion. IUU fishing is linked to other international crimes such as drug smuggling and human trafficking.

DECLINE OF FISH STOCKS

Interconnected-Global Ocean Commission

drivers of ocean decline

Climate change and acidification. The ‘deadly trio’ of

acidification, warming, and deoxyfication are damaging the world’s oceans, which absorb large amounts of greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide. Today’s level of acidification is unparalleled

in the last 300 million years with massive impact on marine biodiversity.

Destructive fishing. Bottom trawling destroys about 15 million sqm of marine ecosystems across the ocean floor. Destructive fishing also include shark finning and driftnet deployment.

Pollution. Unregulated dumping of chemicals and massive plastic pollution have toxic impacts on oceans and marine life.

CLIMATE CHANGE, BIODIVERSITY AND HABITAT LOSS

Interconnected-Global Ocean Commission

drivers of ocean decline

•Interconnected-Global Ocean Commission

drivers of ocean decline

Patchwork Sectoral Governance. Existing high seas governance framework lacks basis on modern ecosystem understanding; is weak, fragmented and poorly implemented.

Compliance and enforcement. Weak enforcement and limited power to sanction illegal fishing activities in the

maritime industry.

New and emerging issues. No governance framework exists for energy production, geoengineering operations, and

genetic resource exploration and exploitation in the in the high seas.

WEAK HIGH SEAS GOVERNANCE

-UNESCO

POLLUTION AND WASTELand-based sources account for approximately 80% of marine pollution, globally. “

” 120,548 plastic bottles end up in landfills or the ocean every minute.-Jeff Bennett

"Marine debris – trash in our oceans – is a symptom of our throw-away society and our approach to how we use our natural resources."

-UNEP

-UNESCO

POLLUTION AND WASTEPlastic pollution threatens wildlife. “ ” -Plastic Pollution Coalition

There are now close to 500 dead zones with a total global surface area of over 245,000 km², roughly equivalent to that of the United Kingdom. 

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HOW THESE AFFECT MEImpact of declining ocean conditions on human population

Loss of habitat and biodiversity is increasingly impairing the ocean’s capacity to provide food and other services. The extinction of fish species could lead to starvation or under-nourishment.-UNESCO

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Environmental changes can affect the dynamics of waterborne diseases. When sea-surface temperatures increase, pathogens can become more concentrated in seawater, threatening to contaminate seafood and drinking water supplies in coastal communities. When sea levels rise, low-lying areas can become inundated with contaminated water. -The National Academy of Science

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Coastal communities are the first to be affected by the declining vitality of seas and oceans.

WHAT CAN BE DONE Solutions and actions towards ocean sustainability

We must accept it as our collective shared obligation and responsibility to ensure that we leave to future generations a planet that is productive and plentiful. The negative consequences of what is taking place beneath the waves must be brought to the forefront of international decision-making on sustainability, governance and development.

-Global Ocean Commission

Integrated ecosystem approaches and diversification of livelihoods and enterprise can improve sustainable development in all three pillars by providing the benefits of increased productivity and resilience of living marine resources (environmental pillar), by reducing the vulnerability of the coastal poor (social pillar) and increased incomes (economic pillar).

-UNESCO

The steps to building better coastal environmental management begin by appreciating the need for more sustainable practices, and the urgency with which sustainability should be achieved, while being confident that we already have most of the needed tools.

-UN University

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Find out as much as you can about this problem and educate your friends.Get involved: there are probably cleanup efforts happening near you! Don’t discard anything near the coast, when you go to the beach make sure you pick up after yourself. -UNESCO

                                                                 Ban toxic products from your boat-maintenance and don’t throw anything overboard. Use and overflow system to avoid oil spills, and maintain your boat regularly to avoid leaks. -UNESCO

Try to avoid using single-serving plastic items and replace them by reusable items (cloth bags, reusable cups and silverware, non-plastic bottles). -UNESCO

                                                                 Try to green your household and gardening chemical products, use them sparingly and wisely. Don’t use fertilizers before it rains or pour oil or chemicals down the drain: they would just end up in the ocean! -UNESCO

                                                                 Refuse excess packaging, try to re-use and recycle as much as possible. Remember that very little of the plastic produced each year is actually recycled and much of it finds its way to the ocean. -UNESCO

More on community solutions soon…

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