Saving Seafood

Upcoming UN Report underlines huge stakes involved, achievable steps to realize 2030 goals and world’s 2050 vision for nature

February 21, 2020 — The following was released by the Convention on Biological Diversity:

The UN’s Global Biodiversity Outlook 5, to debut Mon. May 18, outlines a combination of achievable actions needed to protect nature, ecosystems and nature’s contributions to people, as it underlines the enormous stakes for humanity involved in the success of those efforts.

The report synthesizes comprehensive evidence of the urgent need for action as nations negotiate a 10-year global framework for biodiversity-related policy-making, and prescribes demonstrated pathways to reach new targets for nature to 2030, and the world’s previously-agreed vision for 2050: ‘Living in harmony with nature.’

The framework and targets will be considered at an historic UN Biodiversity Conference — the 15th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), Kunming, China, Oct. 15-29.

GBO5 builds on a wide range of sources, including

  • Four previous GBO reports (2001, 2006, 2010, 2015)
  • Assessments by IPBES (the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services), including 2019’s landmark Global Assessment, which referenced nearly 15,000 information sources
  • Recent research and indicators updated since the IPBES GA
  • 6th National Reports to the CBD from the Convention’s member Parties
  • Reports from international bodies, including the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and others
  • Plant Conservation Report (Global Strategy For Plant Conservation targets, 2011-2020)
  • Local Biodiversity Outlook (relating to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities)

GBO5 offers an integrated overview of the world’s achievements and shortfalls with respect to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (2010-2020), and draws the essential links between biodiversity and other key international objectives, such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals), and the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

It examines causes of biodiversity and ecosystem change, the implications for people, and policy options based on programs worldwide that demonstrate successful approaches.

Says Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Executive Director of the CBD:

“Over the past several months, the public in general and especially our youth have demonstrated unprecedented levels of concern about biodiversity loss and the state of nature. Behind these rising calls to halt the degradation of ecosystems and the loss of species and genetic diversity is a growing understanding of the severe threat these challenges pose to human well-being.”

“To succeed in protecting nature, and ourselves, we need knowledge of both the problems and solutions to reach people at every level, and to inspire the resolve to act. In this ‘super year for biodiversity,’ GBO5 represents an important milestone on the fateful road to COP15 in Kunming, China, October 15-29.”

Structure of the GBO5:

Roughly 100-pages, three sections:

Introduction: Recaps conclusions of GBO3 and GBO4, places biodiversity conservation and protection in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals, Paris Climate Change Agreement

Biodiversity in 2020: Provides a ‘verdict’ on Aichi Biodiversity Targets, identifying shortcomings and areas of achievement and success; builds on the IPBES Global Assessment with recent research and updated indicators, illustrations from the 6th National Reports to the CBD, and a wide variety of additional sources

Transitions to a better future: Identifies a set of ambitious, interlinked and essential changes to reach sustainability; outlines key transitions required in land use, food systems, agriculture, fisheries, cities, climate action, and fresh water. Includes examples which, replicated, scaled up, and supported by economy-wide measures, would support progress toward the agreed vision: living in harmony with nature by 2050.

Expected impacts

GBO5 will:

  • Update the evidence-based knowledge base to inform policy making for the decade ahead
  • Demonstrate the close links and dependencies between meeting objectives for nature, climate change and other components of sustainable development.
  • Raise awareness of the importance of transformational multi-sectoral policies and governance structures, including the effects that policies and other indirect drivers have at a global scale and options to improve trans-regional policy-making

Audiences

GBO5 is presented with a wide audience of readers in mind, including government and business leaders, civil society groups, indigenous peoples and communities.

Timeline

2010: GBO3, evaluated progress against targets to 2010, informed a new decadal global framework and strategic plan

2014: GBO4, mid-term progress assessment

2020: GBO5, evaluates Aichi Targets (2010-2020), informs post-2020 global framework

Friday, 21 Feb., 09:30h US Eastern time: GBO5 “primer” released at outset of the 2nd meeting, Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (OEWG2020), Rome, Feb. 24-29. http://bit.ly/CBDMediaBriefing21-02-20

Mon. 18 May, 09:00h US Eastern Time (13:00 GMT / 14:00 in UK, 15:00 CET):
GBO5 news conference launch, CBD Secretariat, Montreal

Webcast: www.cbd.int/live

Media off-site will be able to submit questions

GBO5 accreditation: Media, NGOs

By accrediting you are agreeing to accept and abide by the date and time of the embargo that will be placed on the respective materials. This means you agree to neither publish, air, nor circulate any of these materials in any form prior to the embargo being lifted. You may approach third parties for comment during the embargo period but only if they agree, in turn, to abide by the same restrictions.

To apply, please:

Email: GBO5Accreditation@gmail.com
Subject line: Accredit GBO5

Specify online or site accreditation

Online: advance access (from Tues. 12 May) to GBO5 news release, full report, other media resources. Requires consent to a strict embargo: 09:00h US Eastern Time, Mon. 18 May.

Site: grants ‘online’ accreditation and access to the news conference

Please include the following information:

  • Organization
  • First Name
  • Surname
  • Gender
  • Country
  • Twitter ID
  • Email address
  • Telephone number
  • Mobile number
  • Position

Media are asked to attach a scan of a valid press card or letter of assignment on company stationery. If you do not have a press card (e.g. a regular blogger but not a formal media employee), please instead submit a recent sample of your work in a subject area related to the work of the CBD

REP. CHELLIE PINGREE: Maine’s oceans affected by climate change

December 27, 2019 — The United Nation’s (UN) 25th annual Conference of the Parties (COP25) — a meeting of nearly 200 countries to discuss international action on climate change — took place in Madrid earlier this month. Around 25,000 people attended and focused, among other topics, their efforts on the role of oceans in the climate crisis.

Our oceans, including the Gulf of Maine, are already feeling the effects of climate change. Ocean acidification and sea level rise threaten Maine’s coastal communities and economy. A recent report by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy shows that, without action on climate change, we could see a major decline in fish and irreversible harm to our coral reefs. And September’s U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report showed that the climate crisis could lead to sea level rise of more than three feet by the end of the century, coastal homes and islands becoming uninhabitable, and a collapse in fisheries.

Despite these threats, there is reason for hope. Oceans make up two-thirds of Earth’s surface and have the potential to absorb and store more carbon dioxide than land. Increasing the amounts of this “blue carbon” that we capture could help address the climate crisis. Waves, tides, and offshore wind could all also be harnessed to generate “blue” electricity and power our homes and businesses.

As countries around the world are working to develop ambitious policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the health of our oceans is taking center stage. Chile, which is leading the work of COP25, is launching a platform of ocean solutions, like creating marine protected areas, promoting sustainable fisheries, enhancing recycling capabilities, and banning single-use plastics.

Read the full opinion piece at the Portland Press Herald

Climate change reports point to eating more seafood as a way to help save the planet

November 8, 2019 — The United Nations’ Climate Action Summit in New York, which kicked off Climate Week at the end of September, may be long over, but the activities that took place around the world – and the strong messaging about the need to find solutions to save the planet from global warming – reached an unprecedented number of people this year.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a post-summit special report which outlined the major changes being observed in the earth’s oceans and frozen regions. The report concluded that the negative effects of warming oceans, melting ice, and rising sea levels already being experienced will accelerate in future decades.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Half the World’s Coral Reefs Already Have Been Killed by Climate Change

October 11, 2019 — The oceans have long been the biggest buffer for humankind’s dangerous greenhouse-gas emissions. Around a quarter of all the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere since the 1980s—from driving cars, running factories and churning out electricity with fossil fuels—has ended up sunk into the waters. As the planet has warmed from mounting emissions, the oceans warmed first and fastest, absorbing 90% of that excess heat. A report released last month by the UN-based Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the foremost scientific authority on the subject, warned that damage to the oceans is accelerating and may be at the point of irreversibility.

That makes delicate coral reefs around the world something of a leading indicator for the collapse of the ocean ecosystem. Half of all reef systems have already been destroyed, putting a quarter of marine life at risk. Even if global warming is limited to the 1.5 degree Celsius target outlined in the 2016 Paris Agreement—a longshot goal, at the current rate of emissions—the IPCC now concludes that “almost all warm-water coral reefs are projected to suffer significant losses of area and local extinctions.”

In a perverse consequence, lost reefs will leave nearby coastlines even more vulnerable to erosion and storms, as well as from accelerating sea-level rise, which could go up by as much as two feet this century as a result of glacier melt.

Read the full story at Bloomberg

IPCC Report Projects “Unprecedented” Changes in Ocean, Cryosphere Due to Global Warming

October, 2, 2019 — The 51st session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC 51) adopted the Summary for Policymakers (SPM) of the Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC), and accepted the underlying report. The SROCC assesses the latest scientific knowledge about the physical science basis for, and impacts of, climate change on ocean, coastal, polar and mountain ecosystems, and the human communities that depend on them.

The report also evaluates their vulnerabilities and adaptation capacity, as well as options for achieving climate-resilient development pathways. The report’s SPM, which the Panel approved line-by-line, aims to tease out some of the key findings of the longer report in such a way that policymakers can easily comprehend and use them.

The Earth Negotiations Bulletin highlights that oceans and ice are an “integral and dynamic part of the earth’s climate systems,” as they cover more than 80% of the earth’s surface. The report underscores the urgency of prioritizing “timely, ambitious and coordinated action” to address “unprecedented” and enduring changes in the ocean and cryosphere. It also describes the benefits of ambitious and effective adaptation for sustainable development, and the escalating costs and risks of delayed action.

According to the report, global warming has already reached 1°C above preindustrial levels, with: profound consequences for ecosystems and people; a warmer, more acidic and less productive ocean; melting glaciers and ice sheets causing increased sea level rise; and coastal extreme events becoming more severe.

The global ocean, the report notes, has warmed unabated since 1970 and has taken up more than 90% of the excess heat in the climate system, with consequences now visible in increased ocean acidification, stratification and loss of oxygen. Speaking at the press conference that launched the report to the public, IPCC Vice-Chair Ko Barrett said, “Water is the lifeblood of the planet,” and the world’s ocean and cryosphere have been “taking the heat” from climate change for decades, with “sweeping and severe” consequences for nature and humanity. She warned that changes to the ocean and cryosphere are forcing people from low-lying coastal cities to Arctic communities to “fundamentally alter their ways of life.”

Read the full story at IISD

Fish are in trouble with the climate crisis, IPCC report finds

September 27, 2019 — Since the 1970s, the climate crisis has made our oceans warmer and more acidic, reducing the number of fish we rely on for our food and putting the future of fish in peril, according to a major UN report out Wednesday.

Rising temperatures mean oceans will have less oxygen, and this, along with more heatwaves and increased acidification, will make fish move further away from the coast and create larger deadzones, where life cannot survive.

Ultimately, the report said, this will lead to the extinction of some species of fish, which Americans have been eating an increasing amount of recent years.

The US dietary guidelines recommend 8-12 ounces of seafood a week to keep a healthy diet. Fish plays an even bigger role internationally, providing up to half of all animal protein eaten in developing countries and it remains a leading source of vitamins and minerals.

Read the full story at CNN

‘Staggering’ new report on climate change is bad news for fisheries

September 26, 2019 — A new report has warned the rate and magnitude of changes to the ocean, glaciers, and ice sheets due to climate change are happening much faster than previously predicted.

In response to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report on “the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate”, Andrew Norton, director of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) said:

“This report’s findings are staggering. The rate and magnitude of change to the ocean, glaciers and ice sheets are happening much faster than previously predicted. The climate emergency must be met with equally accelerated action.”

The science clearly shows the effects on the ocean will disproportionately hit tropical areas, which are home to the highest concentration of people living in poverty, he said. Their lives and livelihoods ― particularly small-scale fishers ― are at risk from rising sea levels, ocean warming, acidification and plummeting catches of fish.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Landmark climate report paints dim picture of ocean health

September 26, 2019 — Rising sea levels threaten New York and other major cites, the world’s glaciers are melting at alarming rates and global fisheries are shrinking. These are just some of the impacts that emissions of greenhouse gases have already triggered across the planet, according to a new landmark report from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

More than 100 authors from 36 countries assessed the latest scientific literature related to the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate for the report, referencing about 7,000 scientific publications for the report titled — “Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate.” It is the last of three special reports from the IPCC following on climate change.

“The open sea, the Arctic, the Antarctic and the high mountains may seem far away to many people,” said Hoesung Lee, Chair of the IPCC. “But we depend on them and are influenced by them directly and indirectly in many ways – for weather and climate, for food and water, for energy, trade, transport, recreation and tourism, for health and wellbeing, for culture and identity.”

Read the full story at IntraFish

The oceans are taking a beating under climate change, U.N. report warns

September 25, 2019 — The planet is in hot water — literally — and that will have dire consequences for humanity, warns a new United Nations report on the state of the world’s oceans and ice.

Over the next century, climate change will make the oceans warmer and more acidic. Melting ice sheets will drive up sea levels at an accelerating pace. Marine heat waves will become 20 to 50 times more frequent, harming sensitive ecosystems. And the total biomass of animals in the sea could drop by as much as 15%, according to the sobering assessment by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

“The oceans and ice are in trouble, so we’re all in trouble,” said Michael Oppenheimer, a climate scientist at Princeton and a lead author of the report.

But while some damage is inevitable at this point, the report makes clear that society’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decades will determine how bad things ultimately get.

Read the full story at the Los Angeles Times

On North Carolina’s Outer Banks, A Preview Of What Might Be In Store For Mass. Barrier Beaches

August 9, 2017 — The first truly global disaster resulting from climate change may come from rising sea levels.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Committee on Climate Change has projected sea level rise of 1 to 3 feet by the end of the century, and more recent estimates by NASA and other scientists have projected a rise of up to 8 feet.

In Massachusetts, the rising sea will mean more frequent flooding, more severe storms, and dramatic change.

It’s a problem we will share with every coastal community on every continent. A bit farther down the Atlantic Coast, there’s a place that’s on a faster track to where we too may be headed.

‘These Beaches Are Doomed’

Leonardo Da Vinci wrote that “water is the driving force of all nature.”

Fascinated by great storms and terrible floods, DaVinci would have loved the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Nearly 200 miles of low-lying, shifting sand islands link into a high energy system of waves and storms.

“These beaches are doomed,” says Orrin Pilkey, a professor at Duke University and an octogenarian prophet. “The buildings are doomed too.”

Traveling through a shanty town of triple-decker McMansions on stilts, motels and condos too close to the sea, we stop in the town of Nags Head. Pilkey predicts catastrophe in vacationland.

“The future is one of retreat,” Pilkey says. “It’s the only way to save the beach. It’s the only way to save the buildings.”

Read and listen to the full story at WBUR