The future of humanity depends on protecting our rapidly changing oceans

However, the country has been under pressure for some time and going forward faces various threats that not only seriously endanger its future health but also the future of humanity itself.

Some 550 experts from 86 countries have spent nearly five years compiling a 1,600-page assessment detailing the challenges facing the ocean. This scientific guide provides the knowledge humanity needs to protect and preserve the planet.

It’s called the World Ocean Assessment, and this is what those 1,600 pages reveal.

The ocean is important to everyone, everywhere

• The sea shapes everyone’s daily life even if they do not live in a coastal area.
• This stabilizes the climate by absorbing most of the earth’s excess heat as well as destroying greenhouse gases. Without a cooling effect, extreme weather can be expected to threaten food systems, supply chains and insurance markets.
• It serves as a food supply. When fish stocks plummet or supply chains break down due to climate impacts or illegal fishing, prices rise, not only for seafood, but also for many foods that depend on global trade and coastal economies.
• It provides mental and physical health benefits, medication, and large amounts of oxygen for breathing.
• The ocean supports trillions of dollars in global trade, tourism and jobs.

The oceans are under increasing pressure

Humans are reshaping marine ecosystems. The global population will reach 8.2 billion by 2024, with 37 percent of them living within 100 km of the coast.

Inevitably, this has concentrated human and economic activity in vulnerable coastal areas, increasing natural resource extraction, infrastructure expansion, waste dumping and habitat degradation.

At the same time, offshore development is intensifying, with wind farms, deep-sea oil infrastructure, and the expansion of seafloor cables and pipelines changing habitats far from shore.

Climate change changes conditions

The data relating to ocean warming and sea level rise is dramatic.

• The rate of sea level rise, due to melting ice caps and temperature-induced expansion of water, has doubled from 1.9 mm/year before 2015 to 4.3 mm/year in 2023.
• Temperatures in the Arctic are rising four times faster than the global average.
• The hypoxic (or dead) zone, where oxygen levels are so low that most marine life cannot survive, now covers an area of ​​4.5 million km².
• 16 percent of the total increase in ocean temperatures since 1955 occurred after 2018.

Biodiversity is declining in almost all marine habitats

Marine life is under severe pressure, reflected in the loss of around 80 percent of Caribbean coral reefs since the 1970s. Ninety percent of global coral reefs could be lost if warming exceeds 1.5°C above industrial levels.

Important coastal ecosystems, such as mangrove forests and seagrass beds, continue to shrink.

Species from plankton to marine mammals are moving to the North and South Poles as temperatures rise, while non-native species spread more easily under changing environmental conditions.

Pollution is widespread and increasing

Marine pollution is increasing.

Every year, 52 million tonnes of plastic waste enters the ocean, contributing to an estimated 24 trillion microplastic particles, which are now known to impact more than 4,000 marine species.

Chemical contamination is also increasing, with more than 4,000 pharmaceutical and personal care compounds detected in marine waters.

The good news? Some old pollutants such as mercury have declined in some areas.

Marine food systems are threatened

Marine food systems are an important source of nutrition and livelihoods, providing 20 percent of the animal protein consumed by humans globally.

Marine aquaculture continues to grow and has become a $90 billion global industry. In addition, 121 million people are involved in marine recreational fishing, thereby contributing to local economies and well-being.

But the stability of this system is increasingly threatened:

• 37 percent of fish stocks were overfished in 2021.
• Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing is estimated to remove 8–14 million tonnes annually, generating illegal revenues of $9–17 billion.
• Disease outbreaks, pollution and climate stress continue to pose challenges to the long-term sustainability of mariculture and fisheries.

The marine economy is very large but not yet sustainable

The ocean economy is worth $1.5 trillion annually and is projected to exceed $3 trillion by 2030.

Coastal and marine tourism supports 174 million jobs.

Efforts are underway to understand the ongoing and sustainable impacts of offshore oil and gas production and shipping that transports more than 80 percent of world trade and contributes to global greenhouse gas emissions.

Governance and knowledge

International cooperation in the field of marine governance is gaining momentum, but 57 global agreements related to marine protection have resulted in a fragmented approach.

Achieving a sustainable marine economy requires equality and inclusion of the traditional knowledge and practices of indigenous peoples. Without these things, ocean health, community welfare, and sustainable and equitable development will be more difficult to achieve.

Large gaps remain in marine knowledge, with only 27 percent of the seabed mapped by 2025, so deep-sea ecosystems, biological processes and cumulative impacts remain poorly understood.

Solutions abound

Despite increasing pressure, solutions remain, including nature-based approaches, reduced emissions, and expanded ocean protection.

However, comprehensive restoration of marine ecosystems will only contribute around two percent of global climate mitigation targets, underscoring the need for systemic change.

The coming decade is crucial: without rapid and coordinated global action, ocean health will continue to decline, threatening climate stability, biodiversity resilience, food security, livelihoods and the well-being of billions of people.