Our oceans: the $24 trillion asset we’re neglecting says WWF

Report says ocean is changing more than at any point in millions of years – climate change and over-exploitation at fault

The value of the ocean’s riches rivals the size of the world’s leading economies, but its resources are rapidly eroding, according to a report released by WWF today.

The report, Reviving the Ocean Economy: The case for action – 2015, analyses the ocean’s role as an economic powerhouse and outlines the threats that are moving it toward collapse as well as highlighting three essential actions for governments in 2015.

The value of key ocean assets is conservatively estimated in the report to be at least US$24 trillion. If compared to the world’s top 10 economies, the ocean would rank seventh with an annual value of goods and services of US$2.5 trillion – just behind the UK – and in front of Brazil

Says WWF – three key solutions that require action in 2015 are: 1) embedding ocean recovery throughout the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, 2) taking global action on climate change and 3) making good on strong commitments to deliver well-managed coastal and marine protected areas.

David Nussbaum, CEO of WWF-UK said: "Our oceans are a climate regulator and carbon sink, supporting future global economic growth, as well as providing critical goods and services that underpin the well-being of billions of people. But rising temperatures and increased acidification put all this at risk.

"We should recognise the role our oceans play as an important business asset that requires sustainable management and investment – and governments should fully support and implement the UN Sustainable Development Goal on the ocean."

Research presented in the report demonstrates that the ocean is changing more rapidly than at any other point in millions of years. At the same time, growth in human population and reliance on the sea makes restoring the ocean economy and its core assets a matter of global urgency.

"The ocean is at greater risk now than at any other time in recorded history. We are pulling out too many fish, dumping in too many pollutants, and warming and acidifying the ocean to a point that essential natural systems will simply stop functioning," said Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, the report’s lead author and Director of the Global Change Institute in Australia’s University of Queensland.

Climate change is a leading cause of the ocean’s failing health. Research included in the report shows that at the current rate of warming, coral reefs that provide food, jobs and storm protection to several hundred million people will disappear completely by 2050. More than just warming waters, climate change is inducing increased ocean acidity that will take hundreds of human generations for the oceans to repair.

Over-exploitation is another major cause for the ocean’s decline, with 90 per cent of global fish stocks either over-exploited or fully exploited. The Pacific bluefin tuna population alone has dropped by 96 per cent from unfished levels.

Full report available HERE

Valere Tjolle

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