Blue carbon: a golden climate mitigation opportunity

Climate breakdown is here now. Natural systems are in free fall, species are in decline, and despite all efforts, in 2020 global greenhouse gas emissions increased. But in the last decade, a golden climate mitigation opportunity has been gaining international recognition. Protecting the blue carbon in coastal and ocean ecosystems could play a key role in our salvation. Blue carbon is carbon that is captured and stored by the oceans. But when most people refer to blue carbon ecosystems, they're referring to seagrass meadows, tidal marshes, or mangrove forests. And that's because these three ecosystems are doing a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to blue carbon. They occupy about 0.2% of the seafloor, yet they sequester more than half the ocean's carbon. We all know that trees absorb carbon dioxide. And when we look towards the marine environment, blue carbon habitats also absorb carbon dioxide, but they do so at a rate 40 to 50 times faster than that of tropical rainforests. Our climate allies are also in the deep ocean. Phytoplankton, the primary producers of the sea, supply at least half of the world's oxygen and absorb immense quantities of carbon, locking it away on the seafloor when they die or become part of the ocean food chain. Ocean and coastal ecosystems are among the most biodiverse habitats on Earth, and alongside vital cuts in carbon emissions across all sectors, offer a unique opportunity to tackle climate breakdown on many fronts. By addressing half of those natural ecosystems, we can help reach the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets that we have, but we also simultaneously provide much wider environmental and human well-being benefits. We increase biodiversity, we support fishery, and also provide defence from the coastal erosion. These ecosystems underpin our fisheries, so they're providing valuable nutrition for hundreds of millions of people, particularly in developing nations where fish is a primary source of protein. They're also really important for biodiversity. Some of the rarest animals on the planet are in our coastal wetland blue carbon ecosystems. Then you've got an important role they play in coastal protection, and they can mean the difference between life and death. They prevent erosion, but they also attenuate extreme weather events, storms, tsunamis, that sort of thing. Despite their immense benefits, carbon-rich coastal ecosystems, like mangrove seagrasses and salt marshes, are among the most severely threatened on Earth, a major risk when it comes to global emissions. So the loss of the coastal wetlands not only limits their potential to sequester carbon, but also makes them a source for greenhouse gases emissions. Remember that they're sitting on carbon that they've drawn down and preserved in the ground for thousands of years. It's a bit like setting off a carbon bomb. 25 to 50 percent of vegetated coastal habitats have already been lost, equating to the release of up to one billion tons of CO2 annually. World trends are showing that these habitats are declining at an extremely fast rate, and so if we are serious about climate mitigation, the time to act would be now to help preserve these environments. The ocean is the blue beating heart of our planet. It absorbs around a third of all the CO2 we pump out, has absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat produced by global warming, and is our largest active carbon sink. I think it's clear that the ocean is one of the most important parts of the Earth's system, which is already vulnerable and which needs to be sort of protected and fixed. It's not part of the global climate policy currently. We don't have a Kyoto Protocol for the ocean, we don't have a Paris Agreement for the ocean. I think this is a very important priority. Globally, ocean protection is severely lacking. Everyday coastal ecosystems are pushed further into decline and marine wildlife is exploited beyond sustainable levels. And although coastal blue carbon habitats can play a key role in reducing emissions, their incorporation into national climate policies lags far behind. Less than 20 percent of all countries with blue carbon habitats along their coastlines reference the protection and restoration of these areas in their climate mitigation plans. While integrated regulations at the national level are urgently needed, community-led projects with the rights and livelihood needs of local communities respected will be key in future blue carbon restoration efforts. Community-led conservation is to give community full power to preserve and protect their natural resources. The community plays an important role on the project activities and also on the decision making process. That is important for the success of the conservation. We are running out of time to start to limit warming, but a conversation we're probably not having enough is about these amazing nature-based solutions. What we need is to regenerate our ocean and redefine our relationship with the ocean. That is playing a really vital role in our survival. We should include it as a part of our solutions to fight climate warming. EJF are urging governments to consider three crucial actions. Include legally binding targets to protect and restore blue carbon environments in their nationally determined contributions. Commit to the 30 by 30 ocean protection plan and designate at least 30 percent of the ocean to well-managed marine protected areas by 2030. Agree an international moratorium on deep sea mining to protect the deep sea from irreversible large-scale harm. Blue carbon is a fantastic opportunity and a real win-win in terms of climate mitigation and ecosystem enhancement, but it's not a silver bullet. It's not going to solve the problem of climate change. Let's also be talking about renewable energy. Let's be attacking this issue on a number of fronts. It's the only way we're going to be able to move to a low carbon future. Instead of pushing our ocean towards critical tipping points, world leaders should be taking decisive action to ensure its protection. In 2021 we must ensure that our ocean and the climate which it regulates is protected for generations to come.