Ocean Conference | Fact and Figures

This underwater life photo was finalist in the Photo Competition for World Oceans Day in 2019. Author: Cornelia Thieme Cornelia Thieme

The ocean has taken up more than 90% of the excess heat in the climate system. The rate of ocean warming has more than doubled since 1993. (IPCC)
Carbon emissions from human activities are causing ocean warming, acidification and oxygen loss. (IPCC)
By 2100, the ocean is very likely to warm by 2 to 4 times with low emissions (RCP 2.6) and 5 to 7 times with high emissions (RCP 8.5) compared to observed changes since 1970. (IPCC)
Ocean acidity has increased about 26% since pre-industrial times. At this rate, an increase of 100 to 150% is predicted by the end of the century, with serious consequences for marine life. (UN)

Every year, some 11 million tonnes of plastic enters the ocean. Plastic pollution costs roughly $13 billion in economic costs per year, including clean-up costs and financial losses in fisheries and other industries. (UNEP)
Roughly 80% of marine and coastal pollution originates on landm including agricultural run-off, pesticides, plastics and untreated sewage. (UNEP)
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean, has 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic that weighs a total of 80,000 tonnes. The patch is twice the size of Texas or thrice the size of France. (UNDP)
89% of plastic litter found on the ocean floor are single-use items like plastic bags. (UNDP)
More than 800 marine and coastal species are affected by marine plastics - through ingestion, entanglement and habitat change (UNEP). Every year, more than a million seabirds and 100,000 mammals are killed by plastic debris. (UNESCO)

Around 680 million people live in low-lying coastal zones - that is expected to increase to a billion by 2050. 65 million of them alone live in Small Island Developing States. (IPCC)
Marine fisheries provide 57 million jobs globally and provide the primary source of protein to over 50% of the population in least developed countries. (UN Global Compact)
15% of the animal protein that we eat comes from seafood, yet astounding waste persists in commercial fishing. (UNDP)
Every year, more than 10 million tonnes of fish go to waste due to destructive fishing practices—enough to fill 4,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools. (UNDP)

Ocean economies are among the most rapidly growing in the world, providing benefits to many sectors of great economic value, such as fisheries, transport, bio-technologies, energy production, seabed resources exploration, tourism and many others. (UNESCO)
Globally, the market value of marine and coastal resources and industries is estimated at US$3 trillion per year or about 5% of global gross domestic product. (UNDP)
The blue economy is an approach to take into account the health of the ocean and seas as we strive to balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental.
Science and technology play an important role in designing blue economy projects, and in reconciling the needs of economic development and ocean sustainability. (UNDP)

Tourism contributes to marine plastic pollution, with huge amounts of plastic pollution ending up in rivers and eventually into the ocean. (ONE PLANET)
80% of all tourism takes place in coastal areas. The ocean-related tourism industry grows an estimated US$ 134 billion per year. (UN Global Compact)
Healthy coral reefs contribute to tourism and fishing, providing millions of jobs and contributing to economies all over the world. The cost of reduced tourism due to coral bleaching has been estimated to be as much as $12 billion annually. (UN)

60% of the world’s major marine ecosystems that underpin livelihoods have been degraded or are being used unsustainably. (UNESCO)
Between 30 to 35% of the global extent of critical marine habitats such as seagrass, mangroves and coral reefs are estimated to have been destroyed. (UNESCO)
There are now close to 500 dead zones covering more than 245,000 km² globally, equivalent to the surface of the United Kingdom, largely caused by fertilizers entering coastal ecosystems. (UNESCO)
All species of sea turtles, 66% of marine mammals and 50% of seabirds have been affected by plastic pollution. (UNEP)
By 2100, without significant change, more than half the world’s marine species may face extinction. (UNESCO)
If carbon emissions continue to increase at the current rate, the ocean will corrode the shells of many marine organisms by the end of the century. (UNESCO)

Over the last several years, the number and extent of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), including marine sanctuaries, parks and reserves, have increased rapidly. In 2000, MPAs represented approximately 2 million km² or 0.7% of the ocean, since then there has been an over ten-fold increase. As of November 2019, the global coverage of MPAs was 27,185,099 km² or 7.5% of the ocean. (UNEP)
There has been significant progress on MPAs within national jurisdiction – from 12% in 2015 to 17.4% in 2019. (UN Report) But the majority of the ocean - the high seas that account for 61% of the ocean - are areas beyond national jurisdiction and not nearly as protected. In the high seas, MPAs count for 1.18%. (World Database on Protected Areas)
Many MPAs currently fail to meet thresholds for effective and equitable management processes, with widespread shortfalls in staff and financial resources . There is a need for further international collaboration to ensure that the MPAs that have been established, or that will be established in the future, are well governed and are able to achieve their desired conservation value.
The rate at which Key Biodiversity Areas - sites of greatest conservation importance – are being protected has slowed and could flatten by 2030. (UN Sustainable Development Goals Report)

Latest analysis reveals that the fraction of world fish stocks that are within biologically sustainable levels declined from 90% in 1974 to 66.9% in 2015.
Although there has been an increase in the percentage of stocks fished at biologically unsustainable levels, progress has been made in some regions - stocks fished within biologically sustainable levels increased from 53% in 2005 to 74% in 2016 in the United States and from 27% in 2004 to 69% in 2015 in Australia. (FAO)
It seems unlikely that the world’s fisheries can rebuild the overfished stocks in the very near future, because rebuilding requires time, usually two to three times the species’ lifespan.

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