HONOLULU, Sept. 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A new
published report on ocean warming, issued this week at the World
Conservation Congress, makes clear the scale of 'ocean risk' for
the first time. The International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN) report, funded by global (re)insurer XL Catlin, says that
ocean warming is already affecting people throughout the world with
significantly greater impacts to come in the future.
The report, titled Explaining ocean warming: Causes,
scale, effects and consequences, describes the phenomenon as
'one of the greatest hidden challenges of our generation'. The
analysis report has been compiled by 80 scientists from 12
countries.
Mike Maran, Chief Science Officer
at XL Catlin said: "It is clear that the scale of impacts described
in this report underscores the need to review and reconsider the
risks associated with the changing state of the ocean. It is
a powerful wake-up call about the risks posed by ocean warming.
There is a lot more the insurance industry needs to do to
understand ocean risk, what is happening to the ocean's health,
what risks it poses to our clients across industries and how we can
help address these challenges."
According to this scientific review, fundamental changes to the
ocean's chemistry, physics and the wealth of life it supports are
already evident with human food security and health under threat
along with dangers from more extreme weather events and reduced
crop yields. 'Ocean Risk' describes the potential impacts these
changes may have on businesses, society and ecosystems around the
globe.
The report also identifies other changes to ocean health
including acidification and de-oxygenation which will impact every
level of marine life from the smallest plankton to mammals.
These impacts include:
- Coastal communities at greater risk of inundation
from storm surges, more intense tropical storms and rising sea
levels.
- Compromised food security from shifting fish populations
and depleted fish stocks. Harvests from marine fisheries in
South-East Asia are expected to
fall by between 10% and 30% by 2050 relative to 1970-2000, as the
distributions of fish species shift, under a high 'business as
usual' greenhouse gas emission scenario
- Reduced crop yields in key regions will be affected,
including North America and the
Indian sub-Continent, from increased rainfall in mid-latitudes and
more drought patterns in sub-tropical zones.
- Human health is endangered from the spread of viruses,
diseases and pathogens in the warmer ocean and passed to humans
directly or through the food chain. These include the bacteria
causing cholera and the neurological disease ciguatera.
- The cost of ocean change is steadily rising. All
negative impacts will have a cost. As an example, the loss to
tourism from recent widespread coral bleaching is calculated to be
$23 billion. The cost by 2100 of
losing coral reefs could amount to $1
trillion per year.
Amongst the recommendations highlighted in the report is a call
to prioritise closing the gaps in scientific knowledge about the
impacts of ocean warming which are evident, prevalent and expected
to alter our way of life. Amongst the recommended actions to be
taken is a continued cut in greenhouse gas emissions and a move
away from attempts to protect biodiversity to a more active
management and even restoration of biodiversity and ecosystems.
XL Catlin has been involved in supporting scientists' work on
ocean change since 2009. It invested in research expeditions to the
Arctic Ocean to understand changes to the Arctic environment from
sea-ice loss and has funded the most comprehensive digital survey
of the world's coral reefs, creating a baseline record that is
available to researchers at the XL Catlin Global Reef Record. Work
is continuing with the recently-launched XL Catlin Deep Ocean
Survey, a multidisciplinary scientific research program that will
create a new standardised methodology to be used by marine
biologists for measuring physical, chemical and biological
indicators for the purpose of assessing the function, health and
resilience of the deep ocean.
About XL Catlin
XL Catlin is the global brand used by XL Group
Ltd's (NYSE:XL) (re)insurance companies which provide
property, casualty, professional and specialty products to
industrial, commercial and professional firms, insurance companies
and other enterprises throughout the world. Clients look to
XL Catlin for answers to their most complex risks and to help move
their world forward. To learn more, visit xlcatlin.com.
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SOURCE XL Catlin