OCEAN and CLIMATE SCIENTIFIC NOTES Ocean-Climate.Org
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ocean-climate.org OCEAN AND CLIMATE SCIENTIFIC NOTES ocean-climate.org Why an “Ocean and Climate” platform ? The ocean is a key element of the global climate system, but so far it has been relatively absent from discussions on climate change. For all of us participating in the Ocean and Climate Platform, it is essential to include the ocean among the issues and challenges dis- cussed in the context of climate negociations. Covering 71 % of the globe, the world ocean It is therefore urgent to maintain the functional is a complex ecosystem that provides essential quality of marine ecosystems and restore those services for the maintenance of life on Earth. that are deteriorating. More than 25 % of the CO2 emitted annually by humans into the atmosphere is absorbed by the The Ocean and Climate Platform was esta- ocean, and it is also the largest net supplier of blished from an alliance of non-governmen- oxygen in the world, playing an equally impor- tal organizations and research institutes, with tant role as the forests. support from the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. The ocean is therefore the principle “lung” of the planet and is at the center of the global cli- Today the Platform includes scientific organiza- mate system. tions, universities, research institutions, non-profit associations, foundations, science centers, pu- Although the ocean continues to limit global blic institutions and business organizations, all warming, for several decades the pressure acting to bring the ocean to the forefront in cli- of human beings – principally CO2 emissions, mate discussions. over-exploitation of resources and pollution have degraded marine ecosystems. The role of the ocean in regulating the climate is likely to be disrupted. ocean-climate.org Our objectives In December 2015 in Paris the 21st United Nations Climate Conference will take place. This conference will establish the roadmap that will enable the international community to meet the challenges of climate change in the coming years. The Ocean and Climate Platform aims to : INTEGRATE THE OCEAN IN THE DEBATE ON CLIMATE, PROMOTE SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE AND CONTRIBUTE TO SUCCESSFUL NEGOTIATIONS LINKS BETWEEN OCEAN AND CLIMATE FOR AN AMBITIOUS AGREEMENT AT THE COP21 The links between ocean and climate are gra- The Paris Agreement must take into account dually becoming better defined, but the needs the ocean and its role in the climate to best for knowledge and research are still very impor- confront the major climate challenges in the tant. Having a set of indicators will allow us to years to come. better monitor the evolution of the ocean within the climate system. INCREASE PUBLIC AWARENESS ABOUT THE INFORM AND INSTRUCT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE POLICY IMPORTANCE OF THE OCEAN IN THE GLOBAL MAKERS ON OCEAN AND CLIMATE ISSUES CLIMATE SYSTEM Policy makers at all levels – heads of state, re- Advancing the general public’s knowledge presentatives of international organizations and about the links between the climate with ocean national governments, private actors – have too and coastal areas will contribute to a better un- little knowledge about the role of the ocean in derstanding and consideration of the impacts of climate. The issues related to the impacts of climate climate change on the marine environment. change on marine and terrestrial ecosystems of the coast (where nearly 80 % of the world population will concentrate in 2050) must be clearly identified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Scientific Committee Coordinator Françoise Gaill [email protected] WITH THE HELP OF: Nausicaá: Christine Causse Tara Expeditions: Marion Di Méo, Marc Domingos, Eloïse Fontaine Surfrider Foundation Europe: Elodie Bernollin Institut Océanographique, Prince Albert Ier de Monaco: Corinne Copin Ocean and Climate Platform: Ludovic Frère Escoffier UMR AMURE: Marianne Biron Translation: Joséphine Ras, Patrick Chang, Dana Sardet Graphic design: Elsa Godet CITATION OCEAN AND CLIMATE, 2015 – Scientific Notes. www.ocean-climate.org, 116 pages. October 2015 With the support of ocean-climate.org Table of contents Foreword Françoise Gaill............................................................................................................................................................................06 Ocean, Heat Reservoir Sabrina Speich, Gilles Reverdin, Herlé Mercier and Catherine Jeandel…..................................................................08 The Ocean: a Carbon Pump Laurent Bopp, Chris Bowler, Lionel Guidi, Éric Karsenti and Colomban de Vargas…................................................13 Sea Level Rise Benoit Meyssignac and Gilles Reverdin................................................................................................................................19 How does the ocean acquire its chemical composition? Valérie Chavagnac and Catherine Jeandel......................................................................................................................23 Ocean Acidification Jean-Pierre Gattuso and Lina Hansson................................................................................................................................27 The Ocean is Out of Breath Kirsten Isensee, Lisa Levin, Denise Breitburg, Marilaure Gregoire, Veronique Garçon and Luis Valdés.....................30 The Deep Ocean: Which Climate Issues? Nadine Le Bris..............................................................................................................................................................................36 The Southern Ocean Philippe Koubbi, Gabriel Reygondeau, Claude De Broyer, Andrew Constable and William W.L. Cheung.........41 The Arctic: Opportunities, Concerns and Challenges Emmanuelle Quillérou, Mathilde Jacquot, Annie Cudennec and Denis Bailly…......................................................51 Ocean, Biodiversity and Climate Gilles Bœuf...................................................................................................................................................................................62 Ecosystem Services and Marine Conservation Denis Bailly, Rémi Mongruel and Emmanuelle Quillérou…..............................................................................................66 Coral Reefs and Climate Change Denis Allemand..........................................................................................................................................................................73 Exploited Marine Biodiversity and Climate Change Philippe Cury...............................................................................................................................................................................80 Aquaculture and Global Changes Marc Metian...............................................................................................................................................................................83 Small Islands, Ocean and Climate Virginie Duvat, Alexandre Magnan and Jean-Pierre Gattuso.......................................................................................88 Informing Climate Investment Priorities for Coastal Populations Adrien Comte, Linwood Pendleton, Emmanuelle Quillérou and Denis Bailly............................................................101 Lifestyles and attitudes in Tabiteuea: a dam against the Pacific? Guigone Camus.......................................................................................................................................................................109 ocean-climate.org Foreword Françoise Gaill For decades, climate change negotiations did results in the acidification of the ocean. Ocean not take the ocean into consideration. The fol- acidity has increased by 30% over two and a half lowing texts reveals a change in mindset and centuries and this phenomenon continues to am- that this planetary environment has finally been plify, thus directly threatening marine species. given the importance it deserves in climate is- sues. This document addresses concerns such as In fact, the ocean is clearly a carbon sink, as it the part the ocean plays for the climate and the can concentrate fifty times more carbon than impacts of climate change on the ocean. the atmosphere. Both physical and biological mechanisms contribute to the absorption and The climate of our planet is largely dependent storage of oceanic carbon, the planktonic upon the ocean, but who is aware of this nowa- ecosystem being the main contributor to the days? biological pump. Although this biological car- bon pump has been identified, the scope of its The ocean regulates the climate at a global action still remains to be determined. It is worth scale due to its continuous exchanges with noting that marine biodiversity only represents the atmosphere, whether they are radiative, 13% of all described living species on Earth. This is mechanical or gaseous. The heat from the sun particularly low, considering the colossal volume is absorbed, stored and transported by the of the ocean. The future should tell whether this ocean, thus affecting the atmospheric tem- is related to a lack of knowledge. Nonetheless, perature and circulation. Although its ability to the still unknown domain of the deep ocean store heat is much more efficient than that of may provide an answer once it is explored, as the continents or the atmosphere, the limits of this deep environment represents more than this storage capacity are still unknown.