OCEANS DAY - COP21 UN TALKS

The 4th of December is oceans day at the United Nations Paris talks.

21ST CENTURY COP OUT - 150 Heads of State and Government met in Paris to talk about climate change. This level of participation makes COP21 one of the largest diplomatic conferences ever organized, aside from the United Nations General Assembly sessions in New York. What about our oceans chaps?

DECEMBER 4 2015 - CONSERVATION LAW FOUNDATION

It is Oceans Day at the COP21 talks, with thought leaders from the U.S. and from around the world highlighting the devastating impacts of climate change on the world’s oceans. Leader after leader touts the linkage between climate change, fisheries, food security, and (in the case of island nations that will be submerged by sea-level rise) national survival. The U.S. State Department’s Undersecretary Catherine A. Novelli has been eloquent on these points.

Island developing states, in particular, make the compelling case that climate change already is devastating their economies, increasing debt burdens linked to sea level rise, storm recovery, and ocean acidification. Impressively, many of these small island developing states are leading the effort to conserve their marine resources, which in most cases comprise the lion’s share of of the natural capital available to sustain their economies.

Despite or because of climate threats, many small island states have recognized that marine protected areas (MPAs) with no-take zones are essential to the long-term health of their economies. Pulau proudly boasts here that 80 percent of its exclusive economic zone is an MPA. Easter Island has an MPA of a million square kilometers. These boasts come with scientific confidence that, by providing safe habitat to foster recovery of species stressed by climate change, the remaining waters open to fishing will be more robustly productive both for fishermen and for the larger economy.

CORAL - Reefs before and after bleaching, caused by the rise in CO2 levels and corresponding acid oceans.

THE VIEW FROM NEW ENGLAND

The Paris talks are a poignant reminder that, while less developed nations like Pulau, Seychelles, and Indonesia clearly understand – and have acted on – the importance of MPAs for the long-term survival of commercial fisheries and marine biodiversity against the impacts of climate change, New England’s fishermen and regulators have yet to buy in.

For years, Conservation Law Foundation has advocated for permanent protection of a miniscule but biologically important area of the Gulf of Maine, which is warming faster than 99 percent of the world’s oceans. This can be done by creating the United States’ first marine national monument in the Atlantic Ocean, comprised of biodiversity hot spots at Cashes Ledge and nearby Coral Canyons and Seamounts.

Last summer, renowned oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle joined a CLF dive on Cashes Ledge, a fragile underwater mountain range located just 80 miles off the coast of New England. Dr. Earle, who has dived on some the world’s most remarkable ocean places, found herself in awe at what she found on Cashes Ledge, declaring it “the Yellowstone of the Atlantic,” and marveling at the “glorious, golden forest” of kelp that covered its underwater peaks. After experiencing this special place for herself, she joined CLF’s call for President Obama to use his authority to protect these areas permanently by designating them marine national monuments.

But the president has yet to act, despite the lack of dispute on the scientific merit of protecting these areas, and many elected officials have bowed to short-term interests of fishermen rather than supporting the steps needed to protect the long-term sustainability of fisheries increasingly stressed by ocean acidification and rising ocean temperatures.

Here in Paris, during these critical climate talks, world leaders must act on the fact that climate change places the natural capital, the economic prosperity, and the vital communities dependent on ocean resources in immediate peril. And yet, on this putative “Oceans Day,” word has come that those at the negotiating table have, as in past climate negotiations, have removed critical ocean protections from the anticipated agreement. We cannot let this happen.

Of course, no agreement that emerges from Paris will dictate country-specific MPAs, but an international climate agreement must support and compel action to address the impacts climate change is having on our oceans. If it does, MPAs will inevitably follow the science.

At home, New England states and the Obama administration, which have led the nation and the world on so many aspects of climate and energy policy, cannot afford to end their leadership at the water’s edge. In this area, at least, Pulau is ahead of us.  by Brad Campbell CLF President

CLIMATE ACTION - Not just talk, this amazing autonomous boat was on display at the Old Billingsgate exhibition centre in London on the 9-10th of November 2015. This ocean cleaning workboat could pave the way for zero carbon cruise liners and cargo ships of the future. The platform harvests energy from nature to power onboard pumps and filtration equipment. That same energy could be used to propel larger vessels at reasonable speeds to deliver goods around the world, without acidifying the oceans. The solutions are out there, the politicians are just not looking! BMS has not had a single enquiry for a government as to wind and solar power for shipping. Yet, $billions are spent of defence. There is no point having a navy if the population that you are seeking to defend are dying slowly as the planet soils itself.

The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21 or CMP 11 was held in Le Bourget, from November 30 to December 11. It was the 21st yearly session of the Conference of the Parties to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 11th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The conference objective was to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate, from all the nations of the world.

100% COP OUT - Corporations are not responsible for nations chucking their untreated garbage into our oceans - it is governments that are responsible for policies that do not work. Policies that are polluting our oceans and warming the planet. These policies are mostly driven by greed and a perceived need for continuous economic growth, when in reality, we need sustainable policies for a Circular Economy.

A circular economy is one that recognizes that we only have one planet. We cannot expand our planet to cope with continuous economic growth, We need to look at what planet earth can sustain, and then gear our population and economy to that ideal. This must cater for energy requirement and food to feed the world, including transport and housing.

At the moment in several countries including the UK and India, the policy is to bribe existing businesses to invest in research and development to clean up their mess for them - knowing full well that there is no end user for any system that may come from such investment in time and money - that is then wasted effort that typically governments are trying to hide - by making themselves look good with incentives. Piffle!

WHAT IS COP 21?

COP stands for Conference of Parties, an annual meeting of all nations that make up the United Nations Framework on Climate Change - 195 nations in total. This is the 21st meeting (thus COP21).

CONTACTS

3rd Floor, Two America Square, London, EC3N 2LU
Phone: +44 (0) 20 7871 0173 
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7871 0101 
Email: info@cop21paris.org
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Climate_Action_

HEY DUDE - Climate change is burning our oceans out with acidification. SeaVax may not be the immediate solution to halt global warming, but what if our leaders had been talking about this problem ten years ago. SeaVax might then be a reality with zero carbon transport following their lead. How about a helping hand for hands on developers that, unlike academic institutions, get no genuine offer of funding for technology that benefits society, rather than shareholders.

LINKS

CNN 2015 November 30 world news cop21 Paris conference five things you need to know

CNN latest news 2015/11/29 Europe France Paris cop21 climate change conference

Wikipedia 2015_United_Nations_Climate_Change_Conference

Twitter cop21

COP21

The Guardian environment 2015 November 28 thousands march over climate change in Brisbane and across New Zealand

CLF blog climate talks must include plan for worlds oceans

http://www.cop21paris.org/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35057282

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35057282

https://twitter.com/Climate_Action_

http://www.cop21paris.org/

http://www.clf.org/blog/clean-energy-climate-change/climate-talks-must-include-plan-for-worlds-oceans/

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/10/30/world/cop21-paris-conference-five-things/index.html

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/11/29/europe/france-paris-cop21-climate-change-conference/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_United_Nations_Climate_Change_Conference

https://twitter.com/cop21

http://www.cop21.gouv.fr/en/

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/nov/28/thousands-march-over-climate-change-in-brisbane-and-across-new-zealand