State of the Ocean Report 2024 publication (StOR)

Current Context : The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO launched the State of the Ocean Report 2024 publication (StOR) in Iceland.

KEY FINDINGS OF THE REPORT :

• Ocean Warming : The rate of ocean warming has doubled in 20 years, with 2023 seeing one of the highest increases since the 1950s. Ocean temperatures have increased by an average of 1.45°C, with hotspots above 2°C in the Mediterranean, Tropical Atlantic Ocean and Southern Oceans.
• Rising Seal level rise : Mostly due to accelerated ice mass loss from the Greenland and West Antarctica ice sheets, and to a lesser degree from accelerated ocean warming.
• Blue Carbon and MPAs : Marine forests including mangroves, seagrass plains, tidal marshes are able to absorb up to 5 times more carbon than forests on land. However, 60% of countries still do not include marine forest restoration and conservation in their Nationally Determined Contribution plans.
• Acidification : Ocean absorbs around 25% of annual anthropogenic CO2. This process reduces seawater pH (ocean acidification). Ocean acidification would increase by more than 100% by the end of the century.