Christopher Gregory/The New York TimesThe presidents on Saturday. China and the United States agreed to discuss ways to reduce emissions of hydroflourocarbons, known as HFCs.

As some environmental analysts had hoped, President Obama and President Xi Jinping of China found room to maneuver on global warming in their California desert retreat. They sidestepped the super wicked issues impeding restrictions of the greenhouse gas of greatest concern, carbon dioxide, and staff released a joint statement on plans to cut releases of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, a potent group of heat-trapping gases.

Below you can read the joint statement, followed by a link to a 2010 Times article showing how this action by the two nations is related not to the troubled 1992 United Nations climate treaty, but instead is an outgrowth of the 1987 Montreal Protocol, an accord originally aimed at controlling synthetic chemicals that were harming the atmosphere’s protective ozone layer:

United States and China Agree to Work Together on Phase Down of HFCs

Today, President Obama and President Xi agreed on an important new step to confront global climate change. For the first time, the United States and China will work together and with other countries to use the expertise and institutions of the Montreal Protocol to phase down the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), among other forms of multilateral cooperation. A global phase down of HFCs could potentially reduce some 90 gigatons of CO2 equivalent by 2050, equal to roughly two years worth of current global greenhouse gas emissions.

The agreement between the United States and China reads as follows:

Regarding HFCs, the United States and China agreed to work together and with other countries through multilateral approaches that include using the expertise and institutions of the Montreal Protocol to phase down the production and consumption of HFCs, while continuing to include HFCs within the scope of UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol provisions for accounting and reporting of emissions.

HFCs are potent greenhouse gases used in refrigerators, air conditioners, and industrial applications. While they do not deplete the ozone layer, many are highly potent greenhouse gases. Their use is growing rapidly as replacements for ozone-depleting substances that are being phased out under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Left unabated, HFC emissions growth could grow to nearly 20 percent of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050, a serious climate mitigation concern.

The Montreal Protocol was established in 1987 to facilitate a global approach to combat depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer. Every country in the world is a party to the Protocol, and it has successfully phased out or is in the process of phasing out several key classes of chemicals, including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), and halons. The transitions out of CFCs and HCFCs provide major ozone layer protection benefits, but the unintended consequence is the rapid current and projected future growth of climate-damaging HFCs.

For the past four years, the United States, Canada, and Mexico have proposed an amendment to the Montreal Protocol to phase down the production and consumption of HFCs. The amendment would gradually reduce consumption and production and control byproduct emissions of HFCs in all countries, and require reporting in these areas. The amendment includes a financial assistance component for countries that can already access the Protocol’s Multilateral Fund, and leaves unchanged the reporting and accounting provisions of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol on HFC emissions.

Here’s the 2010 article with more on this climate strategy: “A Novel Tactic in Climate Fight Gains Some Traction.”

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  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 8 June 2013 23.00 AEST
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Demonstrators in San Francisco rally against the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Photograph: Stephen Lam/Reuters

“The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere just hit 400ppm,” I told Alex, my 23-year-old son, as we were catching up on news.

“So that’s it, huh?” he asked.

I couldn’t think what to say. Alex had just returned from college, a new graduate, ready to start his life as an adult. Like many members of his age group, Alex knows that 350ppm is the threshold for safe levels of carbon in the atmosphere. Pass that level and, climate scientists tell us, things get dicey: soils dry out, damaging food production. There is more frequent and more intense flooding, coastlines get inundated, species go extinct. Farming, which relies on predictable weather patterns, is disrupted, and dry land farming areas turn to desert. Forests die from new infestations and drought, and become more prone to monster fires.

Young people like Alex are coming of age in a world that’s changing much faster than was predicted just a few years ago. Already, scenes of wildfires, floods, drought, and storms border on apocalyptic. And so far, temperatures have risen less than one degree centigrade.

So what does a young person do when confronted with a global climate crisis? What does anyone do?

Based on a roundtable discussion with young leaders and informal conversations with others of all ages, I’ve come to believe that these three steps are essential:

First, let this reality sink in. This is not the future we thought we would have. Young people, especially, have the right to be disappointed, angry, and fearful. It will take courage to face this new normal, especially when so many others remain disconnected from what’s happening. By being mindful of your own emotions, you can experience fear or grief without being overwhelmed by those feelings. And by remaining alert to the way the climate crisis may show up in your life, you can be better prepared and more resilient.

There’s controversy among some environmental leaders about whether to downplay the dangers for fear of frightening people or fostering nihilism. But if we are counting on the unique human genius for creative solutions, we need to be honest about the task at hand, and the consequences of inaction.

Second, take a stand. We may be too late to stop the climate from shifting, but we can likely stop the most catastrophic effects of climate change. People of all ages are stepping up to block extraction, transportation, and burning of fossil fuels and to challenge the clout of the fossil fuel lobby. Some are doing it to protect their community’s water or air or their own health; others are motivated by concern for climate stability and the lives of generations to come. Here are some examples:

• President Obama has the power to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline, which would expedite further extraction of tar sands, an extraordinarily destructive form of energy. Around the United States, people are pressing the president to reject the pipeline and make good on his promise to take on the climate challenge.

• Fracking for natural gas has been sold as a climate-friendly alternative to coal and oil. It is not. Leakage of methane during extraction and shipment makes it as damaging to the climate as other fossil fuels, and it threatens precious groundwater supplies. Communities around the United States are joining up to block fracking.

• In the Pacific Northwest, young people, Native American tribes, and others are mobilizing to stop the rail transport of huge quantities of Wyoming Powder River Basin coal to Northwest seaports for export to Asia.

• Students and alumni are calling on colleges and universities to divest holdings in oil companies. While this might not immediately reduce the mammoth profits of these global corporations, it does help erode the legitimacy of this industry and therefore their claim on public subsidies and special benefits (like the right to use our atmosphere as a dumping ground).

Third, consider ways to replace the consumer-oriented, energy-intensive ways of life that are unaffordable both for many of our families and for the planet. Young people are especially are turning to finding satisfaction in what they contribute, the depth of friendships, and in personal development – rather than in “having stuff”. Building relationships founded in trust and reciprocity increases quality of life and resilience today, and builds the foundation for the life-centered – rather than consumption-centered – world that can thrive within the constraints of a small planet.

The news about the climate is daunting, but we don’t have to wait for skeptics or politicians to get it. We can act right now by getting real about what’s happening, taking a stand to stop further damage to our climate, and working together to build a world that treasures the precious diversity of life on this planet – including human life today and in the future.

June 08, 2013

ZARINA PATEL

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World Oceans Day is celebrated each year on 8th June to highlight the importance of oceans and to raise global awareness of the existing threats to oceans. The day is the official UN-designated international day of ocean celebration. The two-year theme for 2013 and 2014 is “together we have the power to protect the ocean”.

OCEANS ARE IMPORTANT FOR ALL LIVING BEINGS “With every drop of water you drink, every breath you take, you are connected to the sea. No matter where on Earth you live” – Sylvia Earle

Oceans provide us precious minerals, food and enormous highway for business. Oceans cover three quarters (70%) of our planet Earth and holds 97% of planet’s water. Surface of Earth contains (5) five oceans, including the Arctic, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern. The main oceans further subdivided into smaller regions called seas, gulfs, or bays. The world ocean has an area of about 361 million sq km (139,400,000 sq mi), an average depth of about 3,730 m (12,230 ft), and a total volume of about 1,347,000,000 cu km (322,280,000 cu mi). Each cubic mile of seawater weighs approximately 4.7 billion tons and holds 166 million tons of dissolved solids.

Salinity is a main feature of oceans. Six elements (chlorine, sodium, magnesium, sulfur, calcium, and potassium) represent over 90% of the total salts dissolved in the oceans. On the deep ocean floor, manganese nodules, formed by the precipitation of manganese oxides and other metallic salts around a nucleus of rock or shell, represent a potentially rich and extensive resource. The ocean floor might hold more than the 110 million tones of rare earths elements. Countries such as Kuwait, and Israel, desalinate ocean water to produce freshwater.

Oceans provide food resources for more than one billion people around the world. As much as 10% of human protein (rich in essential fatty acids) intake comes from the oceans. Pharmacists have been using coral reef plants, blue green algae and animals for making medicines of arthritis, Alzheimer’s, heart diseases and cancers.

Oceans are full of natural treasures. Oysters are valuable sources of pearls. The oceans’ “shallow continental shelves” are a great source of sand and gravel. A study reveals that the great amount of deuterium present in the ocean water makes it a perfect source of energy that can be used in the development of the nuclear fusion reactors. Oceans provide recreational activities for people around the world. Fishing, scuba diving, boating, swimming, and water skiing are favourite pass time for water lovers.

THE OCEANS AFFECT GLOBAL CLIMATE AND WEATHER The atmosphere and oceans influenced each other. Earth’s atmosphere mainly depends on oceans and ocean life. Oceans regulate weather and improve global temperature. They serve as global temperature stabilisers and help to buffer man caused carbon dioxide emission. Nearly half the CO2 produced by human activities in the last 200 years has dissolved into the ocean.

Most of the sunlight absorbed by earth is absorbed at the top of the tropical ocean. The atmosphere does not absorb much sunlight. It is too transparent. Sunlight passes through the air and warms the surface of the ocean. Most of the ocean is a deep navy blue. It absorbs 98% of the solar radiation when the sun is high in the sky. Ocean plants such as mangroves, sea grass bed etc generate half of the world’s oxygen. According to UN oceans are lungs of our planet Earth.

The action of winds blowing over the ocean surface creates waves and the great current systems of the oceans. When winds are strong enough to produce spray and whitecaps, tiny droplets of ocean water are thrown up into the atmosphere where some evaporate, leaving microscopic grains of salt sustained by the turbulence of the air. These tiny particles may become nuclei for the condensation of water vapour to form fogs and clouds.

When water evaporates, heat removed from the oceans and stored in the atmosphere by the molecules of water vapour. When condensation occurs, this stored heat freed to the atmosphere to develop the mechanical energy of its motion. The atmosphere obtains nearly half of its energy for circulation from the condensation of evaporated ocean water.

MAJOR THREATS TO OCEANS Human activities have imposed alarming danger to oceans life especially cetacean species (whales, dolphins and porpoises). Cetacean species are oceanic mammals found in both freshwater and marine environment. According to WWF for nature report, Nineteen species of cetaceans had so far been reported found in Pakistan, also home to the blue whale, known to be the world’s largest animal, as well as the finless porpoise, one of the smallest marine cetacean species. There are about 1,300 whales are living in River Indus. Of the 18 cetacean species found in Pakistan, three are baleen whales while the remaining are toothed whales and dolphins.

These species are facing tremendous threats such as whaling, pollution, extinction of food resources, loss of habitat, climate change, toxic substances, plastic materials presence, net entanglement, and ship strikes and over fishing.

In Pakistan, unregulated use of gillnets in profit-making fishing and a vast boost in fishing boats are major threats to the cetacean species. the precious cetaceans entangled in fishing nets each year. The fishing fleet increased from 2,133 and 4,355 (in 1986) to 6,636 and 10,689 in Sindh and Balochistan, respectively, in 2011. The United Nations resolution on gillnets has restricted its length to 2.5km. However, in Pakistan the average size of a gillnet is from 10km to 12km while exceptionally large size gillnets (up to 24km) are also in use.

Overfishing is one big threat and directly changing aquatic ecosystems. Statistics reveal that global main marine fish stocks are in danger, increasingly pressured by overfishing and environmental degradation. Several important commercial fish populations have declined to the point where their survival is threatened. Unless the current situation improves, stocks of all species currently fished for food predicted to collapse by 2048.

The latest data from the international scientific committee, which monitors tuna in the Pacific, showed blue fin tuna stocks were a small fraction of what they had been and were in danger of disappearing. According to a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimate, over 70% of the world’s fish species either fully exploited or depleted. The dramatic increase of destructive fishing techniques world-wide destroys marine mammals and entire ecosystems. FAO reports that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing world-wide appears to be increasing as fisher men seek to avoid stricter rules in many places in response to shrinking catches and declining fish stocks.

The oceans are facing threats from global warming. Global warming have negative impacts on sea levels, coastlines, ocean acidification, ocean currents, seawater, sea surface temperature, tides and the sea floor. Human activities emit heat-trapping carbon dioxide causing rise of the average ocean temperature. Human-based carbon emissions as the primary culprit for average acidity increases of 30 percent in the world’s surface waters since the Industrial Revolution.

Marine population is facing terrible time due to global warming. Algae produces food for other marine life through photosynthesis is vanishing due to ocean warming. The acidification of the oceans due to climate change impairs the ability of coral reefs and shelled organisms to form skeletons and shells. Research has shown that krill reproduce in significantly smaller numbers when ocean temperatures rise. This can have a disastrous effect by disrupting the life cycle of krill eaters, such as penguins and seals. According to the World Wildlife Fund, a small increase of two degrees Celsius would destroy almost all existing coral reefs. Additionally, ocean circulation changes due to warming would have disastrous impact on marine fisheries.

Warmed ocean surface is leading to increased temperature. When water heats up, it expands. This expansion results in shoreline erosion, and powerful storms and hurricanes/cyclones. These stronger storms can increase damage to human structures when they make landfall. They can also harm marine ecosystems like coral reefs and kelp forests. An increase in storm frequency means more destruction for small habitats. Global warming has caused the global ocean temperatures to increase by an average of a third of a degree Celsius (about a half a degree Fahrenheit), and this change has fuelled the increase in hurricane intensity.

Presence of pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilisers, detergents, oil, sewage, plastics, and other solids are polluting our oceans. Solid waste like bags, foams, plastic materials are fatal for marine mammals, fish, and birds that mistake these materials for food.

Scientists are discovering that pharmaceuticals ingested by humans but not fully processed by our bodies are eventually ending up in the fish we eat. According to a research, Pakistan has a coastline that stretches over 1050km, (990km measured as a straight line) along the Arabian Sea. The coast of Pakistan consists of sandy beaches that interrupted by rocky protruding points. The Indus delta located at the head of the Arabian Sea has found changing its characteristics due to damming upstream, which has reduced river borne sediments.

Pakistani mangroves are located mainly along the delta of the Indus River eco region. Major mangrove forests are on the coastline of Sindh and Balochistan. The mangroves are bush like trees, which grow in shallow waters often on small islands, which regularly get swamped by changes.

The mangroves provide a diverse habitat for a complex and inter-reliant community of invertebrates, fish, birds, and reptiles. News report revealed that despite their importance to this region the mangrove forests are constantly under attack from untreated chemicals and industry bi-products, which discarded directly into the sea. Near urban areas, mangroves are cleared for developmental activities. Reduced water flow in the River Indus after the construction of dams and barrages upstream is also causing damage to the mangrove forest and its surrounding ecosystem.

The increased presence of loud or continual sounds from ships, sonar devices, oilrigs, and even from natural sources like earthquakes are disrupting the voyage, communication, hunting, and reproduction patterns of many marine animals, particularly aquatic mammals like whales and dolphins. The highest levels of noise appear in the northern parts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and along popular shipping passages like the Suez Canal.

Healthy, clean and unpolluted oceans ensure safe environment for present and future generation. Together we can protect oceans and our environment.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2013

Ruddy turnstones sit on an abandoned pier on the coast of Hawaii. Photo by LCDR Eric T. Johnson, NOAA Corps

Ocean plants produce some 50% of the planet’s oxygen. Seawater absorbs a quarter of the carbon dioxide we pump into the atmosphere. Ocean currents distribute heat around the globe, regulating weather patterns and climate. And, for those who take pleasure in life’s simple rewards, a seaweed extract keeps your peanut butter and ice cream at the right consistency!

Nonetheless, those of us who can’t see the ocean from our window still feel a disconnect—because the ocean feels far away, it’s easy to forget the critical role the ocean plays in human life and to think that problems concerning the ocean will only harm those people that fish or make their living directly from the sea. But this isn’t true: the sea is far more important than that.

Every year, scientists learn more about the top threats to the ocean and what we can do to counter them. So for tomorrow’s World Oceans Day, here’s a run-down of what we’ve learned just in the past 12 months.

A partially-bleached coral. The coral animals have abandoned the white, bleached section in response to warmer water. Photo by Klaus Stiefel

Getting heated

This year, we got the news that the apparent “slow down” in global warming may just be the ocean shouldering the load by absorbing more heat than usual. But this is no cause to celebrate: the extra heat may be out of sight, but it shouldn’t be out of mind. Ocean surface temperatures have been rising incrementally since the early 20th century, and the past three decades have been warmer than we’ve ever observed before. In fact, waters off the U.S. East Coast were hotter in 2012 than the past 150 years. This increase is already affecting wildlife. For example, fish are shifting their ranges globally to stay in the cooler water they prefer, altering ecosystems and fisheries’ harvests.

Coral reefs are highly susceptible to warming: warm water (and other environmental changes) drives away the symbiotic algae that live inside coral animals and provide them food. This process, called bleaching, can kill corals outright by causing them to starve to death, or make it more likely that they will succumb to disease. A study out this year found that even if we reduce our emissions and stop warming the planet beyond 2°C, the number considered to be safe for most ecosystems, around 70% of corals will degrade and die by 2030.

Although coral reefs can be quite resilient and can survive unimaginable disturbances, we need to get moving on reducing carbon dioxide emissions and creating protected areas where other stressors such as environmental pollutants are reduced.

More than a hit of acid

The ocean doesn’t just absorb heat from the atmosphere: it also absorbs carbon dioxide directly, which breaks down into carbonic acid and makes seawater more acidic. Since preindustrial times, the ocean has become 30% more acidic and scientists are just starting to unravel the diverse responses ecosystems and organisms have to acidification.

And it really is a variety: some organisms (the “winners”) may not be harmed by acidification at all. Sea urchin larvae, for instance, develop just fine, despite having calcium carbonate skeletons that are susceptible to dissolving. Sponges that drill into shells and corals show an ability to drill faster in acidic seawater, but to the detriment of the organisms they’re boring into.

Nonetheless, there will be plenty of losers. This year saw the first physical evidence of acidification in the wild: the shells of swimming snails called pteropods showed signs of dissolution in Antarctica. Researchers previously found that oyster larvae fail under acidic conditions, potentially explaining recent oyster hatchery collapses and smaller oysters. Acidification may also harm other fisheries.

Plastic trash floats in the waters off the Smithsonian’s Carrie Bow Cay field station in Belize. Photo by Laurie Penland

Plastic, plastic, everywhere 

Americans produced 31 million tons of plastic trash in 2010, and only eight percent of that was recycled. Where does the remaining plastic go? A lot of it ends up in the ocean.

Since last World Oceans Day, trash has reached the deep-sea and the remote Southern Ocean, two of the most pristine areas on Earth. Most of the plastic trash in the ocean is small—a few centimeters or less—and can easily be consumed by animals, with damaging consequences. Some animals get hit on two fronts: when already dangerous plastic degrades in their stomachs it leaches toxic chemicals into their systems. Laysan albatross chicks are fed the bits of plastic by their parents in lieu of their typical diet and one-third of fish in the English Channel have nibbled on plastic.

Where have all the fish gone?

A perennial problem for the ocean, overfishing has only gotten worse with the advent of highly advanced gear. Despite fishing fleets going farther and deeper, the fishing gains are not keeping up with the increased effort.

Our brains can’t keep up either: even as we catch fewer fish, we acclimate to the new normal, adjust to the shifting baseline, and forget the boon that used to be, despite the fact that our memories are long enough to realize that most of the world’s fisheries (especially the small ones that aren’t regulated) are in decline.

Thankfully, those responsible for managing our fisheries are aware of what’s at stake. New knowledge about fish populations and their role in ecosystems can lead to recovery. A report from March 2013 shows that two-thirds of U.S. fish species that are closely managed due to their earlier declines are now considered rebuilt, or on their way.

 Learn more about the ocean from the Smithsonian’s Ocean Portal. This post was co-authored by Emily Frost and Hannah Waters.