EDFish

Selected tag(s): Natural Climate Solutions

The ocean as a climate champion: Capitol Hill Ocean Week paints the town blue

By EDF Oceans / Published: July 18, 2023

At Capitol Hill Ocean Week, EDF discussed the intersections between ocean and climate – and the potential for change.

By Lucy Vogt, EDF Seafood Policy Intern

Last month, Capitol Hill Ocean Week (CHOW) welcomed environmental businesses, leaders, and shakers — and one brand-new intern.

CHOW investigated the intersection between the ocean and the climate by facilitating conversations about ocean opportunities. Even though the ocean covers more than 70% of the earth, produces 50% of the oxygen we need and absorbs 25% of the carbon emissions we produce, it is often perceived solely as a victim of climate change. But this massive ecosystem holds a wealth of potential climate solutions, and CHOW conversations ranged from offshore wind to maritime shipping to partnerships with coastal communities.

Posted in Policy, Seafood / Also tagged Aquaculture, Blue Carbon, blue food, Capitol Hill Ocean Week, CHOW, climate solution, Fisheries, Marine Policy | Comments are closed

Blue carbon: A better tomorrow begins below

By EDF Oceans / Published: April 5, 2022

By: Kristin M. Kleisner and Jamie Collins

As we embark this year on the United Nations Ocean Decade, you may be hearing quite a bit about blue carbon. But what is it, and why is it so important for the future of our planet? Well, the oceans play a critical role in trapping carbon, and they have absorbed about a third of all human-generated carbon emissions since the start of the Industrial Revolution. This is important because the carbon that human activity has released into the atmosphere acts as an accelerator of climate change.

When carbon is stored naturally in the various parts of ocean and coastal ecosystems — sequestering it, or taking it out of the atmosphere, where it could contribute to warming — we call it blue carbon. The blue carbon storage reservoir includes waters, sediments, and marine plants and animals. Unfortunately, loss of habitat, overfishing and other human impacts, including those from climate change, are reducing the ability of the oceans to trap carbon. That’s why we are exploring pathways to restore these benefits now and help to secure a better future for us all. You can learn more about blue carbon and some of the ways in which we may be able to restore key pathways using this interactive site. Read More »

Posted in Science/Research / Also tagged biodiversity, Blue Carbon, carbon, carbon sequestration, Climate change, Coastal Communities, coasts, Ecosystems, emissions, Food Security, mangroves, mesopelagic fish, Oceans, Overfishing, restoration, salt marshes, seaweed, seaweed farms, seaweed forests, Whales | Comments are closed

Natural climate solutions cut a steady course through a sea of proposals for ocean carbon dioxide reduction

By Jamie Collins / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: December 8, 2021

When it comes to slowing the warming of our planet, there is no substitute for immediate, dramatic reductions in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. But emissions reductions alone won’t be enough to limit warming to the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal at the heart of the 2015 Paris Agreement, or even to the Agreement’s upper limit of 2 degrees Celsius. In fact, we’ll almost certainly need to complement emissions reductions with big investments in carbon dioxide removal, or CDR, to capture and lock away some of the carbon dioxide we’ve already emitted.

Posted in International, Science/Research / Also tagged Blue Carbon, carbon, carbon credits, carbon dioxide removal, carbon sequestration, Climate change, coastal ecosystems, coasts, Engineering and Medicine, geoengineering, greenhouse gases, mangroves, mesopelagic fish, National Academy of Sciences, Oceans, salt marshes, twilight zone, whales seaweed | Comments are closed

Seaweed to heal the planet

By Rod Fujita / Bio / Published: November 2, 2021

Seaweed forests and algal beds cover about 3.5 million square km of our planet — only about 1% of the ocean’s surface — but these amazing ecosystems generate benefits to people and nature far out of proportion to their size. Read More »

Posted in International, Science/Research / Also tagged biodiversity, carbon sequestration, Climate change, coastal ecosystems, erosion, Fisheries, Food Security, seaweed, seaweed farming | Comments are closed

Blue Carbon: a diamond in the rough

By Doug Rader / Bio / Published: August 17, 2021

As the biosphere continues to warm and the ocean acidifies, solving the global carbon problem becomes more critical each day. Keeping temperatures to survivable levels requires reducing emissions while at the same time working aggressively to absorb as much carbon dioxide as possible, using approaches that can nurture natural ecosystems and help vulnerable human communities flourish. Read More »

Posted in Science/Research / Also tagged Blue Carbon, carbon sequestration, kelp, mangroves, resilience, seaweed, Whales | Comments are closed