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10 / MONACO AT THE HEART OF CLIMATE CHANGE DEBATES

The ocean: actor and victim

of global warming

The ocean’s role in global warming has been overlooked for years. Today,

the carbon sinks provider and planet climate regulator is the focus point

for scientists and climate actors. Global oceanic knowledge must be

developed if we are to improve ocean protection.

The United Nations has positioned ocean preser- ments undertaken by the Paris Agreement State
vation as a priority in adopting Sustainable Deve- signatories, it would appear that the objective of
lopment Goal 14. SDG 14 proposes to «conserve maintaining global warming under 2°C between
and sustainably use the oceans, seas and ma- now and 2100 will be difficult to achieve. In 2016,
rine resources for sustainable development». It the 2015 record average temperature (+1.04°C)
targets ten marine pollution commitments, marine was beaten with a recording 1.1°C superior to the
and coastal ecosystem protection, ocean acidifi- pre-industrial average.
cation, scientific research and fishing. The ocean
is, in actual fact, at the heart of climatic balance.
The global ocean uses its high inertia to stock and In 2016, the average global temperature was 1.1°C
redistribute heat, capture and store carbon and
regulate climate fluctuations. Today, these eco- higher than during the pre-industrial period, breaking
system mechanisms have been disturbed. The the 2015 record (+1.04°C).
planet’s entire natural carbon cycle is disrupted
by the increase in CO emissions from fossil fuels;
2
this is creating an alarming level of ocean acidifi-
cation. Furthermore, it is thought that the ocean
absorbs more than 90% of human-induced
excess heat. In spite of repeated warnings from
the global scientific community and the commit-