Improve the analytics and knowledge base on marine pollution and water quality is key for restoring damaged ecosystems and protecting the Caribbean’s marine resources, said the World Bank in a recent report, examining how marine pollution in the Caribbean threatens the region’s resilience to climate change.
Norwegian Government’s State Secretary Marianne Hagen commented on maritime security in the Western Indian Ocean, during a ministerial conference. She highlighted that Somali piracy hasn’t been eradicated yet. The State Secretary noted that Norway wishes to maintain its capacity on prosecuting and imprisoning pirates here in the region, with Mauritius, the Seychelles and Kenya as important partners.
A BP drilling rig heading to an oilfield in the British North Sea was to turn away two times during the last two days as a Greenpeace ship is protesting over climate change, and is trying to obstruct the rig’s progress. This chase is the latest chapter in Greenpeace’s nine-day effort to stop the 40,000 tonne Paul Loyd JNR rig from reaching the Vorlich oilfield to begin drilling operations.
A new study conducted by British and Greek sustainability institutes, recommends four different scenarios for how international maritime trade might be influenced by climate change until 2050. The paper also presents adaptation efforts. The scenarios expect trade to increase between two and four times the 2010 value by 2050.
After shutting down BP’s offices in London, Greenpeace activists boarded on an offshore drilling rig, which belongs to Transocean and planned to begin drilling operations for BP in the UK North Sea, in an attempt to stall BP’s oil plans.
On the occasion of the World Environment Day, the Secretary General of United Nations, Antonio Guterres, reiterated his call for global action to combat climate change and the existential threats that this brings to the planet. Air pollution is accounting for 7 million deaths every year, he noted.
Finland released a new government programme in which it pledges to become a carbon neutral state by 2035 and the world’s first fossil fuel free welfare society. This coincides with another announcement last week by Chile, which also pledged to go carbon neutral by 2050.
Private companies are more and more interested in maintaining and improving the health of the ocean, a new report published by the United Nations Global Compact says. The report was developed in consultation with 300 representatives of business, civil society and academia, and urges that a healthy marine environment is not only necessary for many companies’ long-term operations, but it can also offer significant business opportunities as well.
Norway is well positioned as a world leader in emissions-free solutions at sea, says Bjørn Haugland who refers to the many incentives that the country considers toward a green shipping industry and a sustainable future for the global market.
Diane Gilpin highlights that climate change is a reality; there are multiple indicators which provide clear evidence that the climate is changing and therefore, it is of outmost important to start thinking out of the box and finding out new solutions in order to face this challenging situation.
