The ocean produces at least 50% of the oxygen we breathe<\/a> and absorbs 25% of the carbon dioxide we emit. But it is losing the capability to regulate the climate as it warms and becomes more acidic. Illegal, unregulated and unregistered (IUU) fishing is decimating global fish stocks, which provide four billion people with 15% of their animal protein. And at current rates, it is estimated<\/a> that by weight there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050.<\/p>\n Yet there are reasons for optimism. Latin American countries are leading the way on marine protection and cooperation. Marine protected areas (MPAs) now cover 42%<\/a> of Chile\u2019s maritime territory, and Mexico is looking to join the Tropical East Pacific Conservation Corridor<\/a>, which is managed by Colombia, Panama, Ecuador and Costa Rica.<\/p>\n Worldwide, Thompson said, the UN\u2019s Sustainable Development Goal 14<\/a>, to conserve the ocean, has galvanised communities and mobilised resources to defend an asset upon which humanity\u2019s survival depends.<\/p>\n Life above the ocean surface relies on the quality of life below it, according to Jos\u00e9 Mar\u00eda Figueres, a former president of Costa Rica and ex-chair of the Global Ocean Commission<\/a>, which first called for a specific Sustainable Development Goal on marine conservation. Along with a group of regional partners including Mexico, Chile and Canada, Figueres now participates in the Pacific Ocean Assembly protection initiative.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s no other landmass that goes from the Arctic to the Antarctic. We have declared more marine reserves than any other continent,\u201d Figueres said of the Americas.<\/p>\n Summit host Mexico understands the scale of the challenge, according to environment minister Rafael Pacchiano. Mexico recently announced the largest marine reserve in North America \u2013 a 150,000-square kilometre<\/a> area surrounding the Rivillagigedo archipelago.<\/p>\n To enforce marine protection, Pacchiano said, the government is working with local communities to co-manage and advance coastal clean-up initiatives, and with the navy.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen people discover and connect with nature, they\u2019re more committed to protecting it,\u201d Pacchiano said.<\/p>\n According to Chilean senator Ricardo Lagos, whose Valpara\u00edso constituency includes the protected San Juan Fern\u00e1ndez Islands and Rapa Nui (Easter Island), designating MPAs involves a political trade-off. Government must balance immediate issues, such as poverty, health and crime, with securing future resources for industry and small communities, who must be consulted on new restrictions on fishing.<\/p>\n Aulani Wilhelm, senior vice president for oceans at Conservation International<\/a>, who led the designation of what is now the Papah\u0101naumoku\u0101kea Marine National Monument<\/a> encompassing the Hawaiian archipelago, said indigenous knowledge and communities are assets, not problems to resolve.<\/p>\n \u201cThe drive to protect cultural and ancestral heritage can be as strong as the environmental imperative,\u201d said Wilhelm. <\/div><\/p>\n Sustainable Development Goal 14 includes a commitment to conserve 30% of the ocean by 2030, but countries are far from making this a reality, Figueres told chinadialogue ocean<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cTechnological advances are allowing us to move forward in this direction,\u201d said Figueres, pointing to satellites, drones, and the work of the International Maritime Organisation<\/a> in fitting smaller boats with transponders to provide tracking data.<\/p>\n Furthermore, the Food and Agriculture Organisation\u2019s Port State Measures Agreement<\/a>, which entered into force in 2017, commits to eliminate IUU fishing. It has 51 signatories so far although China is not party to the agreement. The next step is to give it \u201cteeth\u201d and enhance the capability of countries to comply with it, Figueres said.<\/p>\n The FAO estimates that IUU fishing is worth around US$23 billion<\/a> per year. It is a major problem across national jurisdictions.<\/p>\n Small countries like Uruguay struggle to find the resources to protect against IUU fishing and must work closely with regional partners, said Eneida de Le\u00f3n, the country\u2019s minister of housing, territorial ordering and environment.<\/p>\n \u201cThe use of the ocean\u2019s natural resources has become abusive,\u201d de Le\u00f3n told chinadialogue ocean<\/em>.<\/p>\n $23 billion<\/p>\n The issue of marine resource extraction has complicated an otherwise cooperative relationship between Uruguay and neighbouring Argentina, de Le\u00f3n said.<\/p>\n Conservationists claim the construction of a Chinese-backed fishing port<\/a> in Uruguayan capital Montevideo would enable China\u2019s long-distance fishing fleets \u2013 the largest in the world<\/a> \u2013 to offload catch and refuel, prolonging overfishing in South Atlantic waters.<\/p>\n De Le\u00f3n said Uruguay has a bilateral treaty with Argentina on the ocean and doubted their current \u201cvery good\u201d relations would be soured by the proposed port.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it complies with the logical environmental conditions, and fundamentally, the protection of resources, then I don\u2019t think we\u2019re going to have any problems,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n There is nothing more perverse in an age of austerity than subsidies, according to Figueres, who highlighted the US$30 billion in annual subsidies that go to the fishing industry, mostly for fuel.<\/p>\n The G20 group of economies has a long-standing yet unresolved commitment to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies. At the recent meeting<\/a> of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, minsters made little progress on the issue.<\/p>\n India blocked a resolution on fishing subsidies in Buenos Aires, claiming that without them, poor fishermen would be hurt most. However, around 80% of India\u2019s US$400 million<\/a> annual subsidies go to industrial trawlers.<\/p>\n Pavan Sukhdev, an economist and president of WWF International, also advocated eliminating fishing subsidies.<\/p>\n The destruction of reefs, mangroves and other marine ecosystems is expected to have economic impacts, as the fisheries and eco-tourism sectors are hit. These ecosystems also protect against extreme weather events.<\/p>\n If these risks can be calculated, then they can be insured against. Insurance is becoming a big idea in shaping the blue economy, according to Rowan Douglas, head of capital science and policy practice at insurer Willis Towers Watson<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cSurely, we can provide insurance-related finance for conditions that require greater harmony with related ecosystems,\u201d Douglas said.<\/p>\n China is the world\u2019s most significant single source<\/a> of ocean impacts. Beyond having the world\u2019s largest fishing fleet<\/a>, China consumes, processes and exports more fish than any other country. China is also a major source of ocean pollution, from fertiliser run-off to plastics and chemical contamination.<\/p>\n UN officials insist they are working with Chinese partners on issues affecting the ocean, despite them not having a presence at the Mexico Ocean Summit.<\/p>\n Lisa Emilia Svensson, director for ocean at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), said her team engage with the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development<\/a>, which has a special workforce dedicated to tackling marine pollution.<\/p>\n The UN\u2019s conference of the parties to the convention on biodiversity (COP17) will be held in China<\/a> in 2020 \u2013 the same year countries must meet international MPA targets.<\/p>\n \u201cI would like to see strong commitments from China to include the marine environment in an updated agenda for 2030,\u201d said Svensson.<\/p>\n Every year, eight million tonnes<\/a> of plastic is dumped into the ocean, with China accounting for 28%<\/a> of the total. Svensson said China can lead on tackling plastic pollution as it has in other areas of environmental protection.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need China to take global leadership. We have seen China stepping up in the climate change discussion, taking the initiative to stop ivory, and on stopping importing plastic waste<\/a> from developed countries,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Svensson added that efforts to make the plastics industry more sustainable should focus on a lifecycle or \u201ccircular economy<\/a>\u201d approach. This involves keeping resources for as long as possible, extracting the maximum value and use from them, then recovering and regenerating them.<\/p>\n Fernando Musa, CEO of Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem<\/a>, which manufactures polymers, said companies are looking at product designs with recyclability in mind. However, he identified better waste management as the solution.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Mexico-ocean-summit-662x372.jpg\")
Pacific partnerships<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n![\"Map](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Papah\u0101naumoku\u0101kea-marine-national-monument-1000x614.jpg\")
International goals<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nThe value of illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, estimated by the FAO
\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\nBlue economy\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Working with China<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Plastic pollution<\/strong><\/h2>\n