The Effect of Ocean Changes. (July 5, 2010)

We're a bit late on the uptake, but several weeks ago John Church --, a chief research scientist at the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research, a partnership between CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology -- contributed the June 18, 2010 editorial in Science. Its contents deserve mass circulation but most particularly it ought to be required reading for state and federal parliamentarians and their staff. Click here to access the full editorial.

A few excerpts:

The oceans sustain a vast wealth of biological diversity, deliver critical ecosystem services, supply valuable natural resources, and are a central component of the climate system. It is therefore critical that the current ocean-observing system be extended to cover a wider range of ocean properties.

The oceans slow the rate of climate change by absorbing over a quarter of the carbon dioxide released by the burning of fossil fuels and by storing over 90% of the excess heat accumulating in the climate system. These two changes, together with nutrient input into the oceans from fertilizer use and other pollution, are affecting the marine ecosystem by increasing the acidity of the oceans, decreasing subsurface oxygen concentrations, and increasing coastal nutrient loads. At the same time, ocean changes affect the terrestrial environment, being the primary source of the water vapor that drives global rainfall patterns.

[B]y 2100, rising sea levels from ocean thermal expansion and increasing ocean mass (from melting glaciers, ice caps, and the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets) will expose an additional tens of millions of people annually to the risk of coastal flooding... Continuing greenhouse gas emissions are increasing the risk of crossing critical thresholds, with poorly understood consequences.

However, society has thus far failed to heed the clear warnings about continuing greenhouse gas emissions, making the need to adapt to climate and ocean changes unavoidable.

Adaptation will require a much improved understanding of the oceans, underpinned by long-term sustained measurements... Needed, but rare to nonexistent, are long time series—including data from the deep oceans; under-ice measurements; and geochemical, biological, and ecosystem parameters.

There also is a need for greater engagement by marine scientists in addressing climate and ocean variability and change, including their impacts on ecosystems, biodiversity, and fisheries, as well as for improved communication of the importance and urgency of their findings.

At present, almost all ocean observations are supported by short-term research funding that is subject to changes in research priorities. Long-term funding for sustained observations is absolutely critical.