Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
Human activity is having a destructive impact on the ocean, Earth’s largest and most important ecosystem. The ocean drives the ecological functions that make the planet habitable, and protecting it is paramount to ensuring human well-being.
Goal 14 and the environment
The decline of the ocean is impeding necessary ecological functions and both directly and indirectly, threatening human health. Human actions have altered 66 per cent of the ocean, and the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste is exacerbating the impacts. Human activity is causing eutrophication, acidification, plastic pollution, overexploitation and more.
Ocean acidification is increasing because human activities have significantly increased carbon dioxide emissions. This threatens organisms and ecosystem services, endangers fisheries and aquaculture and affects coastal protection by weakening coral reefs. Meanwhile, marine plastic pollution is estimated to cost the global economy up to US$19 billion annually. By 2040, up to 37 million tonnes of plastic could enter the ocean per year. Plastics destroy marine habitats and cause serious health impacts when digested by marine biodiversity, which can be passed up the food chain to humans. Nutrient run-off and other forms of waste are also killing marine life.
Overexploitation is another grave concern. Some 35.4 per cent of global stocks were overfished in 2019, while the share of sustainable fisheries has not significantly changed over the last decade. Small Island Developing States, the world’s poor and most vulnerable and Indigenous communities have a greater dependence on fishing and are thus most likely to be impacted by the ocean’s decline. Protecting marine health is, therefore, necessary to ensuring a future for humanity.
UNEP’s work on Goal 14
The ocean generates 50 per cent of the oxygen needed to sustain life and absorbs 25 per cent of carbon emissions. Over 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods. However, marine ecosystems are at serious risk of being irreversibly damaged. Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns and limiting pollution on land is essential to ensuring healthy life below water.
UNEP has several programmes, initiatives and partnerships dedicated to preserving marine habitats and safeguarding their essential services. UNEP works to reduce and prevent plastic pollution and marine litter, protect critical marine ecosystems, and focus on policy frameworks to protect coastal ecosystems and the many communities that depend on them.
To date, 69 countries have joined this effort, making it the biggest, most powerful global coalition devoted to ending marine plastic pollution.
The Global Partnership on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter
This multi-stakeholder partnership brings together all actors working to prevent marine litter and plastic pollution.
Led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, in collaboration with UNEP, this initiative has united more than 500 organizations behind a common vision of a circular economy for plastics.
The initiative addresses the accelerating degradation of the world’s oceans and coastal areas through a “shared seas” approach. Since its establishment in 1974, 146 countries have joined the programme.
Status of Coral Reefs of the World
This landmark report found that between 2009 and 2018, there was a progressive loss of about 14 per cent of the coral from the world's coral reefs.
Out of the Blue: The value of seagrasses
This report examines how seagrasses, which are disappearing at an alarming rate, contribute to food security, improve water quality, protect coasts from erosion and store carbon.
Decades of Mangrove Forest Change
This report reviews the extent of mangrove cover and considers the potential consequences of the disappearance of these salt-loving trees on more than 1,000 species, including birds, fish, plants, mammals, reptiles and amphibians.
The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030
Led by UNEP, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), it covers terrestrial as well as coastal and marine ecosystems. A global call to action, it will draw together political support, scientific research and financial muscle to massively scale up restoration.
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