Wednesday 16 January 2008

MCCIP – a coalition of scientists, government agencies and NGOs, including WWF – produced the report to assess the impacts of climate change on the UK's marine environment. The findings show clear evidence that British seas are already warming and the problem looks set to worsen.

One of the report's findings is the large fall in coldwater zooplankton numbers. The report shows that as the seas have warmed, the amount of Calanus finmarchicus has declined by 70% since the 1960s. This small shrimp-like animal is the most important zooplankton species found in UK waters; the foundation of the foodchain.

"The potential effects of such a major population drop in zooplankton are extremely worrying," said Emily Lewis-Brown, Marine Climate Change Officer at WWF-UK. "Ultimately, the entire UK marine ecosystem will suffer, because so many species, from basking sharks to sand eels and cod, all rely on zooplankton as a major food source. It's like removing grass from the savannah or trees from the rainforests."

The report also revealed that 2006 was the second warmest year for UK coastal waters since records began in 1870, and that seven of the 10 warmest years fell within the last decade. Warmer winters have been strongly linked to reduced breeding success and survival in various seabird populations, including kittiwakes and puffins. But it's not just the animal kingdom that will be affected: sea-level rise, coastal flooding, storms and bigger waves will affect ports, shipping and built structures; fishing and fish farming will be affected by temperature change and plankton availability; and coastal erosion is already occurring along 17% of the UK coastline.

"Globally, the impacts of climate change are increasing and accelerating," said Emily Lewis-Brown, "and sea level rise in the UK will be determined by ice loss at the poles. This is escalating at a rapid rate, and the Greenland ice cap and the Antarctic Peninsula hold enough water to raise global sea levels by 7m each, if temperatures rise by an average of 2°C across the world. We must avoid this at all costs, by dramatically and urgently cutting greenhouse gas emissions."

WWF is calling on the UK government to show a commitment to reducing CO2 emissions by at least 80% by 2050 in its Climate Change Bill, and for this to include aviation and shipping. We also believe that the UK's Marine Bill should be introduced as a matter of priority, with full integration of all activities around UK seas and coasts, in order to help reduce our impacts upon the marine environment.