Global Scans · Life Below Water · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

• [New] A team of scientists led by Rutgers researchers has uncovered evidence that modern sea level rise is happening faster than at any time in the past 4,000 years, with China's coastal cities especially at risk. EurekAlert!
• [New] The world is nearing other irreversible tipping points that could trigger devastating consequences for people and ecosystems, including the melting of polar ice sheets, disruption of major ocean currents, and the collapse of the Amazon rainforest - where COP 30 will take place. ScienceDaily
• [New] As global temperatures move beyond 1.5 °C, the world risks cascading crises such as ice sheet melt, Amazon rainforest dieback, and ocean current collapse. ScienceDaily
• [New] By 2050, an extra 1.5 million people could be living in high-risk coastal areas exposed to sea level rise. Hunter New Energy
• [New] The federal government has released Australia's first National Climate Risk Assessment, mapping how worsening heat, fires, floods and sea level rise are expected to affect communities, infrastructure, industries and ecosystems, alongside a National Adaptation Plan to guide future action. Hunter New Energy
• [New] Apart from accelerating GMSL, anthropogenic-induced subsidence in coastal cities has emerged as a key feature of the sea-level budget over the past century, posing a substantial threat to coastal cities across the world. Nature
• [New] Sea-level change, a direct indicator of climate change, poses substantial risks to coastal communities and will continue to do so in the coming century. Nature
• [New] There is concern that terrestrial and ocean CO2 sinks are becoming less effective, which will increase the amount of CO2 that stays in the atmosphere, thereby accelerating global warming. The Ecologist
• [New] Some geothermal fluids contain valuable minerals; lithium concentrations in the groundwater of California's Salton Sea region could potentially supply battery manufacturers. UND Today
• [New] Overall London and Yorkshire and the Humber collectively represent more than half of the top 20 constituencies affected by river and coastal flooding, highlighting that the east of England could be most negatively affected. The Guardian
• [New] The overall volume of sea-level rise that Greenland could contribute could be quite large, and that matters a lot in a number of different places on the planet. Cornell University
• [New] While uncertainties around the Antarctic Ice Sheet explain the most variability of 21st century sea-level rise, Greenland could play a larger role in the 22nd century. Cornell University
• [New] A failure to reduce emissions by 2050 will result in a greater than 50% probability of reaching the threshold that would raise sea-levels by 0.4 meters, which could surpass 0.5 meters depending on how heat is absorbed into the oceans and other complex geophysical dynamics. Cornell University
• [New] The timing of emissions reductions, even more so than the rate of reduction, will be key to avoiding catastrophic thresholds for ice-melt and sea-level rise. Cornell University
• [New] New Zealand's oceans are warming 34% faster than the global average, with NZ$180bn (US$104bn) worth of housing at risk of flooding. no2nuclearpower
• [New] Alarmingly, around one in six stocks are both critically low yet still being overexploited - like North Sea cod - putting them on a trajectory towards collapse and threatening livelihoods in fishing communities along with the UK's internationally important marine wildlife. Barley Communications
• [New] With the right choices, the UK could have more abundant seas that provide both food and jobs while restoring the wonders of marine life. The Conversation
• [New] Red Sea Cable Cuts - Connectivity Outage: In a stark reminder of infrastructure vulnerabilities, several undersea cables were severed in the Red Sea in early October, wreaking internet disruptions from the Middle East to South Asia. Bez Kabli
• [New] By 2100 the combination of subsidence and sea-level rise could inundate up to 1,100 square kilometers of the Chesapeake Bay's coastline. Scientific American
• In addition, 600 tons of clean energy a day will be produced by the world's largest clean hydrogen plant in NEOM by 2026 and 30% of Saudi Arabia's land and sea will be under protection by 2030, equal to the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf combined. Innovation Zero MENA Congress 2025
• The SGI's objectives of reducing carbon emissions by 278 mtpa by 2030, planting 10 billion trees over the coming decades equivalent to rehabilitating 40 million hectares of land and protecting 30% of Saudi Arabia's land and sea by 2030 are ambitious targets but a good start has already been made. Innovation Zero MENA Congress 2025
• Other leading fish stocks under threat include Southern North Sea edible crab populations which are critically low, while North Sea herring and North East Atlantic mackerel are being overexploited. The Ecologist
• Turkey is starting to work with the United States and South Korea on the construction of its second nuclear power plant in Sinop on the Black Sea coast, a project that was previously expected to go to Russia's state nuclear company Rosatom. Nordic Monitor

Last updated: 19 October 2025