ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Mushahidullah Khan on Sunday urged the global community to work on an action plan to protect oceans and its resources from the devastating fallout of growing contamination, climate change-caused warming and unsustainable mining of its fisheries resources.

“Oceans worldwide provide the livelihood directly for three billion people but are under immense human and global warming-caused pressures such as sea pollution, acidification, rising sea levels, over-exploitation of ocean resources, coastal degradation and global warming. These challenges can be tackled only through a global action,” he said at a press briefing here.

The minister put the responsibility on rich nations which have been blamed for global warming and unsustainable use of ocean resources to lead a global ocean rescue and rehabilitation action.

Mushahidullah Khan says oceans provide livelihood to three billion people but are under immense human and global warming pressures

He said ocean-related climate change impacts, including ocean warming, acidification and sea-level rise threatened the world’s food security, biodiversity of the oceans, integrity of coastal areas, livelihoods of millions of people, tourism and recreation.

He said an estimated 80pc of marine pollution originated on land - pollutants that posed risks to wildlife and the health and safety of humans.

“Nutrients, flowing down into our oceans from sources such as agricultural runoff, sewage and waste water discharges, create dead zones where fish and other marine life cannot thrive. The world is home to an estimated 500 such dead zones. Given the dismal scenario, the very sustainability of marine fisheries is now at risk,” he added.

“Various international research reports show that catches of many fish species in the oceans are declining while demand keeps increasing.”

He minister is set to attend a two-day ocean conference in Malta next month where he would join a global call for new vision and strong and action-oriented commitments for addressing challenges to oceans.

The invitation from the European Union (EU) to the conference was conveyed last week to the minister by EU Ambassador to Pakistan Jean François Cautain, the briefing was informed.

To be hosted by the EU and attended by hundreds of delegations from across the world, the ‘Our ocean, an ocean for life’ conference will focus on the key ocean issues - marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution and climate-related impacts on the ocean.

The event aims at inspiring the next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs, scientists, civil society and media to identify solutions and commit to actions to protect and conserve oceans and its resources.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2017