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.

• Indonesia is one of the countries in the world that is most vulnerable to a rise in sea level as 42 million people living on low-lying land less than 10 m above sea level and about 5.9 million people will be affected every year by 2100. PubMed Central (PMC)
• Southeast Asia (SEA) has been identified as one of the regions which are greatly impacted by climate change, especially vulnerable communities at the hazard hotspots. PubMed Central (PMC)
• The European Union has arranged an alternative supply ahead of the widely expected stoppage while Hungary will keep receiving Russian gas via the TurkStream pipeline under the Black Sea. Business Post Nigeria
• Eastbound Trades (Asia, Oceania, Middle East): Due to ongoing conflicts in the Red Sea, vessels are being rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope, extending transit times by approximately 10 to 14 days. John Mason
• The impacts of climate change in Nigeria are already evident - ranging from desertification, increased frequency of extreme weather events such as floods and droughts to rising sea levels threatening coastal communities. Premium Times Nigeria
• The ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia is disrupting global shipping because of sanction evasion, and military exercises in the South China Sea and around Taiwan by China and the US have also caused disruption to trade lanes. Automotive Logistics
• The threat of private drones in the Red Sea has become so important that the German defence ministry is redirecting its commercial vessels around Africa, a long detour. Exponential View
• The military alliance will step up patrols in the Baltic Sea region as Finnish investigators work to establish whether a ship linked to Russia sabotaged undersea cables there this week. CBC
• Geopolitical Risk has played an important part in 2023 and 2024 caused by the crisis in Ukraine, Israel, Sudan and Red Sea. AIR CARGO WEEK
• The unpredictable nature of extreme weather events, coupled with rising sea levels and increasingly frequent intense rainfall, makes the risk of flooding a serious concern for many communities worldwide. Active Gear Reviews
• The glacier, which alone would add two feet to sea level rise and also acts as a buffer holding back a huge chunk of the West Antarctic ice sheet, will see a significantly accelerating retreat within a century. Splinter
• Water scarcity: More than 40% of Indians are expected to face water scarcity by 2050 and close to 35 million will face annual coastal flooding with sea level rise. Civilsdaily
• Pacific island nations face rising seas and stronger cyclones that erode coastlines, threaten biodiversity, and force communities to relocate, while South and South-West Asia grapples with glacial melt from the Third Pole, jeopardizing water security for 1.3 billion people. Inter Press Service
• Climate change is expected to have many disastrous effects on the planet, including sea level rise, drought, extreme weather events, flooding, wildfires, agricultural challenges, impact of disease patterns, ecological disruptions and species extinctions. thestatesman.com
• Disruptions in the Taiwan Strait or the South China Sea, for instance, would have far-reaching effects on the global economy, impacting everything from semiconductor production to energy shipments. Eurasia Review
• Atmospheric rivers that crash into Northern California and the Pacific Northwest will begin to be affected instead by warmer temperatures in both the atmosphere and ocean. ScienceDaily
• By 2100, atmospheric rivers that strike the Pacific Northwest could increase flooding risks by temporarily raising the heights of ocean waters as much as three times more than current storms if society continues to emit greenhouse gases at a high rate. ScienceDaily
• CPOM uses satellite observations to monitor change in the Polar regions and numerical models to better predict how their ice and oceans might evolve in the future. ScienceDaily
• EWS are especially vital in regions with complex multi-hazard risks, such as the Pacific small island developing States, where cyclones, floods, and sea-level rise intersect, and in South-East Asia, where urban flood risks are rapidly escalating. ReliefWeb
• Most commercial vessels will likely continue to stay away from the southern part of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and shipping companies will likely continue to prefer longer but safer routes around the Cape of Good Hope. Acuity Knowledge Partners
• New tariff threats on China-to-U.S. shipments could take effect on or after January 20.Red Sea and Suez Canal disruptions continue to force vessels to reroute around Africa, impacting transit times and capacity. WOWL
• Only 47% of the students who regularly chant the infamous slogan, 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free', were able to name the river and the sea it references. Spiked
• In the post-2040 mitigation run, the sea ice does not significantly change due to the delayed Antarctic SIE minimum in around 2060, whereas in the post-2030 mitigation run (Fig. 3 c), the sea ice shows a significant recovery in the Pacific and Atlantic sectors. Nature

Last updated: 02 February 2025