Abstract
Significance We present climate risk analyses for 1) 105 ocean-dependent communities and 2) 380 fishing fleets in Europe. Our unique approach provides a perspective over the climate risks in this diverse and populous continent that is unprecedented in both its breadth and detail. We show that countries in southeast Europe as well as the United Kingdom have the highest climate risk overall, both in terms of fishing fleets and coastal communities. Substantial variation in climate risk is seen even within countries, emphasizing that climate adaptation interventions need to be tailored to the specific characteristics of the fleet or community. A focus on sustainable fisheries management and diversification of fish portfolios can reduce climate risks across the board.
Highlights
The ocean provides human societies with a wide variety of goods and services, ranging from food and employment to climate regulation and cultural nourishment (Hassan et al, 2005)
In some cases, such as in the southern-Baltic states, a focus on building adaptive capacity in coastal regions would be of most benefit e.g. by creating alternative employment opportunities or providing an economic ‘safety net’ through wider social measures
It is clear that no “one-size-fits-all” solution that can be applied across all European waters or even, in some cases, across a country: climate adaptation plans, need to be tailored to these local realities
Summary
The ocean provides human societies with a wide variety of goods and services, ranging from food and employment to climate regulation and cultural nourishment (Hassan et al, 2005). Climate change is already shifting the abundance, distribution, productivity and phenology of living marine resources (Poloczanska et al, 2013; FAO, 2018; Phillips and Pérez-Ramírez, 2018), thereby impacting many of the ecosystem services upon which society depends (IPCC, 2019). These impacts, are not being experienced uniformly by human society but depend on the characteristics and context of the community or business affected. Several ‘best practice’ guides have been developed (Brugere and De Young, 2015; Johnson et al, 2016)
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