Regenerate Nature, Our Best Hope to Reverse Climate Change

Abstract

The focus of climate change research has been with the anthropogenic production of carbon dioxide and the impact of increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide on the climate. But climate change is an equation, what goes into the atmosphere must be removed, unfortunately we have totally neglected NATURE and the biological mechanisms for regulating our environment. Humanity has been systematically destroying terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems for the last 70 years since the chemical revolution and the invention of plastic and toxic-for-ever chemicals such as DDT. The very essence of humanity and life support system for the planet is intrinsically connected to nature, and most especially with all life unseen, below the surface of our oceans. The science is now telling us that we are too late to prevent the cascade destabilization of the marine ecosystem by 2045, even if the world became carbon neutral tomorrow, we are still too late to prevent the loss of most marine life through ocean acidification. The oceans represent our greatest carbon bank with a potential to sequester most of the carbon generated from the burning of fossil fuels, but productivity and biodiversity in the oceans has dropped by 50% and is currently declining at a rate of 1% year on year. This is not sustainable, there is an end point, which we are fast approaching. This report details the sequence of events that are likely to occur and the actions that need to happen to prevent the collapse of the marine ecosystem and to avoid the worst of climate change.