Why We Must Think About Climate Change When Planning How to Use Our Seas

Abstract

Many activities take place at sea. For example, goods are transported by ships, people enjoy time by the beach, piers and buildings are constructed on the coastline, and fishermen fish. Human activities change the sea’s environment and can harm ocean animals and plants. To find a good balance between using and protecting the sea, many countries have begun planning their ocean space—a process called marine spatial planning. Planners use tools developed by researchers to understand how various human activities will affect the sea in the future. When we added climate change into a software tool for marine spatial planning in Sweden, we found that climate change alone might be as harmful to the sea as all other human activities taken together! Climate change is strongly affecting the sea and should, therefore, be included in marine spatial planning.