Warm-water coral reefs have crossed a tipping point due to global heating and are dying at an accelerated rate due to repeated mass bleaching events, impacting hundreds of millions of people who rely on them for fishing, tourism and protection from rising seas and storm surges, according to new research.
Global average temperatures are about 1.3-1.4C above pre-industrial times, which is higher than coral reefs can withstand. Their thermal tipping point is estimated to be 1.2C of warming.
If the trend is not reversed, coral reefs around the world will be lost, warned the second Global Tipping Points report, released on Monday and produced by more than 160 scientists in 23 countries, led by the Global Systems Institute at the UK’s University of Exeter.
Of the seven tipping points monitored by the researchers, this is the first to be shown as already passed. “We’ve actually already lost about half our warm-water coral reef cover, and we can expect accelerated change in the next few decades as well,” said Mike Barrett, chief scientific advisor at WWF-UK.
The report also said parts of the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are losing ice at an accelerating speed, coming close to collapse. Greenland’s ice sheet is losing 266 billion tonnes of ice mass per year. If that meltwater flows into the North Atlantic and destabilises its subpolar gyre (large rotating current), it could produce a “Little Ice Age” in Europe, with worsening heatwaves in the summer but freezing months in the winter.
The report also said the Amazon rainforest is at greater risk than previously thought. Steven Smith from the Global Systems Institute told a webinar on the report that “the combined effects of climate change and deforestation put this [the rainforest] under threat between 1.5 to 2 degrees of warming.”
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Overshooting the 1.5C warming limit governments promised to try to keep to under the Paris Agreement now looks “pretty inevitable”, and could happen around 2030, according to the report.
The researchers said they are working with Brazil to ensure that tipping points are discussed at the COP30 climate summit it will host in November, highlighting actions that need to be taken fast.
Those include phasing out fossil fuels, increasing support for clean technologies and infrastructure, and switching to more sustainable food systems.
“Governance systems, national policies, rules, multinational agreements – including the Paris Agreement – were not designed with tipping points in mind,” said Manjana Milkoreit from the University of Oslo. “They’re made for linear or gradual changes, not the abrupt, irreversible and interconnected shifts in the Earth systems that we’re now facing.”
The consequences of a warming ocean
Corals not only provide livelihoods, food security and protection from tropical storms for over half a billion people – they also deliver $2.7 trillion annually in global economic benefits, the scientists said.
Melanie McField, founder and director of the Healthy Reefs for Healthy People Initiative (HRI), explained that the tipping point is not necessarily irreversible, as not all corals are affected at the same time – and ocean protection efforts in general could save them from becoming victims of overfishing and pollution.
In recent weeks, new reports have confirmed the effects of heat on the oceans and marine life. The EU Copernicus Ocean State Report showed that almost a quarter of the global ocean surface experienced at least one severe to extreme marine heatwave event in 2023 – a trend that has accelerated since 2005.
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And last month, the annual planetary boundaries report from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) said the planetary limit for ocean acidification had been surpassed for the first time, weakening the oceans’ ability to act as Earth’s stabiliser.
Oceans turn more acidic by absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere, a process that threatens marine life, with 1,677 species at risk of extinction, PIK said. The Copernicus report indicates a 16.5% increase in ocean acidity since 1985.
Meanwhile, ocean heatwaves not only have become more frequent but have also caused the planet’s seas to reach new record temperatures. The warmest the ocean has been since satellite data started to be collected was in spring 2024, when the global average hit 21C. More than 90% of the excess heat trapped in the Earth’s system due to human-caused global warming has been absorbed by the oceans, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Marta Marcos, an associate professor at the University of the Balearic Islands and one of the Copernicus’ study authors, told Climate Home News another key issue is the acceleration in sea level rise, which began speeding up in the 1960s-70s and is now above 4 millimetres per year. “Sea level not only continues to rise, but is rising at an ever faster rate,” she said.
While sea level rise is a global trend, the major risk is in densely populated cities near the sea. For example, in Europe around 200 million people live near coastlines – and higher baseline sea levels increase the threat to their homes and infrastructure from extreme weather. “When a storm comes, with its surge and waves, it has a much greater destructive potential,” explained Marcos.
Blue NDCs bring oceans into climate plans
Marcos believes there is growing government interest in protecting the oceans. In September, the High Seas Treaty, which lays the ground for the creation of marine protected areas (MPAs) in international waters, reached the 60 government ratifications needed for it to take effect.
And during New York Climate Week in September, Chile and the UK committed to include ocean-based solutions in their national climate plans (known as NDCs). Eleven countries have now joined the “Blue NDC” project which encourages governments – depending on their circumstances – to manage marine ecosystems, phase out offshore oil and gas production, expand clean ocean energy, cut emissions and support sustainable fisheries.
Others with Blue NDCs are Brazil, France, Australia, Fiji, Kenya, Mexico, Palau, Madagascar and the Republic of Seychelles.
Such ocean-based solutions can provide 35% of the emissions reductions the world needs by 2035, a study by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy shows.
Mary Creagh, the UK’s minister for nature, said oceans are central to her country’s NDC – but work is still being finalised on how to count emissions reductions from seagrass and seaweed management and coastal restoration. “We’re working on the science, which we’re happy to share globally once it is complete,” she added.
One key challenge is getting the world’s largest fish-producing countries to sign up to tackle ocean issues in their climate plans, particularly Asian heavyweights such as China, Indonesia, India and Vietnam.
Blue NDC member and COP30 host Brazil, meanwhile, recently announced its largest oil and gas discovery in 25 years in the Santos Basin, 400 kilometres off its coast.
Nonetheless, Marcos said such initiatives are important, adding that any effective action “has to be global, coordinated, and based on data and science”.
Marinez Scherer, a marine biologist and coastal management expert who is the COP30 Special Envoy for Oceans, said the upcoming operationalisation of the High Seas Treaty is a step forward on the path to the climate summit, which she said would discuss a plan to speed up implementation of ocean solutions.
Scherer said COP30 will present measures that are currently working in Brazil and show the world what’s needed to “plan and manage the ocean in a very healthy and sustainable way”.
The post As coral reefs pass tipping point, ocean protection rises up political agenda appeared first on Climate Home News.
As coral reefs pass tipping point, ocean protection rises up political agenda
Australia’s network of marine parks is the largest in the world, covering more than half (52%) of Australia’s Commonwealth waters. You could be forgiven for assuming that a marine park is much like a national park on land: a highly protected place where people can enjoy nature while conservation efforts help habitats recover and wildlife thrive. You wouldn’t expect someone to bulldoze a national park, so why should they be allowed to bottom trawl in a marine park?
The reality is that not all marine parks are equally protected. Australia’s Marine Parks Network is divided into different zoning categories, with each zone determining which activities are permitted and the level of protection provided.
More than half of the Commonwealth Marine Parks Network allows industrial activities like oil and gas mining, and industrial fishing.
Our survival, and the survival of our planet, depends on the ocean. The ocean produces more oxygen than all of our forests combined, sustains communities and regulates the earth’s temperature. It’s home to wondrous wildlife and important ecosystems like coral reefs and kelp forests.
We love our big blue backyard
Australia’s ocean is teeming with life that is found nowhere else on earth. Schools of colourful fish, vibrant coral reefs, endemic shark nurseries, pods of dolphins, families of whales, playful seal pups and threatened Jurassic-era turtles call Australian waters home.
Since time began, from the turquoise waves to the deep blue, the ocean has connected our shorelines and communities, fed us, guided us and grounded us. We are intrinsically connected to our big blue backyard – more than 85% of us live within 50km of the shoreline. For tens of thousands of years, people have lived in harmony with the ocean and the wildlife within it, caring for and being sustained by its rich waters. Australia’s waters are some of the most unique and abundant places on Earth but our Marine Parks Network is falling short to properly protect them.
Australia’s marine parks aren’t living up to their name
The Australian Commonwealth Marine Parks Network covers commonwealth waters 5.5km from the coast. The network is divided into 7 regional management areas, overall the network contains 60 marine parks. Zoning types determine what activities are allowed in each area. Over half of the network allows industrial activities, risking our most precious and threatened ocean wildlife.
Within many of our marine parks, destructive industries are allowed to fish, trawl, dig and mine using barbaric and cruel methods. Here are some of the zones explained:
- Bottom Trawling: Special Purpose (trawl) zones allow bottom trawling. This covers 10 marine parks totalling almost 13 million hectares. Bottom trawlers bulldoze the seafloor with weighted nets, deforesting our underwater forests; a cruel, indiscriminate and inefficient way to fish.
- Other Industrial Fishing: Includes “Habitat Protection Zones, ““Multi Use Zones” and “Special Purpose Zones.” Fishing methods vary from park to park but many marine parks in these zones allow industrial fishing like longlining. Longlining involves setting lines that can be 100km long, bristling with deadly hooks designed to catch a specific fish species. But longlining is not a selective method of fishing – significant numbers of sharks, rays, turtles, dolphins and seabirds can be harmed or killed as bycatch in the process.
- Oil and Gas Mining: Many “Special Purpose” and “Multi Use” zones allow seismic blasting and oil and gas mining. 30 marine parks or 65 million hectares of Australia’s highest conservation value areas for ocean wildlife are open for mining and exploration of oil and gas.
- Ocean Sanctuaries: National Park and Sanctuary zones are fully and highly protected marine parks designed to conserve wildlife and their habitat, where fishing, mining, and other industrial activities are not allowed.
Industrial fishing is one of the biggest threats to the ocean
In May, Greenpeace Australia Pacific sailed our campaigning vessel Oceania through some of Australia’s most beautiful and threatened marine parks. Our crew visited Jervis and Hunter marine parks to document their beauty, showcase what’s at risk and aim to expose the industrial fishing activities in these protected waters. Both of these marine parks allow bottom trawling and longlining methods of industrial fishing.
Industrial fishing is ripping the ocean apart across the planet. Longlining, also known as longline fishing, is an industrial fishing method that involves the use of a fishing line with thousands of baited hooks. These fishing lines can stretch over 100 kilometers in length and are set to capture a fish species, often tuna or billfish species. But it is not a selective method of fishing and often results in significant bycatch. This includes a range of non-target species like sharks, rays, sea turtles, marine mammals, and seabirds which are often injured or killed as bycatch.
Bottom trawling involves dragging heavy weighted nets along the ocean floor. This fishing method is popular with commercial fishing companies, because it makes it easy to catch large quantities of fish in one go. But it also damages the seafloor, releasing carbon and can kill or injure non-target ocean life like coral, fur seals, dolphins and seabirds. You may have watched the reality of bottom trawling (and the benefits of ocean sanctuaries) in Ocean with David Attenborough, if not, add it to your watch list!
Fully protected ocean sanctuaries that ban industrial fishing and mining can protect ocean wildlife and underwater wonderlands for generations to come. Vast, robust sanctuaries create blue havens where ocean wildlife are safe from nets and hooks, and can truly rest, recover, thrive and replenish out into the surrounding waters. Ocean sanctuaries ensure a healthy ocean full of life.
A once-in-a-decade chance to fix what’s falling short
We have a unique opportunity to turn the tide.
The Australian Government is asking for your feedback on how our Commonwealth Marine Parks Network is managed. This is our once-in-a-decade chance to protect ocean wildlife, ban industrial fishing and create more ocean sanctuaries.
As part of the review the Government is asking for submissions from the public to hear from you on what improvements are needed to better protect our vast network of marine parks. Writing a submission is a powerful way to influence government decisions and create real change.
This is the moment to ban industrial activities like bottom trawling and oil and gas mining. But only if they hear from YOU. Add your name!
Greenpeace is calling on the Australian government to:
1. Ban industrial activities from Australia’s Marine Parks Network: Ban industrial activities, such as industrial fishing, seismic blasting and oil and gas mining, from Australia’s marine parks.
2. Create more ocean sanctuaries: Increase fully protected sanctuaries in Australia’s marine parks based on science principles.
3. Connect Australia’s Marine Parks Network to the High Seas: mCreate seascape connectivity by linking Australian marine parks to new high seas ocean sanctuaries.
References
Substantiation that more than half of the Marine Parks Network permits industrial activity comes from a peer-reviewed systematic literature review (Phillips et al. 2025, PLOS One, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307324). The study found that within the Commonwealth Marine Parks Network specifically, “all zones are considered partially protected areas, meaning areas where extractive activities are permitted, except ‘Pink zones’ (Preservation Zones; IUCN Ia) and ‘Green Zones’ (IUCN II).” In other words, every Commonwealth marine park zone type other than the network’s strict no-take sanctuary and national park zones (IUCN Ia and II) permits some form of extractive industrial activity. Since no-take zones are the minority zone type across the network by area, this supports the conclusion that the majority of the network’s area is zoned to permit industrial activity.
DCCEEW Australian Marine Parks spatial dataset (https://fed.dcceew.gov.au/datasets/erin::australian-marine-parks/explore), filtered by zone type. This confirms that 38.43% of the network’s area is zoned as Sanctuary or National Park zones (IUCN Ia and II). These are the no-take categories excluded from the peer-reviewed study’s definition of partially protected/industrial-permitting zones. The remaining 61.57% of the network falls within the zone categories the study classifies as permitting industrial activity (per The MPA Guide definition of “industrial” applied in Phillips et al. 2025), directly corroborating the peer-reviewed finding with current Commonwealth-specific spatial data.
For further information on activities permitted within the Marine Parks Network Zoning, you can refer to the Management Plans zoning and rules for each Marine Parks Network area, for example: Temperate East, Coral Sea, North.
A new report from Greenpeace Australia Pacific advocates for the closure of bottom trawling in Australia’s Commonwealth Marine Parks Network. Bottom trawling continues to be a pervasive threat to ocean life in Australia, with 10 marine parks totalling almost 13 million hectares, allowing bottom trawling.
Australia’s network of marine parks, which is the biggest in the world, covers more than half (52%) of Australia’s Commonwealth domestic waters, but not all parks are created equal. Australia’s Marine Parks Network is divided into different zoning categories, with each zone determining which activities are permitted and the level of protection provided. More than half of the Marine Parks Network allow industrial activities like industrial fishing and oil and gas mining. This includes zoning types that allow destructive fishing by longliners and bottom trawlers, who pillage underwater wonderlands, rip up coral and indiscriminately and violently catch any animal in their path, including turtles, seals and dolphins, all within areas labelled a marine park.
The Federal government has commenced a review into the majority of Australia’s Commonwealth Marine Parks Network management plans. This presents an opportunity to ban industrial activities from our marine parks and create more ocean sanctuaries.
© Harriet Spark / Grumpy Turtle Film / Greenpeace
The banner drop is a distinctive part of the Greenpeace repertoire.
The moment of the unfolding is intrinsically dramatic. It is the reveal; when the moral and scientific truth of a situation is unveiled to the world. The wrong is being labelled—not through a written submission, or a social media post, or a statement in a meeting—but in words emblazoned in real physical space, chosen and occupied with precision, for all to see. There is jeopardy and transgression. And there are consequences—for the activists and for Greenpeace, as well as for the target of the communication. One of the reasons the banner remains such an effective tool in our toolbox is because of its undeniable clarity in cutting through, driving change and accountability in a way that few other tactics can. It is naming the wrong: in giant, clear letters.
We’ve hung these massive messages at environmental crime scenes, corporate headquarters, and iconic landmarks; on government buildings, ships and planes—in locations all around the world, for years.
My own memories unfurl even as I write this, but because the campaign to stop Woodside at Scott Reef is so pressing, what immediately springs to mind are two of our banners in that campaign: one on a crane outside their Perth HQ, and another on some of their corroding industrial junk at sea. What about you? Is there a particular banner that you picture when you think of Greenpeace?
The banners can attract global attention, but they have quiet beginnings. Each one is made by hand, often by volunteers. It is the invisible labour behind each spectacular public moment. One of the key pieces of equipment in our workshop at Rainbow Warrior House is the sewing machine. Sometimes our workshop is full of people and noise; at others it is quiet, the only sound being the gentle, purposeful, whir and buzz of a banner being sewn. It is usually our warehouse manager, Kieran Holmes, on the tools, head over the machine, carefully pouring over the raw canvas or tarp as the banner takes shape. Kieran’s one of those people who seems to be able to turn his hand to almost anything, but you wouldn’t know it because he’s old-school modest. In addition to being incredibly skilled, Kieran’s an all-round beaut human to have in the heart of our headquarters; never too busy to take the time to show a newcomer, or curious visitor, around his domain.
Once the banner is sewn up, the lettering needs to be outlined. This is done on a magnetic wall—a fit-for-purpose feature at Rainbow Warrior House, where the banner is held up with magnets, and the edges of the letters neatly traced from a projection.
Next comes the painting. It usually starts late in the afternoon, sometimes going into evenings and weekends, with volunteers, staff, mates crowded around, brushes in hand. It is a calming meditative feeling of shared purpose, giving each letter its visual heft, the colour building power and presence with each stroke.
Then you stand back, stretch, and look at the message, now ready.
S A V E S C O T T R E E F
Throughout history, every great push for social change has required some form of invisible labour; preparation in the form of quiet things seldom seen, but vital. It is the enabling work of love instantiated in action. And of course, so much of the time it has been women who have done this labour, so that the men could get the chance to make the speeches and stand on the podiums. The inaugural Greenpeace voyage to stop nuclear testing in 1971 had a male-only crew, but wouldn’t have happened without the ideas and work of women behind the scenes.
It is what we do together, after all, that changes the world. Sometimes that work happens on a stage, a ship on the wild seas, or up the side of a building. But mostly, it is the hidden diligence of those who care and contribute to all the enabling work that makes a change once thought impossible, inevitable. It is Kieran at his sewing machine. It was Dorothy Stowe doing the administrative work of the ‘Don’t Make A Wave Committee’ that became Greenpeace.
When we think of social change, it is the sturm and drang that we remember. The drop of the banner, the chant of the crowd, the raising of the new flag. But look behind the curtain, and there’ll be a crew of people who are taking responsibility for the administration, the sewing and the painting, making the food, checking the bus timetables, getting stuff done. And behind them are even more handsinvisibly donating time and trust; the financial, material and expert resources that make it all possible. There’s love, camaraderie and know-how at every stage.
We are social and cooperative creatures by nature. And we human beings have been stitching for millenia, sewing the possibilities of our common future. Political and corporate bullies and algorithmically manipulative platforms would have us forget this, and abandon who we are. But we should be in no doubt that the brighter prospects for ourselves and life on earth continue to be stitched and painted; collaboratively and with love, by the diligent hands of millions of people who care, each day, in every community and city across the world.
With Love,
David
Q & A
I always get great questions when interviewing prospective new team members. One that came up again recently was: “Is Greenpeace actually one organisation?”
Around the world, people know Greenpeace by our one global name, united by a shared mission: securing an Earth capable of nurturing life in all its magnificent diversity, with a particular focus on climate and biodiversity. Behind the scenes, though, we’re organised as a network of 25 legally autonomous national and regional offices, including Greenpeace Australia Pacific, working alongside Greenpeace International.
That structure gives us the best of both worlds: we work together leveraging the power of a global network on the issues that matter most, while each office remains legally independent and deeply connected to the communities, cultures and political realities where we’re embedded. Local knowledge informs global action, and global collaboration strengthens and supports local campaigns.
It’s a model that has enabled Greenpeace to take on some of the world’s biggest challenges for over five decades–while withstanding challenges and attacks from governments and corporations. Global enough to tackle global problems, local enough to understand our communities and the natural places we love.
If you’re curious to learn more, you can read about the Greenpeace Global Network structure here.
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