Role of oceans in climate change should gain strength at COP31

COP30 in Belém marked a turning point by endorsing, for the first time, a task force to integrate the oceans into each country’s climate strategies. Although still modest, the initiative represents a timely advance for researchers and officials at multilateral entities. The expectation is that the movement will gain prominence this year at COP31, whose presidency will be shared between Turkey and Australia.

The Ocean Task Force, announced at COP30, aims to reinforce countries’ commitment to integrating the ocean into their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Each country’s climate targets must be defined by the parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change every five years. With the most recent update in 2025, the following presentation will be in 2030.

The initiative, led by Brazil and France and supported by 17 countries, builds upon the Blue NDC Challenge, launched at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in June 2025 in Nice, France. At COP30, an investment package focused on the sea was also launched, totaling $116 billion in public and private initiatives for ocean protection and restoration.

About 78% of parties reference the ocean in their NDCs, a 39% increase over previous cycles. However, there are still gaps, including a lack of measurable targets and defined deadlines, limited financing mechanisms for ocean climate solutions, and weak alignment with national blue economy priorities, according to the Blue Ocean Foundation.

Expanding the focus to the oceans is strategic because this ecosystem absorbs a third of the planet’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, produces 50% of the oxygen needed for life, and absorbs 90% of the excess heat generated by these emissions, according to UN data. For experts, it is a “carbon sink” and a fundamental protection against climate change.

Despite the progress, a bitter taste lingers for those who expected a more daring inclusion of the oceans in the final COP30 declaration. There is mention of the urgency of addressing, “in a comprehensive and synergetic manner, the interlinked global crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and land and ocean degradation in the broader context of achieving sustainable development.”

For Professor Alexander Turra of the Oceanographic Institute at the University of São Paulo, who coordinates the UNESCO Chair for Ocean Sustainability, there is a concrete gain in recognizing that oceanic processes are a central part of carbon mitigation and sequestration strategies. “When you consider the ocean in the equation, we are putting in place more pathways for carbon sequestration and storage.” But Turra believes that COP30 fell short of expectations for a more structural change.

In 2021, the UN designated this as the Ocean Decade, intending to protect 30% of the oceans by 2030. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports that the oceans have warmed since 1970, with impacts including ocean acidification and shifts in the geographic ranges of marine species and habitats. The estimated added value for the ocean economy by 2030 is $3 trillion, representing 5% to 6% of the real global economy and generating 40 million direct jobs, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Oriana Romano, head of the OECD’s Blue Economy in Cities Program, said that between 1995 and 2020 the ocean economy doubled in size, reaching $22.6 trillion, with 133 million full-time workers. “The ocean provides food for 3 billion people, transports 80% of traded goods and carries 98% of global internet traffic,” Romano said at the “Green Rio” event in Rio de Janeiro in November.

In a study conducted with Green Rio, ocean activities accounted for between 30% and 44% of the state of Rio de Janeiro’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Romano said. The findings were accompanied by a warning: “The blue economy is not green,” she said, pointing to the impacts of solid waste and plastic pollution. According to her, the blue economy needs to be built locally, involving governments, companies, universities, civil society, and local communities. “A resilient, inclusive, sustainable, and circular blue economy is only possible when these actors work together.”

Reporting by Victoria Netto; translation by Ed Sena.

Source: Valor International

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