SAVE OUR OCEAN - THE VALUE OF THE OCEAN

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man on the ocean could affect its health, today we turn the situation upside down to go and see what influence the seas, and the changes they are experiencing, have on human health. How much is the value of the ocean for men's lives?

Before starting, I remind you that you can find a list of the articles in this series, constantly updated and ordered according to thematic categories, by visiting this index.

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The complete list of marine ecosystem services

What the Ocean Grants

The oceans play a key role in human life and are the basis of its well-being. Therefore, all those benefits provided directly or indirectly by water are identified as Marine Ecosystem Services. These services can be divided into three main categories:

  • Provisioning Services: are all those benefits that are obtained directly from the ecosystem. The followings are part of it: food derived from fishing activities and aquaculture; drinking water derived from desalination or other direct systems and all marine biomass used for non-food purposes (cosmetics, energy, medicines, etc.).
  • Regulation Services: these are all the benefits that are obtained from the "regulation / maintenance" of the marine ecosystem. It is the largest group and the followings are part of it: the cleaning of water from pollution; the cleaning of the air in the lower layers of the atmosphere; the protection of the coasts from hurricanes and erosion; maintaining the global climate; the influence on weather and humidity; maintaining the health of the ocean and of the marine life cycle and the control of diseases that could damage it (and indirectly harm humans).
  • Cultural Services: are all the non-material benefits that are obtained directly from the ocean. They come together in three values: the symbolic/aesthetic; the tourist/recreational and the cognitive one. The latter is intended as an added value for the development of the arts and for the mental health of man.

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The 11 Descriptors of a Good Environmental Status (GES)

The Marine Strategy Framework Directive

But wanting to numerically quantify the total value of all these services, what would that amount to? It is a difficult answer to give because the three macro-categories can only be measured in different ways. Provisioning services are easy to measure based on economic values, but the same cannot be said of regulation and cultural services, whose effects often take years, if not centuries, before manifesting themselves in a measurable way. Furthermore, even the economic value of provisioning services is not so easy to measure completely, as this should also take into account more random factors such as job creation or earning opportunities. What is certain, however, is that all these benefits depend heavily on the conservation and management of the marine ecosystem. The European report, for example, highlights how in 1997 the value of the provision services amounted to about 150 trillion dollars, but as in 2011 this had dropped to around 130 trillion dollars.

In an attempt to protect the marine environment, in 2008 the European Union adopted an ambitious strategic plan: the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). This involves various maneuvers in different sectors to achieve, by 2020, what is defined as a Good Environmental State (GES). The GES is identified through 11 specific descriptors:

  • Biodiversity is guaranteed
  • There is no alteration of the ecosystem by non-native species
  • Good health of commercial fish species
  • The elements that are part of the food chain guarantee abundance and reproduction for a long period of time
  • Eutrophication (excessive algae growth) is minimized
  • The integrity of the seabed is such as to guarantee the functioning of the ecosystem
  • Permanent alterations of hydrographic conditions do not negatively affect the ecosystem
  • The concentrations of the contaminants are such that they have no effect
  • Contaminants in seafood are below guard levels
  • Marine litter does not cause damage
  • The introduction of energy and noise does not adversely affect the ecosystem

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Schematic version of the OHI and its average optimal values

The Ocean Health Index (OHI)

While the value of the marine ecosystem, as seen, is difficult to quantify, it is instead very important to measure how much people are using its services (or could use them) through human-ecosystem interactions. This is the goal of the Ocean Health Index (OHI) which compares and combines the key elements of all the various dimensions of ocean health (biological, physical, economic and social). The OHI is therefore a synthetic index based on the following values:

  • Food Supply: sustainable collection and production of marine food.
  • Craft Fishing Opportunities: guarantee of access to this activity for local communities.
  • Natural Products: sustainable collection of non-food resources from the ocean.
  • Carbon storage: protection of carbon-absorbing habitats through coastal ecosystems.
  • Coastal Protection: protection of habitats that shell the coasts from storms and floods.
  • Means of Subsistence and Economics: support for jobs, wages and revenues and the presence of a prosperous coastal economy.
  • Tourism and Recreational Activities: Sustainable maintenance of the attraction of coastal destinations.
  • Sense of Place: protection of iconic species and special places identified as part of the local cultural identity.
  • Water Cleaning: minimizing pollution from: chemicals, eutrophication, pathogens and human waste.
  • Biodiversity: sustaining the health of the marine ecosystem and species.
In the image above this paragraph you can see an example, with average values, of a graph based on the OHI. You can also note that these values ​​are strongly linked to those we have indicated as descriptors of the GES. To date, the OHI remains the best method to effectively assess the health of our seas.


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