News Highlights:
- India’s G20 presidency would promote individual and collective actions to facilitate the transition towards a sustainable blue economy.
- The oceans hold untrammelled opportunities for the prosperity of our planet.
Key Takeaway:
- The G20 countries together account for around 45% of the world’s coastlines and over 21% of the exclusive economic zones (EEZs).
- The oceans are reservoirs of global biodiversity, critical regulators of the global weather and climate, and support the economic well-being of billions of people in coastal areas.
What is Blue Economy?
- About:
- It is the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.
- It advocates greening ocean development strategies for higher productivity and conservation of the ocean’s health.
- Gunter Pauli introduced the concept in his 2010 book- “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs”.
- Blue Economy emphasises on integration of the development of the ocean economy with social inclusion and environmental sustainability, combined with innovative business models.
- This is reflected in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 14), which calls to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.
- It includes:
- Renewable Energy: Sustainable marine energy can play a vital role in social and economic development.
- Fisheries: Sustainable fisheries can generate more revenue and more fish and help restore fish stocks.
- Maritime Transport: Over 80% of international goods traded are transported by sea.
- Tourism: Ocean and coastal tourism can bring jobs and economic growth.
- Climate Change: Oceans are an important carbon sink (blue carbon) and help mitigate climate change.
- Waste Management: Better waste management on land can help oceans recover.
- Need for Blue Economy:
- Oceans cover three-quarters of the Earth’s surface, contain 97% of the Earth’s water, and represent 99% of the living area on the planet.
- Oceans protect biodiversity, keep the planet cool, and absorb about 30% of global CO2 emissions. At least 3-5% of global GDP is derived from oceans.
- Blue economy, through sustainable use of oceans, has great potential for boosting economic growth by providing opportunities for income generation and jobs etc.
- It can support food security and diversification to address new resources for energy, new drugs, valuable chemicals, protein food, deep sea minerals, security etc.
- It is the next sunrise sector. Sunrise Sector is a sector that is expanding rapidly and is expected to be increasingly important in the future.
- Blue Economy for India:
- Blue economy presents India with an unprecedented opportunity to meet its national socio-economic objectives and strengthen connectivity with neighbours.
- Blue Economy can help focus on livelihood generation, achieving energy security, building ecological resilience, and improving coastal communities’ health and living standards.
- Blue economy would reinforce and strengthen the efforts of the Indian government as it strives to achieve the SDGs of hunger and poverty eradication along with sustainable use of marine resources by 2030.
Factors that affect Blue Economy:
- Threat of Sea Borne Terror:
- Piracy and armed robbery, maritime terrorism, illicit trade in crude oil, arms, drug and human trafficking and smuggling of contraband etc.
- Natural Disasters:
- Every year, tsunamis, cyclones, hurricanes, typhoons etc., leave thousands of people stranded and property worth millions destroyed.
- Man-Made Problems:
- Oil spills and climate change continue to risk the stability of the maritime domain.
- Impact of Climate Change:
- Changes in sea temperature and acidity threaten marine life, habitats, and the communities that depend on them.
- Marine Pollution:
- In the form of excess nutrients from untreated sewerage, agricultural runoff, and marine debris such as plastics
- Overexploitation:
- Illegal, unreported, and unregulated extraction of marine resources.
Initiatives to Promote Blue Economy:
- Deep Ocean Mission:
- It was launched to develop technologies to harness the living and non-living resources from the deep oceans.
- India-Norway Task Force:
- India-Norway Task Force on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development: It was inaugurated jointly by both countries in 2020 to develop and follow up joint initiatives between the two countries.
- Sagarmala Project:
- The Sagarmala project is the strategic initiative for port-led development through the extensive use of IT-enabled services to modernise ports.
- O-SMART:
- India has an umbrella scheme named O-SMART, which aims at the regulated use of oceans and marine resources for sustainable development.
- Integrated Coastal Zone Management:
- It focuses on conserving coastal and marine resources and improving livelihood opportunities for coastal communities etc.
- National Fisheries Policy:
- India has a National Fisheries policy for promoting the ‘Blue Growth Initiative’, which focuses on the sustainable utilisation of fisheries wealth from marine and other aquatic resources.
Pic Courtesy: Freepik
Content Source: The Hindu