These rules for an ocean economy would help the whole planet, says marine biologist and ecologist Benjamin Halpern
My office at the University of California, Santa Barbara, looks out over the coastline. The United States’ first set of offshore oil platforms dot the skyline, the source of the 1969 oil spill that started the modern environmental movement. Enormous cargo ships traverse an ocean mega-highway, bringing goods from around the world and occasionally striking and killing whales. Surfers ride waves, sailing boats head for the islands and, on clear days, the beaches crawl with sunbathers.
This is the dilemma at the centre of my research. For 20 years, I’ve studied how uses of the ocean cumulatively damage marine ecosystems, but also support vibrant human communities. From this work, I’ve come to feel there needs to be a collective deal to ensure that the economic benefits of the blue economy outweigh the ecological costs. I propose that any new ocean activities should be sustainable and also contribute to reduce pressure on the land.
Finally, large corporations should bear the brunt of the costs of the planetary deal. Encouraging small operators often improves environmental justice while increasing local livelihoods and economic security by keeping owners and workers local. Compensatory requirements should be proportionally less for these small operators and progressively more for larger ones, analogous to the way income tax works in much of the world.
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