Blue Economy

Blue Economy is generally translated as "ocean economy" and refers to economic activities that utilize the ocean and coastal environments. Examples include economic activities that utilize the ocean, such as the fishing industry, coastal and marine tourism, shipping, and offshore wind power generation.

According to the World Bank, for example, marine fishing activities are estimated to have an economic impact of 2 million US dollars (approximately 7 billion yen). In the tourism sector, least developed coastal countries and island nations welcome as many as 295 million tourists per year, bringing jobs and economic benefits to the region. In addition, more than 4,100% of international goods are transported by sea, and the amount is expected to double by 8 compared to 2050 (see infographic below).

Source:World Bank websiteThan

In this way, the ocean provides us with enormous economic benefits. According to the WWF, the economic value of goods and services provided by the ocean and coastlines is estimated at US$2.5 trillion (approximately JPY 273 trillion), making it the seventh largest in the world*1. Furthermore, the OECD predicts that the economic value of the ocean will reach US$2030 trillion (approximately JPY 3 trillion) and create 327 million jobs by 4, and this is expected to continue to grow*2.

This economic value can only be generated if the ocean is in a healthy state, but the marine and coastal environments are deteriorating year by year.

The ocean contributes to mitigating climate change by absorbing 2% of the world's CO30 emissions (*3) and 9% of the heat from rising temperatures (*4). However, the increase in CO2 has led to acidification, causing coral bleaching and other problems. Sea levels are also rising and coastal erosion is also progressing. The plastic problem is also serious. It is estimated that 800 million tons of plastic are discharged into the ocean every year, and by 2050, there will be more plastic than fish by weight (*5). Furthermore, more than 3% of marine resources are overfished, and the biodiversity of marine species has decreased by 1970% between 2012 and 36 (*6).

Without healthy oceans, the development of the Blue Economy will never be possible. In other words, the growth of the Blue Economy is inseparable from protecting marine and coastal environments, including the protection of fisheries resources, or in other words, achieving SDG 14, "Conserve and sustainably use the oceans and their marine life."

※1 http://ocean.panda.org.s3.amazonaws.com/media/Sustainable%20Blue%20Economy%20Finance%20Principles/Sustainable%20Blue%20Economy%20Finance%20Principles_2018%20Brochure.pdf
*2 https://www.oecd.org/sti/science-technology-innovation-outlook/ocean-economy-and-innovation/
*3 IPCC, 2013: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Stocker, TF, D. Qin, G.-K. Plattner, M. Tignor, SK Allen, J. Boschung, A. Nauels, Y. Xia, V. Bex and PM Midgley (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, 1535 pp.
*4 K.von Schuckmann et al (2020)
*5 https://jp.weforum.org/reports/the-new-plastics-economy-rethinking-the-future-of-plastics
*6 FAO 2018, ISC 2016, WWF/ZSL 2016, Hoegh-Guldberg 1999, Hoegh-Guldberg
et al. 2007, Waycott et al. 2009, UNEP 2014, Jambeck et al. 2015