SDG 14: Life Below Water

The report reviews research needs for SDG 14, categorizing them into three themes: marine pollution, ocean and climate, and sustainable use of marine resources. It highlights critical knowledge gaps in the Arctic and Baltic Sea, the need for standardized global monitoring of microplastics and acidification, and the challenge of balancing short-term economic demands with long-term environmental protection. The document emphasizes that while science can characterize challenges and provide solutions, effective mitigation depends on political will and multi-disciplinary collaboration.

• There is a significant risk of short-term trade-offs between the economic use of marine resources and their environmental protection, despite long-term mutual benefits from a balanced approach.
• A mismatch exists between the long-term observation requirements of climate research and the shorter timeframes of national policy-making and the 2030 Agenda.
• Marine litter is primarily a land-based issue, with approximately 80% of worldwide litter originating from land, and a vast majority of land-based plastic waste coming from 20 developing countries, notably China, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
• In Sweden, the primary source of microplastic emissions is road wear and vehicle tyre abrasions, estimated at 8,190 tons per year, far exceeding emissions from cosmetic products.
• The Arctic region suffers from substantial knowledge gaps regarding the long-term impacts of ocean warming and acidification, necessitating a pan-Arctic research action plan and specific system models due to the high cost and logistical difficulty of observations.
• The Baltic Sea faces considerable knowledge gaps regarding how biodiversity is affected by the cumulative and synergistic effects of pollution, over-fertilisation, fishing pressure, and climate change.
• Global fish stocks are declining, with the proportion of stocks fished at biologically sustainable levels dropping from 90% in 1974 to 68.6% in 2013, partly driven by harmful fisheries subsidies estimated at US$ 35 billion annually.
• Governance of the high seas, which cover 58% of the world's oceans, is fragmented and inadequate, particularly regarding emerging issues like blue carbon and bioprospecting.
• Brownification, caused by increased dissolved organic carbon (DOC), is affecting the Baltic Sea and coastal ecosystems, but its underlying causes and impacts on marine food chains remain under-researched.
• Standardised global monitoring programmes are urgently needed for both microplastics and ocean acidification to improve the reliability of impact projections and the effectiveness of management strategies.

APA

Sturesson, A., Weitz, N., & Persson, Å. (2018). SDG 14: Life Below Water. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/sdg-14-life-below-water-review-of-research-needs-1.pdf

Chicago

Sturesson, Annie, Nina Weitz, and Åsa Persson. SDG 14: Life Below Water. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2018. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/sdg-14-life-below-water-review-of-research-needs-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sturesson |first1=Annie |last2=Weitz |first2=Nina |last3=Persson |first3=Åsa |title=SDG 14: Life Below Water |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=November 2018 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/sdg-14-life-below-water-review-of-research-needs-1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sturesson2018sdg, author = {Sturesson, Annie and Weitz, Nina and Persson, Åsa}, title = {{SDG 14: Life Below Water}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2018}, month = nov, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/sdg-14-life-below-water-review-of-research-needs-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }