[Coral-List] IPCC and coral reefs

[Jean-Pierre Gattuso]

Listers,

IPCC has been recently mentioned on the list. Coral reefs are covered in 
chapters 5, 6 and 30 of the Contribution of WGII to the IPCC report. 
These chapters can be downloaded here:
http://ipcc-wg2.gov/AR5/report/final-drafts/

There is also a cross-chapter box covering coral reefs:

Gattuso J.-P., Hoegh-Guldberg O. & Pörtner H.-O., in press. Coral 
Reefs. In: Field C. et al. (Eds.), Climate Change 2014: Impacts, 
Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the 
Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 
Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

There is also a cross-chapter box on ocean acidification in which coral 
reefs are mentioned:

Gattuso J.-P., Brewer P., Hoegh-Guldberg O., Kleypas J. A., Pörtner 
H.-O. & Schmidt D., 2014. Ocean acidification. In: Field C. & et al. 
(Eds.), Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. 
Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the 
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate ChangeCambridge: Cambridge University 
Press.

Both boxes are included in the three chapters above and can be also 
downloaded here:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3098160/ipcc_coral_reef_box.pdf
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3098160/ipcc_ocean_acidification_box.pdf

Finally, coral reefs are mentioned in the Technical Summary and twice in 
the Summary for Policy Makers (same link as the one above for the 
individual chapters):

- Unique and threatened systems: Some unique and threatened systems, 
including ecosystems and cultures, are already at risk from climate 
change (high confidence). The number of such systems at risk of severe 
consequences is higher with additional warming of around 1°C. Many 
species and systems with limited adaptive capacity are subject to very 
high risks with additional warming of 2°C, particularly Arctic-sea-ice 
and coral-reef systems.

- For medium- to high-emission scenarios (RCP4.5, 6.0, and 8.5), ocean 
acidification poses substantial risks to marine ecosystems, especially 
polar ecosystems and coral reefs, associated with impacts on the 
physiology, behavior, and population dynamics of individual species from 
phytoplankton to animals (medium to high confidence). Highly calcified 
mollusks, echinoderms, and reef-building corals are more sensitive than 
crustaceans (high confidence) and fishes (low confidence), with 
potentially detrimental consequences for fisheries and livelihoods. See 
Figure SPM.6B. Ocean acidification acts together with other global 
changes (e.g., warming, decreasing oxygen levels) and with local changes 
(e.g., pollution, eutrophication) (high confidence). Simultaneous 
drivers, such as warming and ocean acidification, can lead to 
interactive, complex, and amplified impacts for species and ecosystems.

I hope this helps.

---
Jean-Pierre Gattuso
INSU-CNRS-UPMC
Laboratoire d'Océanographie de Villefranche
06230 Villefranche-sur-mer
France
T: +33 4 93 76 38 59 | http://www.obs-vlfr.fr/~gattuso