Integrating climate and ocean change vulnerability into conservation planning

Tropical coastal and marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to ocean warming, ocean acidification, and sea-level rise. Yet these projected climate and ocean change impacts are rarely considered in conservation planning due to the lack of guidance on how existing climate and ocean change model...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mcleod, Elizabeth, Green, Alison, Game, Edward, Anthony, Kenneth, Cinner, Joshua, Heron, Scott F, Kleypas, Joanie, Lovelock, Catherine E, Pandolfi, John M, Pressey, Robert L., Salm, Rodney, Schill, Steve, Woodroffe, Colin
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:unknown
Published: Research Online 2012
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Online Access:https://ro.uow.edu.au/scipapers/4593
Description
Summary:Tropical coastal and marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to ocean warming, ocean acidification, and sea-level rise. Yet these projected climate and ocean change impacts are rarely considered in conservation planning due to the lack of guidance on how existing climate and ocean change models, tools, and data can be applied. Here, we address this gap by describing how conservation planning can use available tools and data for assessing the vulnerability of tropical marine ecosystems to key climate threats. Additionally, we identify limitations of existing tools and provide recommendations for future research to improve integration of climate and ocean change information and conservation planning. Such information is critical for developing a conservation response that adequately protects these ecosystems and dependent coastal communities in the face of climate and ocean change.