CPO has developed a briefing sheet for the newly launched NOAA Blue Carbon Inventory (BCI) Project. The project will harness the expertise of multiple U.S. agencies and partners to advance the development of tools, approaches, and capacity for integrating coastal blue carbon, such as seagrasses and mangroves, in the preparation of national greenhouse gas inventories (NGGI) in select developing countries.
Countries are striving to meet international obligations to report national greenhouse gas inventories of emissions and sinks to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In the follow up to the Paris Climate Agreement, Parties established the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) to strengthen reporting on national progress made, including mitigation efforts. Under the ETF, Parties are updating their NGGI reporting, with the aim by 2024 to be based upon the most recent guidance, including that of the 2013 IPCC Supplement to the 2006 Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories: “Wetlands” (the Wetlands Supplement). While coastal wetlands or “blue carbon” (mangroves, tidal marshes, and seagrasses) play a significant role in the storage and sequestration of greenhouse gases, they are particularly challenging to include in inventories, and so far only a few countries, including the United States, have done so.
The NOAA BCI Project aims to support countries in including coastal wetlands within their NGGIs and translating enhanced monitoring of emissions from wetlands into improved mitigation and coastal and marine management. Led by CPO in partnership with the U.S. Department of State and the NOAA Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Center, the BCI Project will leverage new and ongoing activities conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service (USDA/FS), the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the broader global ecosystem of organizations and communities working in blue carbon-related science, management and policy.
The NOAA BCI Project is part of a broader U.S. program called the Transparency Accelerator for Greenhouse Gas Inventories, and is intended to foster the development of emissions mitigation, coastal resource management and resilience strategies that reflect the value of coastal ecosystems in carbon storage and sequestration. Such strategies can generate co-benefits for adaptation by protecting coastal communities from storms, waves, erosion and flooding; protecting biodiversity; and providing ecosystem services that support livelihoods, culture, food security, water quality, recreation and tourism.
View the briefing sheet »
MISSION: The Climate and Fisheries Adaptation Program (CAFA) supports targeted research to promote sustainable management, adaptation and resilience of the nation’s valuable fish stocks and fisheries-dependent communities in a changing climate. By bringing together NOAA scientists with the academic community, other federal agency scientists, non-governmental organizations and key fisheries stakeholders, CAFA addresses priority needs for information and tools identified in the 2015 NOAA Fisheries Climate Science Strategy, Fisheries Regional Action Plans, U.S. National Climate Assessment, and other sources.
ISSUE: Healthy and productive fisheries are a significant component of the U.S. economy. Commercial and recreational marine fisheries generate over $200 billion in economic activity and support more than 1.8 million jobs annually. (FEUS 2016) Reliant and sustainable fisheries also support working waterfronts and coastal communities, provide opportunities for commerce, are tied to rich cultures, and help meet the growing demand for seafood across the U.S. and the world.
Climate variability and change are having increasing impacts on fish stocks, fisheries, and marine ecosystems in the U.S., and the impacts are expected to significantly increase with continued climate change. The changing climate and ocean conditions (e.g. warming oceans, extreme events, changing currents and stratification, coastal precipitation, coastal inundation, etc.) directly and indirectly affect marine ecosystems including the abundance, distribution, and productivity of fish stocks that support economically important fisheries. Sustainable fisheries management requires an improved understanding of how climate, fishing, and other stressors interact to affect fish stocks (including their habitats and prey), fisheries and fishing‐dependent communities.
PROGRAM HISTORY: The Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) Climate Program Office, and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Office of Science and Technology launched a partnership in 2014 to advance understanding of climate‐related impacts on fish or other species that support economically important fisheries and fishing communities. The partnership originated through the former Coastal and Ocean Climate Applications (COCA) Program and in 2021 was renamed the Climate and Fisheries Adaptation (CAFA) Program as part of the OAR/CPO Adaptation Sciences Program.
Jennifer Dopkowski NOAA Research
Climate Program Office P: (301) 734-1261 E: jennifer.dopkowski@noaa.gov
Roger Griffis NOAA Fisheries Office of Science and Technology P: (301) 427-8134 E: roger.b.griffis@noaa.gov
Americans’ health, security and economic wellbeing are tied to climate and weather. Every day, we see communities grappling with environmental challenges due to unusual or extreme events related to climate and weather.