Issue: Contributions of the coasts and oceans to human life - Non-living material (materials and energy fuels)
This is an issue under the Coasts and oceans theme of the Data Reporting System.
Why we need to know about this issue
The ocean contributes many benefits to human life but extracting those contributions can exert pressures on the marine environment. Environmental degradation resulting from the pressure of extracting these benefits, combined with other pressures, has the potential ultimately to erode the ocean’s capacity to supply these benefits. In the shorter term, the additional effort needed to obtain these contributions in the face of environmental degradation could exert greater and more damaging long-term pressure on the environment.
To have the full story, it is therefore important to track not only what is happening to the pressures, the resulting condition of the coasts and oceans, and the societal responses, but also what is happening to the contributions. If the contributions can be maintained or increased (or replaced) while responses are undertaken to ensure that environmental pressures are reduced and environmental condition maintained or improved, then the contributions from the land can become environmentally sustainable.
Energy from marine-based, non-living sources (primarily fossil fuels) is an important contribution of the oceans to human life. Modern human life and human settlements are highly dependent on fossil fuels, especially petrol and other oil products and natural gas. The extraction, production and use of these fuels places a range of pressures on the ocean.
Other non-living materials derived from marine sources, such as minerals, are also important contributions of the ocean to human life. Modern human life and human settlements are highly dependent on metals and other minerals. The extraction, production and use of these materials can also place pressures on the ocean.
Indicators
- CO-10 Total energy production from the Australian marine environment
The energy value that the ocean is currently producing is one way of tracking the contributions of ocean-based energy fuels derived from non-living sources to human life. The indicator includes both exported and domestically consumed energy, since the exported products contribute to national income. - CO-47 Quantity and dollar value of raw materials from non-living marine sources
The quantity and dollar value of non-living materials that the ocean is currently producing and the aggregated dollar value (but not the aggregated volume or mass, since different substances have very different uses and different value per quantity) of all such materials is one way of tracking the contributions of these materials to human life. - HS-48 Material Flows in Human Settlements
Material flows analysis provides insights into the movement of non-living materials from the sea.
Related issues
- Coasts and Oceans - Direct pressure of human activities on coasts and oceans- Direct pressures of harvesting non-living materials
- Land - Contributions of land to human life- Non-living materials from the land
- Human Settlements - Services provided by the environment to human settlements- Minerals (including non-renewable energy sources)
Key
Links to another web site
Links to data in the DRS
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