Memorandum for the Petitioners | 75 of tropical coastal ecosystems, such as coral reefs and mangroves, from which they derive multiple benefits including food, coastal protection, cultural services, and income from industries such as fishing and tourism.?!° In particular, 62% of Filipinos live in coastal zone.3'! The impacts of climate change -- and specifically increases in ocean warming and other climaterelated stressors -- threaten coastal ecosystems and the services, goods and benefits that Filipinos depend on. 8.6. Ocean acidification is a direct consequence of an increased concentration of human-made CO: emissions into the atmosphere. As stated in the 2014 IPCC ARS, oceans have absorbed 93% of the extra energy from the enhanced greenhouse effect and approximately 30% of anthropogenic CO2 from the atmosphere.?!?_ As CO» dissolves in sea water it forms carbonic acid, which decreases the ocean’s pH level and collectively known as ocean acidification. 7! 8.7. Ocean leads to a suite of changes acidification has already affected the distribution and abundance of marine organisms and ecosystems.*!4 Ocean acidification affects the formation and dissolution of calcium carbonate shells and skeletons in a range of marine species, including corals, mollusks, and many plankton species that form the base of marine food chains.*!° 8.8. In addition to ocean acidification, the global average sea surface temperature has increased since the beginning of the 20" century; a trend that has been particularly acute during the 1950s.3'® Increased ocean warming causes corals to expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, responsible for their color. A spike of 1-2°C in ocean temperatures sustained over several weeks can lead to bleaching. When corals are bleached for prolonged periods, they eventually die. Coral bleaching events often lead to the death of large amounts of corals!” 8.9. Coral reefs are, therefore, particularly vulnerable to climate impacts such as ocean warming, as well as to the parallel impact of rising CO2 leading to ocean acidification. Furthermore, since coral reefs (and kelp Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, pp. 1655-1731 (hereinafter, “IPCC, WGII, AR 5 Chapter 30: The Ocean”), p. 1658. HO Id, p. 1688. 311 One Ocean, Managing Philippine Coasts and Seas: Understanding the Challenge, available at http://oneocean.org/flash/the_philippine_seas.html (last accessed on 12 September 2019). 312 IPCC, WGII, AR 5 Chapter 30: The Ocean, supra note 309, p. 1658. 313 Testimony of Dr. Laura David, TSN 27-28 March 2018, p. 139, also available at http://chr.gov.ph/wpcontent/uploads/20 19/04/NICC-TSN-March-27-to-28-20 18-Metro-Manila-Philippines.pdf (last accessed on 12 September 2019). 314 Ibid. 315 Also see explanations in Exhibit “B” to “B-3,” Joint Statement of Maria Lourdes San Diego-McGlone, PhD Chemical Oceanography, Laura David, PhD Physical Oceanography and Porfirio Alifio, PhD Marine Chemical Ecology (Graham, et. al.), p.2. 316 IPCC, WGII, AR 5 Chapter 30: The Ocean, supra note 309, p. 1658. 317 David, L., supra note 313, p. 139.