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UMass Boston panel: record ocean warming threatens coasts, fisheries and public health, experts say
Summary
Scientists and state climate officials at UMass Boston warned that record ocean temperatures and rising seas are accelerating coastal flooding, shifting fisheries and increasing health and insurance risks, and urged rapid emissions cuts, adaptation and community-centered planning.
At a UMass Boston panel on ocean warming, climate scientists and state officials on Monday described record-high ocean temperatures, growing local impacts for Massachusetts and a suite of mitigation and adaptation steps they said are urgently needed.
Chancellor Suarez Orozco opened the session by saying the planet is 'dangerously warming' and that warming oceans threaten the climate 'in which civilization first emerged.' Melissa Hoffer, a guest climate official who moderated the event, framed the discussion around recent record ocean-surface temperatures and called the session "a day for learning" about why oceans are warming.
Panelists outlined the science: Bob Chen, interim dean of UMass Boston's School for the Environment, explained that rising atmospheric CO2 acts like a 'heat-trapping blanket' and that Arctic ice loss amplifies warming because darker ocean waters absorb more energy. Edwin Samargo, team lead for the Office of Climate Science within the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, added that strong El…
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