soundings )) Critical Relationship Between Digitalization and Sustainability, ABB Study Finds. ABB has released the findings of a new study of international business and technology leaders on industrial transformation, looking at the intersection of digitalization and sustainability. The study, “Billions of better decisions: industrial transformation’s new impera-tive,” examines the current take-up of the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) and its potential for improving energy efficiency, lowering greenhouse gas emissions and driving change. The goal is to spur discussion within industry on opportunities to leverage the Industrial IoT and empower companies and workers to make better decisions for both sustainability and the bottom line. The study, commissioned by ABB, found that an organization’s “future compet-itiveness” is the single greatest factor, cited by 46 percent of respondents, in industrial companies’ increased focus on sustainability. Yet while 96 percent of global decision makers view digitalization as “essential to sustainability,” only 35 percent of surveyed firms have implemented Industrial IoT solutions at scale. This gap shows that while many of today’s industrial leaders recognize the important relationship between digitalization and sustainability, the adoption of relevant digital solutions to enable better decisions and achieve sustainability goals needs to accelerate in sectors such as manufacturing, energy, buildings and transport. Among other key findings of the study are: 71 per-cent of respondents reported greater priority given to sustainability objectives as a result of the pandemic, and per-ceived cybersecurity vulnerabilities are the number one barrier to improving sustainability through the Industrial IoT. )) France Extends Marine Protections in Indian Ocean. France has announced that it will expand marine protections by about 1 million sq. km (386,102 sq. mi.) in the southern Indian Ocean. French President Emmanuel Macron declared the new conservation measures at the One Ocean Summit in Brest, France. The move adds protections around Saint-Paul and Amsterdam Islands, the Kerguelen Islands, and the Crozet Islands, which are all part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands, an overseas territory that is home to a richly diverse wildlife community. The expansion makes the waters around the three archipelagos the largest marine protected area in French waters by far, representing about 15 percent of the country’s global exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Southern Lands marine reserve will include a new highly protected area surrounding Saint-Paul and Amsterdam Islands and covering about 255,000 sq. km (98,500 mi.), where all extractive activities, such as industrial fishing, will be prohibited. The added area will more than double the percentage of French waters that are highly protected, from 1.6 to 4 percent, but still leaves the country with a challenge of reaching its goal of highly protecting at least 10 percent of its waters by the end of this year. Science shows that highly protected areas provide the most significant ecological benefits. )) Seafood Risk Tool Supports Sustainable Aquaculture. Scientists have developed a new way to identify and reduce the impact of chemicals and diseases in global aquaculture. Aquaculture already provides about half of all seafood consumed by humans, and by 2050 it is expected to provide as much as 70 percent. In 2020 seafood consumption reached an all-time high, and sustainable aquaculture is playing a vital role in this “blue food” revolution. In a new paper in Nature Food , scientists from Cefas (Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science) in the U.K. and the University of Exeter describe a Seafood Risk Tool to support the development of sustainable aquaculture. Aquaculture, the farming of fish, molluscs, crustaceans, other animals, seaweeds and plants in rivers, lakes, seas and oceans is ranked among the fastest growing and highly traded global food sectors. It is rooted within higher relative efficiencies of production of aquatic protein compared to many land-based alternatives and the potential benefits of eating aquatic protein as part of a healthy and nutritious diet. Inevitably, alongside this expansion has come calls to ensure adequate sustainability is designed into the sector, with due attention paid to protection of health and welfare of organisms on the farm, the environment in which the farm occurs and the consumers of seafood. The “One Health Aquaculture” approach, previously described by the research team, proposes that such a balance must be urgently factored into local and international plans to expand the sector. The Seafood Risk Tool calculates the combined impact of these complex hazards on seafood supply chains and demonstrates how impacts can be minimized by government, industry and even the consumer. )) Latest IPCC Report Warns of Unavoidable Climate Hazards. Human-induced climate change is causing danger-ous and widespread disruption in nature and affecting the lives of billions of people around the world, despite efforts to reduce the risks. People and ecosystems least able to cope are being hardest hit, said scientists in the latest Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report. The world faces unavoidable multiple climate hazards over the next two decades with global warming of 1.5° C (2.7° F). Even temporarily exceeding this warming level will result in additional severe impacts, some of which will be irreversible. Risks for society will increase, including to infrastructure and low-lying coastal settlements. The Working Group II report is the second installment of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), which will be completed this year. This report provides new insights into nature’s potential not only to reduce climate risks but also to improve people’s lives. Scientists point out that climate change interacts with global trends such as unsustainable use of natural resources, growing urbanization, social inequalities, losses and damages from extreme events, and a pandemic, jeopardizing future development. ST 6 ST | April 2022 www.sea-technology.com
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