Study: Climate, Environmental Change Puts 90% of World’s Marine Food at Risk

Thai fishermen catch freshwater white tilapia fish at a fish farm in Samut Prakarn province June 6, 2012. (Reuters)
Thai fishermen catch freshwater white tilapia fish at a fish farm in Samut Prakarn province June 6, 2012. (Reuters)
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Study: Climate, Environmental Change Puts 90% of World’s Marine Food at Risk

Thai fishermen catch freshwater white tilapia fish at a fish farm in Samut Prakarn province June 6, 2012. (Reuters)
Thai fishermen catch freshwater white tilapia fish at a fish farm in Samut Prakarn province June 6, 2012. (Reuters)

More than 90% of the world's marine food supplies are at risk from environmental changes such as rising temperatures and pollution, with top producers like China, Norway and the United States facing the biggest threat, new research showed on Monday.

"Blue food" includes more than 2,190 species of fish, shellfish, plants and algae as well as more than 540 species farmed in fresh water, helping sustain 3.2 billion people worldwide.

But not enough is being done to adapt to growing environmental risks, a study published in the Nature Sustainability journal said.

"Although we have made some progress with climate change, our adaptation strategies for blue food systems facing environmental change are still underdeveloped and need urgent attention," said Rebecca Short, researcher at the Stockholm Resilience Center and co-lead author.

Overproduction in the industry, which has driven the destruction of wetland habitats, has caused significant environmental damage but other "stressors" are also impacting the quantity and quality of blue foods.

They include rising sea levels and temperatures, ocean acidification, changes in rainfall, as well as non-climate factors like algal blooms and pollution from mercury, pesticides or antibiotics.

"Vulnerability caused by human-induced environmental change ... puts blue food production under a lot of pressure," said Ling Cao, professor at China's Xiamen University, who also co-wrote the paper.

"We know aquaculture and fisheries support billions of people for their livelihoods and their nutritional security."

China, Japan, India and Vietnam account for more than 45% of global landings and 85% of aquaculture production, and the study said reducing their vulnerability should be a priority. Small island nations that depend on seafood are also especially vulnerable.

Cao said a UN treaty on sustainable development in the high seas, signed in March, could enable stakeholders to act in the common interest when it comes to protecting blue food resources but other risks are on the horizon.

Nauru in the Pacific Ocean is at the forefront of efforts to mine ocean beds for metals, which environmentalists say can cause immense damage to marine life. Norway, another major seafood producer, also came under fire last week after announcing it would open up sea areas to mining.

"Ocean floor mining will have an impact on the wild fisheries population," said Cao. "Many scientists are now calling on governments to evaluate where they do ocean mining in order to minimize the impact."



SpaceX Starship Explodes During Routine Test

Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
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SpaceX Starship Explodes During Routine Test

Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS

One of Elon Musk's SpaceX Starships exploded during a routine test late Wednesday in Texas, law enforcement said, in the latest setback to the billionaire's dream of turning humanity into an interplanetary species.

The Starship 36 suffered "catastrophic failure and exploded" at the Starbase launch facility shortly after 11:00 pm (0400 GMT Thursday), a Facebook post by the Cameron County authorities said, according to AFP.

A video shared with the post showed the megarocket attached to the launch arm, and then a flash and a towering, fiery explosion.

Musk's Space X said the rocket was preparing for the tenth flight test when it "experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase," without elaborating on the nature of the complication.

"A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for," Space X added on social media.

"There are no hazards to residents in surrounding communities, and we ask that individuals do not attempt to approach the area while safing operations continue."

The Starship was not scheduled for launch on Wednesday evening when the explosion occurred during a "routine static fire test," according to the Cameron County authorities.

During a static fire, part of the procedures preceding a launch, the Starship's Super Heavy booster would be anchored to the ground to prevent it from lifting off during the test-firing.

Starbase on the south Texas coast, near the border with Mexico, is the headquarters for Musk's space project.

Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall, Starship is the world's largest and most powerful rocket and central to Musk's long-term vision of colonizing Mars.

The Starship is billed as a fully reusable rocket with a payload capacity of up to 150 metric tons.

The latest setback follows an explosion of a prototype Starship over the Indian Ocean in late May.

The biggest and most powerful launch vehicle ever built had lifted off on May 27 from the Starbase facility, but the first-stage Super Heavy booster blew up instead of executing its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.

The previous two outings also ended poorly, with the upper stage disintegrating over the Caribbean.

But the failures will likely do little to dent Musk's spacefaring ambitions.

SpaceX has been betting that its "fail fast, learn fast" ethos, which has helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, will eventually pay off.

The company has caught the Super Heavy booster in the launch tower's giant robotic arms three times -- a daring engineering feat it sees as key to rapid reusability and slashing costs.

NASA is also increasingly reliant on SpaceX, whose Dragon spacecraft is vital for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in early May approved an increase in annual Starship rocket launches from five to 25, stating that the increased frequency would not adversely impact the environment.

The decision overruled objections from conservation groups who had warned the expansion could endanger sea turtles and shorebirds.