As world leaders gather in Antalya for COP31, HOME Alliance is calling on governments to reject marine geoengineering and protect the Ocean from risky, large-scale technological interventions like marine geoengineering being promoted as climate solutions.

Our statement, “A Call to Reject Marine Geoengineering and Protect Oceans at COP31 and Beyond,” raises concerns about the same extractive model that has driven the climate system to the brink of collapse is positioning the Ocean as a limitless dumping ground for climate pollution by proposing to manipulate marine biology and chemistry at planetary scale. 

There is a growing push for manipulating marine ecosystems through approaches such as ocean fertilisation, ocean alkalinity enhancement, biomass sinking, direct ocean capture etc.

Already under immense pressure from climate change, pollution and over-exploitation, the Ocean cannot become a testing ground for speculative technologies and carbon market experiments. These approaches carry profound ecological and social risks, remain unproven at scale, and threaten to deepen existing patterns of extraction while diverting attention from the urgent action needed to address the climate crisis at its roots.

• We are calls on governments and the COP31 Presidencies to:
  
  Uphold the long standing and repeatedly reaffirmed de facto moratorium on all climate geoengineering approaches including marine carbon dioxide removals under the Convention on Biological Diversity, noting the Rio Synergies agenda, and the ICJ Climate Change Advisory Opinion affirming that States must consider their obligations under other international environmental treaties, when taking climate action and interpret their obligations under international law harmoniously.
• Avoid vague terminology such as Ocean Climate Solutions and Ocean Climate Technologies in COP31 decisions to shut down any loopholes that marine carbon dioxide removals / geoengineering proponents could exploit. 
• Exclude marine carbon dioxide removal credits and all CDR credits from Article 6 mechanisms and Nationally Determined Contributions accounting, and provide for grant-based ocean climate finance in line with fair shares,
• Urgently prioritize community-driven, real solutions to the climate crisis, a just and equitable phase-out of fossil fuels – that must include halting offshore oil and gas activities.

The Ocean needs protection, not manipulation.

Read our statement to learn why marine geoengineering has no place in climate action at COP31 and beyond.