Ocean life faces mass extinctions, warns study

LIFE in the oceans is at imminent risk of the worst spate of extinctions in millions of years due to threats such as climate change and over-fishing, a study shows.

Time was running short to counter hazards such as a collapse of coral reefs or a spread of low-oxygen “dead zones”, according to the study led by the International Programme on the State of the Ocean (IPSO).

“We now face losing marine species and entire marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs, within a single generation,” according to the study by 27 experts to be presented to the United Nations.