WMO Warns South-West Pacific Faces Growing Ocean Climate Crisis

The findings show that climate change is intensifying across the region, with 2025 becoming its second warmest year on record and extreme weather leaving a trail of destruction.

The South-West Pacific is experiencing faster ocean warming, rising sea levels and increasing ocean acidification, creating mounting risks for coastal communities, fisheries and marine ecosystems, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The findings show that climate change is intensifying across the region, with 2025 becoming its second warmest year on record and extreme weather leaving a trail of destruction.

Oceans under pressure as temperatures and sea levels rise

The WMO's State of the Climate in the South-West Pacific 2025 report highlights that the region's average temperature in 2025 was about 0.37°C above the 1991–2020 average, making it the second warmest year ever recorded after 2024. The report says the ocean, which supports the livelihoods and economies of millions of people across the Pacific, is becoming increasingly stressed. Record levels of ocean heat were observed in several areas, including waters south of Australia, the southern Tasman Sea and parts of the tropical North Pacific. Although La Niña conditions temporarily cooled some sea surface temperatures, much of the region remained unusually warm.

Marine heatwaves spread across almost the entire South-West Pacific during 2025, making it the most extensive year for marine heatwaves ever recorded without an El Niño event. These prolonged periods of unusually warm ocean temperatures contributed to widespread coral bleaching, fish deaths, harmful algal blooms and damage to kelp forests, disrupting fisheries and threatening food security. Australia experienced coral bleaching in both its eastern and western reef systems during the same season for the first time, highlighting the growing impact of warming oceans. The report also warns that ocean acidification reached record levels across nearly the entire region in 2025 as the oceans absorbed increasing amounts of carbon dioxide, placing additional pressure on marine biodiversity and ecosystems.

Melting glacier and extreme weather highlight climate risks

The report notes that Indonesia's remaining tropical glacier in Papua has shrunk dramatically and now covers only around 2 percent of its 1988 size. Scientists expect the glacier to disappear completely by the end of 2026 or early 2027, marking the likely loss of the region's last tropical glacier.

Sea levels across the South-West Pacific have continued to rise at an average rate of 3.7 millimetres per year between 1999 and 2025. Low-lying island nations and coastal communities remain especially vulnerable as higher seas increase the risk of flooding, erosion and saltwater intrusion.

Extreme weather also caused widespread damage during the year. Cyclone Senyar, the first tropical cyclone on record to reach cyclone intensity in the Strait of Malacca, affected more than 10 million people across Indonesia and Malaysia and claimed more than 1,200 lives. Heavy rainfall exceeding 400 millimetres in a single day triggered severe flooding and landslides in parts of Indonesia, Malaysia and southern Thailand.

Better early warning systems remain a priority

The WMO said early warning systems continue to save lives, though important gaps remain in delivering timely alerts to vulnerable communities, particularly coastal populations and fishing communities. The report was released during the Southeast Asia Marine Heatwaves Services Workshop in Singapore, where experts discussed improved forecasting tools that can provide weeks or months of advance notice before marine heatwaves occur. Such forecasts allow governments, fisheries and coastal industries to prepare for potential impacts before they develop.

The WMO and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) stressed that stronger coordination, improved communication and wider access to trusted early warnings will be essential as climate-related hazards become more frequent and more severe. They warned that rising temperatures, warming oceans and increasingly complex weather events are creating interconnected risks for food security, public health, infrastructure and livelihoods across the South-West Pacific.