7 key measures of the Earth's health are now in danger: Report
Scientists from around the world are warning that more than 75% of the planet's health and life support systems, known as Planetary Boundaries, are in danger.
The 2025 Planetary Health Check report from the Planetary Boundaries Science Lab found that seven of the nine critical Earth system boundaries have been breached due to human activities.
These Planetary Boundaries were established by the lab as a way of measuring the planet's current health.
According to the report, ocean acidification – where the water's pH, a measure of its acidity or alkalinity, is lowered due to excess carbon dioxide - is the newest boundary broken and for the first time has reached dangerous levels.
"The ocean is becoming more acidic, oxygen levels are dropping and marine heatwaves are increasing," said Levke Caesar, co-lead of Planetary Boundaries Science Lab and one of the authors of the report.
The report found evidence of recent shell damage to marine life, attributed to increased ocean acidity, particularly in polar and coastal waters. The authors warn that this is due to increased levels of human-introduced carbon dioxide, which raises the risks for other marine life.
Caesar also stated that the ocean's acidification, combined with warming and loss of oxygen, will have "rippling" consequences that negatively impact food insecurity, global climate stability and human well-being.
"The Ocean is our planet's life-support system," commented Dr. Sylvia Earle, an oceanographer and member of the Planetary Guardians.
The report also warns that increasing ocean acidification can disrupt ocean currents that are important for regulating marine climate and global weather patterns, leading to more intense climate extremes and undermining agricultural stability.
"Today, acidification is a flashing red warning light on the dashboard of Earth's stability. Ignore it, and we risk collapsing the very foundation of our living world," added Dr. Earle.
The other six planetary health boundaries that have been crossed are climate change, biodiversity loss, freshwater use, biogeochemical flows, land system change and novel entities, which is the safe limit for the production and release of chemicals, plastics and other synthetic substances.
The authors found that these six metrics of the planet's health are facing increasing pressures, suggesting that further deterioration and destabilization of the Earth's health could come soon.
"We are witnessing widespread decline in the health of our planet," said Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. "But this is not an inevitable outcome… Even if the diagnosis is dire, the window of cure is still open. Failure is not inevitable; failure is a choice. A choice that must and can be avoided," Rockström added.
Only Ozone Depletion and Aerosol Loading, which measure the global air quality and the planet's ability to protect from harmful sunlight, remain within safe limits and show some signs of improvement.
-ABC News meteorologist Kyle David Reiman
