Bermuda-based Catlin Group Ltd has stressed the need for further research on climate change in order that the insurance industry can adequately plan for the risks associated with the impact on the planet.

The company’s statement followed the release of the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a scientific intergovernmental body under the auspices of the United Nations.

The organisation’s Fifth Report on Climate Change summarises the collective view of the world’s leading climate scientists and is intended to guide multinational discussions and decisions.

“As a leading insurer and reinsurer, we believe that further factual research into the changes occurring to our oceans is essential so that the insurance industry can continue to help our clients manage risks in the years to come,” Catlin stated.

The company is the title sponsor of the “Catlin Seaview Survey,” which has sponsored a number of scientific expeditions examining the composition and health of oceans, particularly coral reefs, around the world. Catlin previously sponsored three years of research in the Arctic which focused on sea ice loss and acidification in the Arctic Ocean.

“Significantly for the insurance industry, this report assesses the potential consequences of climate change as ‘risks’, considering not only the potential impacts of climate change but also how governments and others can adapt and minimise these risks,” Catlin said.

The IPCC’s report “places significant emphasis on the importance of oceans due to the role they play in regulating weather patterns and as sources of food and livelihoods for hundreds of millions of people. The panel concludes that the world’s oceans are warming and becoming more acidic, threatening unique systems such as coral reefs and the Arctic sea ice. The report says that a 3.6°F temperature rise, which is considered likely, will lead to irreversible damage.”

Catlin said: “This report makes it clear that society must understand more clearly the changes occurring to the earth if we are to respond correctly to the scale of the risks that could potentially arise from climate change.

“The conclusions by the IPCC particularly emphasise the need for substantially more research into the state of our oceans, which play a major role in weather-related risks and coastal erosion, as well as impact the economic wellbeing of hundreds of millions of people living near coastlines.

“As a leading insurer and reinsurer, we believe that further factual research into the changes occurring to our oceans is essential so that the insurance industry can continue to help our clients manage risks in the years to come.”

Catlin’s Seaview Survey team is currently in the process of constructing a comprehensive record of the world’s coral reefs. It pointed out that the “sensitivity of these reefs to various changes makes them the oceans” early warning system.

“Coral reefs also produce economic value estimated at $375 billion annually,” the company’s statement added. “The IPCC’s statement that corals are rapidly declining and will, most likely, have disappeared by 2050 makes the work of the Catlin Seaview Survey even more important.

“The Catlin Seaview Survey has created a baseline collection of coral data for researchers and is continually adding to this data.”