A problem of arguably equal importance to Climate Change is known as Ocean Pollution. Over the years, our oceans have slowly become littered and poisoned with trash and other pollutants thrown into it. It has come to the point where miles of “trash belts” drift through the ocean, affecting the wildlife and nearby people alike. Many fail to realize the true importance of our oceans, and as such treat them unfairly.
Why Are the Oceans So Important?
This is a question I have thought to myself for most of my life. After doing the research, I realized that the issue of Ocean Pollution is much more important than many people make it out to be. Our oceans account for nearly 97% of ALL water on Earth. And yes, while it is true that we only drink fresh water which doesn’t come from our oceans, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t important. What happens when we run out of fresh water? The only option after that is to filter salt water into fresh water, which is a technology that has yet to be fully developed. Abundant trash and pollution in that salt water is only going to make it harder to filter, and that could cause a huge problem for humanity as a whole. Oceans also account for most of the oxygen produced in our atmosphere. Algae and other marine plants contribute 70% of our oxygen, so when trash and other pollutants infect them, they begin to die off. If 70% of our oxygen disappears, we will have a huge problem on our hands.
Along with this, coastal locations that profit from use of the ocean give about 500 billion dollars to the world’s economy every year. Also, about half of the world’s population lives within the coastal zone, or areas near the coast. (http://www.protectplanetocean.org/collections/introduction/introb x/oceans/introduction-item.html).
The ocean also greatly helps the water cycle. When water evaporates into the atmosphere, it helps to produce a great deal of the rainfall we get each year. When the ocean becomes polluted, this rain will too, and the problem will only get worse. These are only 4 of the many, many reasons why we need to protect our oceans, but all we seem to be doing is destroying them.
What Causes Ocean Pollution?
Ocean pollution is closely connected with pollution on land. According to the National Ocean Service, “Eighty percent of pollution to the marine environment comes from the land” (http://oceanservice.noaa. gov/facts/pollution.html). When pollutants from landfills and oil from cars makes it’s way into the dirt beneath us, it eventually erodes into the ocean. This heavily pollutes it, and is one of the largest reasons we face the problem of Ocean Pollution today.
Water pollution can also come from the pollutants we put into the air. These, over time, can slowly settle into rivers and oceans, making even fresh water unsafe to drink. “Non-point source pollution (large/general pollutant sources) can make ocean water unsafe for humans and wildlife. In some areas, the pollution is so bad that it causes beaches to be closed after rainstorms” (http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/pollution.html).
Garbage and Plastic
The trash we throw away is also a large part of the pollution we send into the ocean. As we know, much of the trash we throw away is made up of plastic. As plastic doesn’t wear out or break down for many years, it ends up floating around in the ocean. Additionally, because plastic can’t be disposed of, it ends up in landfills, or simply pushed into the ocean. Fish and other marine animals can mistake this plastic for their food, and die because of it.
In fact, many fish served in restaurants have eaten some form of plastic, and then in turn, we do too. In fact, there is a belt of trash traveling along the ocean surface that is THE SIZE OF EUROPE. On top of this, an estimated 14 billion pounds of trash is dumped into the ocean each year. If you’d like to learn more about the harmful production and disposing of plastic, please watch this video here: http://assets.nationalgeographic.com/modules-video/latest/assets/ngsEmbeddedVideo.html?guid=00000148-9ef7-d4cf-a3de-dff795bf0000.
Conclusion
If we don’t start protection our oceans soon, if we continue to remain careless about how much we waste and where this waste goes, it will lead to the end of humanity and many other animals who live on this Earth along with us. The time for by standing is over. We need to change our ways.
If you would like to learn how you can help protect the oceans from within your own home, look to my next post as I will be talking about possible solutions to Ocean Pollution. Also, if you would like to learn more please check out the links below, as they provide some great information that I did not have space to include in this post. Thanks for reading!
All credit for information used in this post goes to the following websites:
The National Ocean Service: http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/
All About Plastic Production (Video): http://assets.nationalgeographic.com/modules-video/latest/assets/ngsEmbeddedVideo.html?guid=00000148-9ef7-d4cf-a3de-dff795bf0000
All About Plastic Production (Article): http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/01/150109-oceans-plastic-sea-trash-science-marine-debris/
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