Patric Serna

It covers 70% of our planets surface, contains close to 97% of the planet’s water, is estimated to be home to 50 to 80% of all life on earth and according to the United Nations, three billion people rely on its resources for their livelihood. Yet we seem to neglect its vital role and offer no protection. We must protect our oceans now or pay the price later.

 Pollution

With an annual plastic production of around 300 trillion tones it is no surprise that an estimated 15 to 51 trillion particles of microplastic were swimming in our oceans in 2014 according to MARINEBIO. Besides the fact that these plastic particles are undegradable, harmful chemicals can accumulate within them. Once the microparticles have been ingested by different marine organisms, the contaminants are released. This in turn can have harmful effects on the affected organisms and even to human beings, as the entire food chain in the ocean is affected by this issue. The idea that these immense amounts of plastic can be removed from the oceans is not feasible. Hence the only viable alternative is to minimize the use of plastics and therefore reduce the input of plastic waste into rivers, lakes and ultimately the oceans (Law, 2014).

A further problem in terms of ocean pollution are the so-called dead zones. With agriculture and growing population as one of its main drivers, the influx of nutrients into the ocean over the past years has rapidly increased. Whether by streams, ground water, rivers or sewage channels, this rise in nutrients leads to an eutrophication of areas such as the delta of the Mississippi river in the Gulf of Mexico (Solow, 2005). As the supply of oxygen is depleted, basically all marine live within these regions is extinguished, hence the name dead zone. This effect does not only locally disrupt the ecosystem, but it also has a direct effect on the local human population, which depends on the marine resources such as fishing and tourism for their livelihood (Rabotyagov, 2014).

Overfishing

According to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) the largest threat our oceans are facing is overfishing. While fishery management and practices have improved since

Loss of predator biomass between 1950 and 2000 resulting from marine exploitation. Source: Pitcher (2013)

the 1980s, a study by Pitcher and Cheung (2013) suggests that these improvements are minor and are based on data from developed countries and hence lack global significance. The impact on loss of biodiversity related to overfishing over the past decades has been immense. According to Pitcher (2013), from 133 extinct marine species dating as far back as the 11th century, over 50% are associated with an unsustainable exploitation of the ocean’s resources. This pressure on various marine species has also had a direct impact on humans. With dwindling fish populations, the fishing efficiency (“effort per catch”) keeps on falling, which in turn has a direct effect on the economics of the industry. Therefore, not only is the entire marine ecosystem under threat, but the means of securing the necessities of life of millions of people worldwide (Pitcher, 2013).

 Protection

The Convention on Biological Diversity agreed in 2010 to protect 10% of the world’s oceans. While efforts have been made to create marine protected areas (MPA), the implementation and effectiveness of the measures is questionable. MPA’s currently cover 7% of the world’s oceans. The matter of the fact is, that of those protected 7%, in 5% measures have been implemented and in only 2% of these areas, commercial fishery is prohibited (Pearce, 2019). This is by far not enough to save the ocean’s ecosystem and one of the major sources of food and income for billions of people. Scientists argue that to have a noticeable effect, at least 30% of the ocean’s must be protected. This in turn poses the next challenge; Who will protect these areas (Pearce, 2019)? As described above, governments already struggle with the current goal of 10% which has not even been reached yet. Imagine if 30% of the world’s oceans were to be protected…

Conclusion

The oceans can be regarded as our back yard, offering a wide range of essential resources to. Nonetheless, as with all resources, a sustainable management is crucial to ensure long term availability of these resources. Concerning the world’s oceans, a global effort on individual and governmental level are necessary in order to ensure its protection. The reduction in consumption of sea food is a key element. Also shifting away from a fertilizer intensive agriculture and to a more ecofriendly alternative would tremendously help reduce dead zones and allow the affected ecosystems to recover. Here the development and use of new technologies, to avoid the input of contaminants into streams and ultimately the oceans, could play a central role. There are various promising projects being developped in China, USA and Europe such as the one described in an article by Kart (2018), where an autonomous robot is cleaning up plastic waste in the Chicago River. Such solutions have a tremendous effect, as they tackle the problem at its root, not only removing plastic, but also hindering it from degrading into microplastic in  the ocean. Furthermore, reduced plastic usage and improved recycling is fundamental to minimize plastic waste and pollution. Finally, governments need to make a joint effort to implement effective protection measures and enforce them accordingly. It will not be an easy task, but it is possible if we make a global effort now and everyone contributes in his own way. Otherwise our backyard might very well become our graveyard.

 References

J.Kart (2018). Pilot A Trash Robot To Attack River Pollution. Forbes, Science.  https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkart/2018/05/02/pilot-a-trash-robot-to-attack-river-pollution/#34bad85319e7

Kara Lavender Law and Richard C. Thompson. Microplastics in the seas. Science 345 (6193), 144-145. DOI: 10.1126/science.1254065.

MARINEBIO (2014). Did you know…? Marine Life / Ocean Facts…

Pearce (2019). Will Large Protected Areas Save the Oceans or Politicize Them? Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. https://e360.yale.edu/features/will-large-protected-areas-save-the-oceans-or-politicize-them

S. Rabotyagov, C. L. Kling, P. W. Gassman, N. N. Rabalais, R. E. Turner (2014). The Economics of Dead Zones: Causes, Impacts, Policy Challenges, and a Model of the Gulf of Mexico Hypoxic Zone, Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Volume 8, Issue 1, Winter 2014, Pages 58–79, https://doi.org/10.1093/reep/ret024

Solow, A. R. (2005). Red tides and dead zones: the coastal ocean is suffering from an overload of nutrients. Oceanus, 43(1), 43+.

Tony J.Pitcher, William W.L.Cheung (2013). Fisheries: Hope or despair? Marine Pollution Bulletin, Volume 74, Issue 2, 30 September 2013, Pages 506-516