Marine Pollution

(Society, 2020)

News

” MORE PLASTIC THAN FISH IN THE OCEAN BY 2050 “

Currently, about 80 to 120 billion dollars of plastic packaging is lost every year. Beyond the economic dimension, if we don’t change the situation, there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans by 20250.
Suppose we remain calm in the face of this pollution caused by the accumulation of plastic bags and materials in the oceans. In that case, this area will no longer be home to marine life but rather to plastic over the next thirty years.
According to the scientific study in the American magazine “PLOS ONE,” published in 2014, more than 270,000 tons of plastic floated on the oceans’ surface.

What’s Marine Pollution

Marine pollution is a combination of chemicals and trash, most of which comes from land sources and is washed or blown into the ocean. This pollution results in damage to the environment, to the health of all organisms, and to economic structures worldwide.

(News, 2020)

Marine pollution has become one of the significant challenges facing the world today, with the oceans as a whole falling victim to plastic and chemical pollution and waste.

Plastic is a key contributor to maritime pollution; One thing that makes plastic pollution more popular than others is because plastic is a durable and resistant material. When it is left in the wild, the decomposition process takes much longer in the oceans.
Despite this slow degradation of plastics in the marine environment, the abandonment of plastics in the seas is becoming higher and higher; we find plastics in all shapes and sizes in the sea; some plastics float on the surface of the oceans, others are suspended or sink to the bottom of the oceans and move around in the waters of the world. This poses a significant threat to the ecosystem.

What is the number of plastic materials in the marine environment?

Causes and effects of marine pollution

We have two primary sources of marine pollution:

The first one is all the terrestrial waste, the debris of people who go to the beach, and the waste carried by the wind in the Ocean or carried away by the water runoff from the rain in the sea.
The second is the objects thrown into the sea by boats, ships, and debris left by fishermen, such as bait, fishing nets, plastic straps.
All these things are a great danger to marine beings; more than 80% of all debris comes from the land.

Some of the elements that contribute to the pollution of the oceans

1- Residues of products from industries
The dumping of toxic liquids into the marine environment directly affects marine life because they are so dangerous. After all, they increase the Ocean’s temperature by the phenomenon of thermal pollution, and these liquids are of high temperature. Some animals that cannot withstand this temperature end up dying.

2- Sewage
Sewage enters the Ocean directly through sewers, rivers, drains, and rainwater runoffs, and it is often through this channel that minerals enter the oceans.
The release of other chemicals into the marine ecosystem causes a reduction in oxygen levels. The orientation of ocean vegetation affects the quality of the seawater itself and all other aspects.

3- Oil discharges
The effect of the pollution that ships leave in the oceans is the dumping of oil.
Oil remains in the sea for years and is an excellent toxic element for marine life, suffocating marine animals until death. Oil is complicated to clean up when it is spilled, and it always remains there.

4-Mining
Offshore mining is another form of marine pollution. Offshore mining areas that drill for precious metals create sulfide deposits in the depths of the Ocean.

5- Pollution by plastics
Ecosystem pollution is an immense source of sea pollution. This phenomenon occurs when objects on land are dragged by the wind and end up in the Ocean.
It may be natural things such as dust and sand and human-made objects such as debris and waste. Most debris, especially plastic debris, cannot decompose and remains suspended in the ocean current for years.
Marine creatures can cling to plastic or mistake it for food, killing them slowly. The animals that are most affected by plastic are dolphins, turtles, fish, sharks, crabs, seabirds, and crocodiles.

The greater threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.

~Robert Swan
(Cannon, 2019)

The ravaging impacts of pollution on the oceans and the ecosystem

  • Impacts of toxic waste on marine life

Chemical and toxic wastes are hazardous for ocean life, as oil dumped into the water reaches the scales and feathers of marine animals, making them difficult to move. The long-term effects of toxic debris on marine life are cancer, behavioral change, reproductive failure, and even life loss.

  •  Deterioration of marine oxygen quality

The majority of the marine ecosystem debris does not degrade, and it can remain there for years. Simultaneously, it reduces the quantity of oxygen; when there is not enough oxygen, marine animals’ survival time also decreases.

  • Food Infection  

The chemical articles used in industry and agriculture are abandoned in the sea rivers and are transported to the oceans. These products do not disappear; they are eaten by animals, which infects humans’ seafood.

  •  Degradation of human health

Animals from the affected food chain are then consumed by humans, which affects their health because toxins from these contaminated animals are deposited in human tissues and can lead to cancer, congenital disabilities, or long-term health problems.

  • Climate change 

Plastics come from oil and also contribute to global warming. If plastic waste is exposed to the sun, it releases CO2 into the atmosphere, which increases carbon emissions. 

  • Reducing the income from tourism

Plastic waste deteriorates the aesthetic value of countries as tourist destinations, causing a decrease in tourism-related profits. So to maintain these places requires a lot of money.

Solving the problem of marine pollution

The oceans’ pollution is a general problem. Each of us has his responsibility; it is a problem whose resolution is an urgent call because the marine ecosystem is in danger. In the face of this situation, it is necessary to find ways to solve this pollution problem. Here are some warnings and actions to be put in place:

Decrease the use of plastic articles
It is essential to believe that plastic waste accounts for the majority of pollutants in the oceans. Because plastics take many years to decompose so reducing plastic products will help reduce marine pollution.


Recycling objects
The phenomenon of population growth is proportional to the increase in waste. It is becoming more essential to find places for landfill, so much of the waste used by human ends up in the oceans; the most useful way to solve this problem is recycling.

Compliance with marine environmental standards
It is necessary to stop throwing rubbish at the edge of the beaches, several bins must be placed at the edge of the squares, and everyone must ensure that the trash is put in these bins.


Decrease the use of chemical fertilizers in agriculture
Run-off water is polluting the oceans enormously, to stop this. The authorities need to regulate the use of chemical fertilizers, as this run-off is highly toxic and poses a threat to marine life.

References

Coalition, P., & Coalition, P. (2020). Report: Pollution is the Largest Environmental Cause of Disease in the World Today — Plastic Pollution Coalition. Plastic Pollution Coalition. Retrieved 09 December 2020, from https://www.plasticpollutioncoalition.org/blog/2020/12/3/report-human-health-and-ocean-pollution.

Guest Blog: Sloactive – Plastic Pollution: Its impact and what you can do about it. WiseOceans. (2020). Retrieved 09 December 2020, from https://www.wiseoceans.com/blog-plastic-pollution/.

Andrew Hudson, R. (2017). Réduire la pollution marine. UNDP. Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://www.undp.org/content/undp/fr/home/blog/2017/3/7/The-way-forward-for-reducing-marine-pollution.html.

Ocean pollution | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Noaa.gov. (2020). Retrieved 09 December 2020, from https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/ocean-coasts/ocean-pollution.

Marine plastics. IUCN. (2020). Retrieved 09 December 2020,from https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/marine-plastics#:~:text=The%20most%20visible%20and%20disturbing,are%20filled%20with%20plastic%20debris.

Avril, N. (2020). Sustainable Material Series: Environmentally-Friendly Plastics. Blog.dragoninnovation.com. Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://blog.dragoninnovation.com/blog/sustainable-material-series-environmentally-friendly-plastics.

News, C. (2020). Caribbean hotbed of pollution, report warns – Cayman Islands Headline News. Cayman News Service. Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://caymannewsservice.com/2019/07/caribbean-hotbed-of-pollution-report-warns/.

Biodegradable plastics will not solve plastic pollution, says the European Parliament – EEB – The European Environmental Bureau. EEB – The European Environmental Bureau. (2020). Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://eeb.org/biodegradable-plastics-will-not-solve-plastic-pollution-says-the-european-parliament/.

Cannon, J. (2019). Companies’ solutions to global plastic crisis miss the mark: Report. Mongabay Environmental News. Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://news.mongabay.com/2019/10/companies-solution-to-global-plastic-crisis-miss-the-mark-report/.

Plastic pollution: A global problem with local solutions | Vancouver Sun. Vancouversun.com. (2020). Retrieved 11 December 2020, from https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/plastic-pollution-a-global-problem-with-local-solutions.