02/27/2014
Ocean Pollution
Environmental operations and other human activities are major causes of stress on natural ecosystems. Of the many sources of surface water pollutants, agricultural activities have been identified as major contributors to ecological stress, which affects all ecosystem mechanisms. In water, agricultural contaminants are most noticeable when they produce instant, dramatic toxic effects on aquatic life. When the ocean is being polluted, it not only affects the species underwater, but it affects the people living near the water. “Marine pollution has been studied under the following groupings of effects; harm to living resources, hazards to human health, reduction of amenities and interference with other users of the sea”, (Cole, 17). Products thrown into the water will eventually come back to shore. There are several different ways to examine the inputs of pollution into our ecosystem. Ocean pollution also deals with the diseases that are spread through contamination from oil spillage, sewage and especially runoff. Heavy metal contamination is a growing issue as well. Mercury levels in certain seafood species, especially in tuna, are currently above average and even some places around the world have tried to warn the people from consuming it. Ocean pollution can overpower marines’ life, and alter food web dynamics. It can also endanger human health and result in great economic loss for fisheries, tourism workers and others.
There are many different ways in which people can get sick from ocean pollution. “Some human diseases can be acquired by recreational contact with polluted waters (swimming and diving); some microbial diseases affecting humans may acquired by eating raw or improperly cooked seafood tak...
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... not contain the highest concentration of mercury, it is the fish we tend to eat most. This brings up greater health threats for the humans. Although water is an effective solvent, most toxic pollution that humans generate eventually ends up in the ocean. After entering the marine environment, many chemical materials distillate in the deposit and the ocean surface layer. Humans are then exposed to toxic pollution from a variety of sources, including water-borne diseases. “Marine pollution is a global problem in several senses. It affects the health of the oceans in all parts of the world; it affects all countries, both developed and developing; and all countries contribute to some aspects of the problem”, (Schachter, Serwer, 84). It is definitely important to try our best to keep the ocean and the beaches safe. very serious matter that should not be taken lightly.
Do you know that people are polluting oceans in so many ways, and what we are doing about it. First, my evidence shows that two billion people within thirty miles of the coast create 100 million metric tons of coastal plastic waste (Doc.1). In my own words, this evidence show that all this pollution is really harmful to ocean creatures and us. More evidence is that the North Pacific Gyre has collected lots of these pollutants, so it is nicknamed the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (O.I.). This shows how we are polluting the oceans. My next evidence shows that a Beach Act was passed in 2000 saying the EPA or the Environmental Protection Agency will help states test and monitor coastal water pollution to protect swimmers (Doc.2). This evidence
Many consumers today are confused about the controversy about fish and its health effects. Researchers have discovered that fish contains methyl mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), and dioxins that may put one’s health at risk (“Harvard College”). The industrial processes cause mercury to be released into the air, then the chemical ends up in the lakes. Therefore, the contaminants come from bacteria that live in lakes that are then absorbed in species. When people consume fish, they are also taking in bacteria that came from unspecialized lakes indirectly through fish consumption. Although people could be harmed by eating contaminated fish, a diet that includes fish can also benefit the body. Fish has become especially popular because the omega-3 fatty acids it contains support cardiovascular health. Omega-3 is essential to the development of brain functions and normal growth. The intake of safe amounts of fish can decrease the chances of stroke, arthritis, and chronic diseases. Although fish contains mercury and dioxins that can damage nerves in humans, the trade-off benefit of the intake of omega-3 from fish can outweigh the risks.
Ocean Pollution is a serious issue in today's global politics. The delicate balance of Earth's ecosystem is put in jeopardy when the ocean is not clean. Problem evolving from ocean pollution directly harm marine life and indirectly affect human health and the Earth's many valuable resources. Ocean Pollution is a Broad term that encpompasses any and all foregin matter that directly or indirectly makes its way into the ocean. This includes everything from the extreme: oil spills, Toxic Waste dumping and industrial dumping-- to the small scael: human activities and basic carelessness. Because the oceans and all other water bodies are invariably, somehow connected, and because they account for 3/4 of the Earth's surface, they are an ideal method of transportation for pollution, allowing the rapid spread of seemingly far away toxins into a river near you! It is increasingly important that we educate ourselves as to what, exactly, ocean pollution is, so that we can identify the causes at their source and take action in small and large ways, and hopefully, prevent this terrible form of pollution from getting any worse than it is today.
"An Ocean Of Trash." Scholastic Action 33.12 (2010): 16. MasterFILE Complete. Web. 31 Jan. 2014.
Water pollution has had devastating effects on the environment, which include irreversible effects to the oceans ecosystem. People often underestimate the importance of the ocean. They don’t realize how much damage pollution has caused to the ocean and the thousand of creatures that inhabit it. Earth is a huge place, but resources are actually very limited and will not last forever; unless there is a balance. We must protect the resources we have in order for them to last into the next generation. Every time we throw away a plastic bottle, drive our cars, and even burn those millions of fossil fuels to operate all those huge factories, there is a chance it will pollute the ocean and eventually effect the way we live. There should be stricter laws regulating human pollution, in order to protect our oceans ecosystem.
"Ocean Pollution." MarineBio Conservation Society ~ Marine Biology, Ocean Life Conservation, Sea Creatures, Biodiversity, Research... Web. 19 May 2014.
The influence of human activity concerning marine chemistry has numerous negative effects on the marine environment.
Aquaculture within the agriculture is the fastest growing food production sectors in the world. Fishes are known as the “food gold” of the present as well as future.[1] They are also known to be the richest source of high quality protein. Marine and aquatic environment are home to a vast diversity of organisms ranging from prokaryotes to higher vertebrates. Unfortunately, these environments also act as a sink for a great variety of anthropogenic pollutants, many of which are toxic. Sources for polluting water include burning of fossil fuels, industrial waste water, sewage treatment plants, agriculture and non point source runoff, etc. It is important to have an understanding of the impact and effect of these chemicals on aquatic life forms. Aquaculture is based on ecosystems and accounts for substantial contribution to Indian economy and also provides livelihood to millions of people. Fishes are highly nutritious and consumed as a delicacy food throughout world. A variety of contaminants including to toxic heavy metals (cadmium, arsenic, mercury, lead) are ubiquitously found in rivers, reservoirs and are disadvantageous for aquatic life.[2]
The toxics in the water which effect the fish and then fishermen caught theses fish and then you eat them can cause some serious health problems. Just one piece of plastic can mess up the whole system of the food chain. First we start out with a fish just swimming along who then comes up on some plastic who then eats this plastic. This fish has know been exposed to a toxic and is carrying it around. Therefore when the fishermen catches it and brings it make to the restranunt and one eats it then that person is eating the toxics, which can cause some health problems. For example, cancer, birth defects, or even immune system problems can be caused from toxics from the plastic found in the ocean. Another health issue it can cause is it can mess up a woman’s hormones, which is not a good thing. As the toxic enter the food chain they become more toxic as time goes on. Plankton, which is at the bottom of the food chain, absorbs the awful toxic very easily. The toxic then settles in their bodies becoming more toxic then before. A smaller animal then eats them and then the toxic level rises. The larger animal can live longer but as time goes on the toxic gets stronger after it has eaten the smaller animal. As the pollution of the world increases pollution increases causing the marine life to decreases due to pollution in the ocean. This causes what is known as the extension of animals such as fish that people eat. One doesn’t really hear many people talk about people being sick in the 1500s but what if one started to think that maybe it is coming from the foods we eat. In that time people grew their own food so they knew what was going in them now a days we have no idea what is going into our mouths are where its coming from. What will people eat if the pollution is killing all their fish they eat? Is the pollution some of the main causes for people having cancer or other
By the oceans being polluted not only are animals affected humans are too. What some people don't know is that they are killing of and disturbing offspring by polluting waters. "Ocean pollution results in smaller catches of fish all over the world, either by killing fish directly, preventing them from breeding, or causing birth abnormalities. Seabirds are unable to breed and whales are poisoned. Pollution also seems to be responsible for a new disease among seals. Without even swallowed, plastic can kill seabirds, turtles, and other creatures by trapping them. People drinking water from polluted seas can become sick. Deadly infectious diseases like cholera and typhoid can break out." There are many different types of sizes of plankton everywhere in our ocean waters.
There are many human activities and industries that causes marine pollution within our oceans. There is not only one source that causes marine pollution, there several other factors involved as well. One source of marine pollution is NOx and SOx, these are chemicals that are found in ship emissions that gets released into the environment through smoke; NOx and SOx are known to be very harmful to marine life (Raunek). Because of the fact that there are many types of ships out there in the ocean, the amount of NOx and SOx that goes into the ocean is plentiful no matter what because wherever the ship goes, these harmful chemicals are left behind, killing and harming almost every marine organism in its way. The next source of marine pollution is runoff and discharge that come from land (ocean.tamu.edu/). The largest discharge that enters the ocean comes from land is sewage, both industrial waste and sewage sludge(ocean.tamu.edu/). For many years, sewage has been dumped into the depths of the oceans. The sewage that has been collecting in the depths of the ocean can cause severe effects on the organisms around it; the sewage sludge can either poison or kill surrounding organisms. In addition to sewage, the oil industry is another source of pollution. The oil industry are responsible for the occasional, yet catastrophic oil spills; the oil industry are also responsible for small oil leaks that occur regularly as well (Bernard). Oil spills such as the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 which affected many people and organisms alike. The 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had killed over 7,000 sea turtles, birds, and dolphins, and that doesn’t even include fish (Park). Because of an oil spill, thousands marine animals may have ingested or breathed...
The first and most common cause is sewage. Sewage flows through drainages that go directly to oceans or rivers. This makes the ocean have poor water quality, which can effect plants and animals living in the ocean. The world contain lots of industrial and agricultural places, which causes more waste being directly put into the oceans, this results in oceanic pollution. But, the dumping is not trash and sewage it is toxic liquids and it can be very hazardous towards marine life. There are approximately 14,000 oil spills a year, due to storms, accidents and etc. This is a huge part of ocean pollution. Oil can last for years in the ocean and can be really toxic to animals, suffocating marine life to death once the oil entraps them. Also oil is extremely hard to clean up out of water, this is why it lasts for years. Oil mining can also be a big cause to oceanic pollution. Ocean mines drill for gold, silver, copper and other minerals. This can cause damage to the lowest levels of the ocean and can increase the toxicity of the region. This method can also contribute with the leaking cause, sometimes there is oil spilling’s that happening while drilling. The final and last one that causes oceanic pollution is littering. Just like oil spills, this can be a huge part to pollution. Littering is when an object is blown away by the wind and ends up landing in the ocean, also because of humans making poor decisions in throwing trash into the ocean. Most of littering is plastic debris, plastic can be really bad for animals, if they mistake it for food or if it gets stuck onto
These results agree with the hypothesis that our “untouched and super-productive world” is affecting marine life ecosystems (Vannela, 2012). All of these results combined confirm the overall hypothesis that pollution is getting worse in the ocean and more marine life ecosystems are being affected, but there
Water pollution is also a major thing in the world because almost 60% of it is fishes. It occurs due to several factors; the industrial waste dumped into the rivers and other water body’s cause am imbalance in the water leading to its severe contamination and deaths. And the infamous Global warming is the emission of greenhouse gases particularly CO2 is leading to global warming.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines pollution as “the action of polluting or conditions of being polluted, defilement, uncleanliness or impurity”. Understanding of marine pollution therefore requires an understanding of marine ecosystem. The marine ecosystem is composed of land, saline water and living things, in a two dimensional classification of water and bottom, the water mass is technically known as the pelagic zone and the land mass beneath it, the benthic Zone. Marine ecosystems are home to a host of different species ranging from tiny planktonic organisms to large marine mammals like the whales, manatees, and