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Human impact on oceans
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Marine Chemistry: Think of marine chemistry as a balance. Both sides of the balance need just the right weight to maintain equilibrium. Now imagine the weights on each side of the balance are variables such as nutrients and that the balance itself is the ocean. If there is too much of one nutrient, the balance tips too far one way, therefore causing the chemistry of the ocean to be thrown off. The chemistry of the ocean is what drives its overall function. If there is too much of one thing or too little of another, the ocean ceases to function properly. One major factor that tips the oceans chemical balance is human activity.
The influence of human activity concerning marine chemistry has numerous negative effects on the marine environment.
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This subcategory focuses on studying ocean and atmosphere interaction, and in turn how it affects and shapes our world. One main reason it is important is , because it is essential to Earth’s climate and weather. The ocean is crucial to heating the planet along with causing changes in the weather. When ocean water evaporates, it makes the air warmer and humid, which in turn causes rain and storms. Along with this, ocean currents act as transport vessels for warm water. They distribute the warm water from the equator up and outward to the poles. This keeps the equator and other areas from having extreme …show more content…
The fate over humanity as well as other organisms on Earth is directly linked with the ocean. Perhaps that most known way humans are affected by marine life is that it is a large food source. It is even believed that marine animals count for ⅙ of human protein intake. In turn, fishing industries have also have a large influence on the global economy. Over $90 billion dollars comes in each year from fishing industries and it provides over half a million jobs. Along with the fishing industry, fish by-products such as medicine, beauty products, and fertilizer also play a large part
“Oceans”, the third unit from “The Habitable Planet” series, discusses El Nino and the discovery of a new phytoplankton, and how these effect human and marine life . This paper will highlight six facts from the video, emphasizing what they are, how scientists have discovered this information, and what makes them important. In addition to these facts, this paper will explain the term “positive feedback” as briefly mentioned in the video and provide an example of this process outside of El Nino. The first of several interesting facts discussed in the video is that El Nino is responsible for devastating occurrences such as monsoons, droughts, and floods1.
ES.10 The student will investigate and understand that oceans are complex, interactive physical, chemical, and biological systems and are subject to long- and short-term variations. Key concepts include:
Earth's oceans make up over 75% of the Earth as a whole. With that being said, it is vital to understand the significance on the contents of the oceans. Since fish and marine products make up a large portion of our diet, fishing practices need to be properly managed. In this essay, overfishing will be defined, its consequences will be revealed, and plans for proper fish distribution will be executed.
One of the sectors facing the largest impact is the seafood industry. Fish products are prevalent in pet food products as well as human diets. Given such a high demand on the seafood industry,
...nificance that influences the everyday lives of most human beings. Commercial fishing contributes to the world economy and feeds millions of people. Feeder creatures not only provide stability for species like sharks, whales and dolphins but they also provide the commercial food fish which maintains sustainable populations.
There are many impacts that fishing and land animal farming have on the ocean, which are detrimental to ocean ecosystems as well as many other aspects of the environment. Overfishing, killing fish at a much quicker rate than the fish can repopulate, is one major problem. Three-fourths of the world’s fisheries are either fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted (Cowspiracy). Researchers have estimated an end of all viable fisheries by 2018 if the current trends of fishing continue (Mason). According to the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch, hundreds of thousands of animals die every year as bycatch, with one of the worst offenders being shrimp fisheries, catching up to six pounds of bycatch per pound of shrimp. Endangered species are also caught, including predators which are important in keeping the balance in ocean ecosystems (Smith). While many organizations such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch recommend consumers to eat more “sustainable” fish, this will not stop the massive environmental impacts. Sustainable fishing for one does not account for the natural flux in the population of species of fish; what is considered a sustainable amount of fish to harvest one year may deplete the fishery in another year (Smith). Sustainable fish also are becoming even less sustainable as companies that label sustainable fish must find more For example, after Wal-Mart pledged to selling Marine Stewardship
"Ocean Pollution." MarineBio Conservation Society ~ Marine Biology, Ocean Life Conservation, Sea Creatures, Biodiversity, Research... Web. 19 May 2014.
Surface current are found in the upper four hundred meters (400m) and makes up about ten percent (10%) of ocean (Briney, n.d.). Surface ocean currents are as a result of friction between the water and atmosphere interface. The wind exerts a force or stress to the ocean surface and causes the water to move. The winds that most affect the oceans’ currents are the Westerlies which produce belts of ocean currents that flow east in the mid-latitude and the Trade winds which generate currents that flow to the west in tropical latitudes. These winds are mainly a result of warm air from the tropics moving towards the poles. The direction of the current is not the same as the direction of the wind but it is deflected at a forty five degree angle. This deflection is resulted from the earth’s rotation on its axis called the Coriolis force/ effect. Coriolis force and constrains by continental land masses cause surface currents to develop into an alm...
While it affects all environments, it has an extreme effect on coastal environments and estuarine environments since these environments rely heavily on chemical concentrations and pH balances. The pH balances have decreased majorly over the recent years since the industrial revolution because of increased partial pressure of carbon dioxide released into our environment and into the oceans. Because of this, ocean pH balance has now reached a record low for the past two million years. The high amount of carbon dioxide is increasing the levels of calcium carbonate, which is altering the performance of calcifiers and other marine organisms like the algal community. Lastly, the decreased pH balance in the seawater is causing high metal pollution, which also affects marine organisms(Ivanina & Sokolova, 2015). If ocean acidification is continually overlooked, then temperatures will continue to rise, and the lives of marine organisms and humans will continue to be
Apart from that, economic values of the fishes encouraged overfishing among the commercial fishermen. They are caught not only for their flesh but also kept as pets and even for medicational purposes for some reason. For instance, Bluefin tuna is famous for their meat, candy basslet and cod fish. Since fishes are pretty useful in many ways, thus the consumer demand and fishing effort indirectly affect the marine ecosystem as well.
Annenberg Learner (2007) explained the warming of the oceans, El Niño, and the importance of single celled organisms living in the Earth’s oceans. Once again, being reminded that “oceans cover 75% of the Earth’s surface,” and that oceans are used as an agent of transporting heat is fundamental to understand how the atmosphere and oceans interact (Annenberg Learner, 2007) (Bryson, 2003). For instance, other than hurricanes, El Niño is the interaction of the Pacific Ocean and the atmosphere which is so powerful that it can impact the city of Boston with horrendous snow storms. Typically, El Niño occurs from the interaction of the trade winds, deep ocean waters, and ocean surface water temperatures from east to west.
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
Four NOMAD buoys across the North Atlantic registered a 13-degree drop in SST. And soon a series of extreme weather happened in front of my eyes: hurricanes, snow storms, and even cyclones that rapidly pulled cool air from the upper troposphere which made people freeze instantly. Those were the scenes I saw from The Day after Tomorrow, the film that inspired my curiosity in atmospheric sciences in my seventh grade. Although shocked by the catastrophe caused by global warming in the film, I couldn't help take an eager interest in how freshwater from melted polar ice caps brought a shift in the North Atlantic Current, and how the shifted current brought a change in the earth’s climate. Later, as I gathered more information about the climate, I became fascinated by the physical and dynamical mechanisms explaining atmospheric phenomenon. And after three years of undergraduate study of atmospheric sciences, beyond the starting point of fascination, I have taken concrete steps forward with my hard work, independence, and creativity.
Did you know that more than 90 percent of all organisms that have ever lived on Earth are extinct? According to Pandey, the author of Humans Pushing Marine Life toward ‘Major Extinction’, nearly 10,000 species go extinct each year, and this rate is estimated to be 1,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate (1). Human beings are causing irreversible damage to the oceans and their wildlife, which is being led by two major reasons: Commercial fishing or over-fishing, which damaged the marine environment and caused a loss in the marine life diversity, and pollution, which is a primary way of the extinction causes that drastically modifies the marine life habitat. As a result of the commercial fishing and pollution, many of the marine species will start disappearing of the oceans. Briggs emphasizes that over-fishing “has induced population collapses in many species. So instead of having less than a hundred species at risk, as was the case some 30-40 years ago, there are now a thousand or more (10).”
With the knowledge that tons of fish are eaten across the world daily one must ask, what are the effects of such a large amount of fish being caught? Overfishing put simply is the capturing of more fish than what an ecosystem or species can handle. Unfortunately for the environment overfishing has been and still is prominent leading to major problems. “Many marine scientists have gone to the extent of saying that the threat faced by our marine ecosystem is much larger than any other environmental threat like increasing pollution” (Jetson). The increase in technological advancements has made fishing much more efficient and allowed fishermen to fish where they once could not, making it easy to cross the line from sustainable fishing to unsustainable fishing. This is