The 8th of June is World Oceans Day, a day to celebrate the beauty of the oceans and think about how we can better protect them and all the weird and wonderful creatures they support.
To do our part, we are looking at eight of the biggest threats to our oceans and what we can do to reduce our impact. What will you do this World Oceans Day? There are plenty of events to choose from, or you could plan your own, do a litter pick or take to social media the word.
Climate change
To look at how climate change impacts the oceans, let’s first look at what climate change is – it is a long-term change in temperature and weather; Earth is getting warmer. This is mostly because of greenhouse gas emissions when we burn fossil fuels, including coal, oil and gas. The gases stop the sun’s energy from escaping and essentially work like a blanket; they keep the heat in.
The oceans are our biggest ally in the fight against climate. They are giant carbon sinks – the biggest we have – and so far, our oceans are responsible for absorbing around 90% of the heat trapped by the ‘blanket’ of greenhouse gases. That is why the water is warming, the ice is melting, and the sea level is rising.
Just some of the effects this has on the ocean, marine life and humans include more extreme weather events and loss of temperature-sensitive species and habitats such as coral reefs and mangrove forests. The change in climate is changing the oceans, and animals are having to adapt to keep up, or they will die out. Read more: UN.org and IUCN.org.
What can we do? Change your habits and lower your emissions. For example, walk or cycle rather than drive, switch devices off when you’re not using them, shop locally, eat more plant-based meals, avoid wasting food, and finally turn your back on fast (throw away) fashion. World Oceans Day is just one day. We need to think long-term.
Plastic waste
The oceans are full of plastic, and some of it will be yours. No matter the distance you are from the sea, your plastic waste has the potential to make its way there. And once it is there, it causes so many issues.
Big pieces of plastic can injure and kill marine life that gets tangled in it or eats it by mistake. Other plastics break down very slowly and become microplastics, tiny bits of plastic less than 5 mm in size. The big problem with microplastics is that they enter and make their way up the food chain. They have been found in all kinds of marine life, from tiny plankton to huge whales, and make their way into humans, too. Read more: National Geographic.
What can we do? Rethink your plastic use. Whenever you have something in your hand, ask yourself: do I need to buy this? do I need to throw this away, or can I reuse or repurpose it? can I recycle it, and if so, where and how?
Fishing
From overfishing to ghost fishing and the damage caused by fishing methods, humans’ desire to eat seafood comes at a price.
Overfishing occurs when we take more fish than the population can cope with. Fish can not reproduce at a quick enough rate, so the population decreases over time – simply, we are taking too many fish. This doesn’t only affect the target species, though; overfishing rips apart whole ecosystems – you can’t take one species out of the food web without impacting all the others that rely on it. There is a lot of talk about sustainable fishing, and a big part of that is managing stocks to ensure we are leaving enough fish in the sea for the population to survive and stay stable or grow. But we are still a long way off. There needs to be an overhaul of fishing methods, policies and practices for us to reach a sustainable system.
The practice of fishing itself can be extremely harmful to the environment. Methods such as trawling destroy the seabed and rip up habitats. Fishing as we know it has changed the whole dynamic of the seabed in some areas, and lost equipment that is floating about poses a risk to marine life that can become tangled and drown.
What can we do? Eat less fish and make conscious decisions when you do decide to have fish for supper. The MCS Good Fish Guide is a good place to start, and you can also head over to our Ten things to think about before buying fish page.
Manmade noise
As vessels get bigger and development increases, the ocean gets louder. Nearly everything we do at sea adds noise to the environment, and sound travels better in water than air; a noise from a boat can be heard miles away.
But why is this important? Well, in the deep dark depths of the ocean, eyes have limited use, so many animals rely on sound to sense the world around them. Human-made (anthropogenic) noise can prevent animals from communicating with each other, it can make it harder for them to find food, and it can put them at greater risk of predation – you can’t escape if you can’t hear them coming. Living in a noisy world also causes marine animals stress, and so may have long-term impacts on survival and reproduction.
Read what NOAA have to say: here and here, and read our blog, the effects of noise on marine mammals.
What can we do? Scientists are working hard to study noise in the ocean. There is no easy fix, but solutions may involve engineering quieter ships and slowing down when in the presence of marine life. Find out more on the BBC – Can we fix our noise problem?
Development and Habitat Loss
Just like on land, marine animals are losing their homes to development and destructive practices, such as fishing and tourism. For example, developing beach resorts in sea turtle nesting areas creates huge issues for turtles that return to the same beach to breed that they were born on. They have to contend with tourists, and light pollution confuses baby turtles that head towards hotel lights rather than the sea.
Developments also destroy or degrade key coastal habitats such as mangrove forests and coral reefs, either directly or indirectly, through pollution – nutrients run from the land to sea and change habitats so they are no longer able to support the communities they once did.
What can we do? Be responsible. Support developments that appreciate the value of the coastline and don’t encroach on key habitats, and spread the word to help organisations focused on saving marine life and their homes. If you are visiting new places, do research before you go and pick places and operators that put wildlife first.