Let’s Save the Ocean

Vocabulary/new concepts:

The World ocean is the common name for the continuous body of water on planet Earth. It consists of all the oceans and seas, which are connected by straits and currents.  Most of the Earth’s water is concentrated in it.

Pollutants are all harmful substances, materials and energy that degrade seawater quality, such as sewage, dissolved metals, farm or factory waste, oil spilt from tankers. All of these pollute the waters of the world’s oceans.

The World’s ocean – Earth’s blue treasure

The world’s ocean is not just an endless blue expanse, it hides unique and mysterious worlds in its vast depths, regulates the climate, provides food and energy for millions of people, and is home to an incredible diversity of plant and animal species. Can you guess how big a sphere would look if we put all the water from the World Ocean into it? – It would be bigger than the moon! It’s no coincidence that the ocean produces more oxygen than all the rainforests on Earth combined.

See videos showing the beauty and diversity of life in the oceans and seas.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=hXtrIy95V80&si=FXvgoWouRPkooBiD

https://youtube.com/watch?v=cdRviRlcFL8&si=_deICrZdC03bBINF

The World’s ocean is the common name for the continuous body of water on planet Earth. It consists of all the oceans, seas, and bays, which are interconnected by straits and currents.  Most of the Earth’s water is concentrated in it. It is the largest and most basic part of the hydrosphere. It covers a total of 361 million km² or 71% of the planet’s surface. By comparison, land covers 149 million km². This is why we call Earth the “Blue Planet”.

Source: https://depositphotos.com/similar-images/107193592.html?qview=105002284

The average ocean depth is 3,790 m and the maximum reaches 10,923 m in the Mariana Trench. The water of the oceans and seas accounts for 96.54% of the world’s water reserves, but it is salty and not suitable for drinking. Most of the freshwater (more than half of the 2.53% total) is associated with glaciers. The distribution of the planet’s land and ocean is uneven.

Therefore, there are about 100 million km² of land in the northern hemisphere and only 49 million km² in the southern hemisphere.

The water in the World Ocean is a solution of various mineral and organic substances. Various physical, chemical and biological processes are constantly taking place in this solution. The main sources of its bitter-salty taste are sodium chloride, magnesium chloride and magnesium sulphate. The average salinity of the water is 35 ppm, but the actual salinity varies considerably in different parts of the ocean depending on evaporation, ocean currents, rainfall, freshwater inflow, etc.

Although the World Ocean is one continuous body of water, it is accepted to divide its waters into five oceans – in order of area:

• Pacific Ocean – which separates Asia and Australia from North America and South America; the largest and deepest
• Atlantic Ocean – which separates North America and South America from Europe and Africa
• Indian Ocean – located mainly in the Southern Hemisphere, bordering Asia to the north and separating Africa from Australia
• Southern Ocean – which surrounds Antarctica
• Arctic Ocean – located north of North America, Europe and Asia; the smallest and shallowest

Why is the World Ocean important for life on our planet?

• Because of its size, it captures about 85% of the sunlight and heat. It therefore acts as a very important temperature regulator and prevents temperature fluctuations on the planet’s surface. The world’s ocean binds a large proportion of carbon dioxide and is part of the carbon cycle. It thus influences the climate.
• It has a major impact on the Earth’s biosphere and biodiversity. It is home to millions of species of plants and animals, many of which we do not yet know. It is full of life, and phytoplankton alone is the source of about 50% of the oxygen we cannot live without.
• The ocean is a source of natural resources, energy and food for millions of people around the world.

Source: https://depositphotos.com/home.html?qview=195264730

• It is crossed by international transport waterways connecting continents and countries. More than 90% of the delivery of goods to different parts of the world takes place through the oceans, as this transport is environmentally friendly, economically viable and has a high carrying capacity.
• It has an important role in tourism.
• An interesting phenomenon is the ebb and flow of water. The gravitational pull of the Sun and Moon periodically changes the level of the World Ocean. Ocean water is in constant motion due to the influence of ocean currents. Waves are formed on the surface which change the appearance of the land significantly. Devastating tsunamis can also occur during volcanic eruptions or earthquakes.

Threats to the World Ocean

The ocean remains one of the most vast, mysterious and diverse places on Earth. Unfortunately, it faces serious threats.

First of all, it is threatened by pollution caused by humans and other various sources, including natural ones. Over 14 billion tonnes of waste are dumped into it every year! Most of it is plastic.

Marine life is dying, and as a result, the entire ocean ecosystem is threatened with ecological catastrophe in the next 30-40 years. If we want to preserve the ocean and its natural beauty, to use its resources sensibly, we need to move immediately to implement drastic measures to combat this pollution.

Source: https://worldanimalfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/There-are-5-garbage-patches-globally-in-the-oceans-and-the-greatest-one-is-the-%E2%80%98Great-Pacific-Garbage-Patch-with-1.8-trillion-pieces-of-trash.-1-1-1024×575.jpg

Previously, it was assumed that the consequences of dumping waste at sea would be minimal because the ocean is so large, vast and deep. But as we can see, this turns out to be false. For more than a millennium, the oceans have suffered from unwise human activity, but the consequences have accelerated in the last few decades. Oil spills, toxic and chemical waste – fuels, oils and other chemicals, rubber waste and various other factors are contributing to serious ocean pollution.

Let us not forget natural pollutants, such as volcanic eruptions.

Source: https://passportocean.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/ocean-plastic-pollution.jpg

Second is climate change, which is leading to rising sea levels and increased risk of flooding and coastal erosion, especially in recent decades. Other significant effects of temperature rise are: the bleaching of coral reefs, changes in coastal habitats and the geographical distribution of fish species, and biodiversity disturbance. These changes have significant negative socio-economic impacts for many regions.

Third is overfishing, which disrupts food chains.

12 shocking facts about ocean pollution

1. Plastic is the most common waste that occurs in the ocean. It is harmful to the environment, threatening the lives of marine life as they often mistake it for food or become entangled in larger floating pieces. Plastic degrades extremely slowly – between 400 and 1,000 years – and disintegrated microparticles of it can remain in the environment indefinitely.
2. At least 8 million tonnes of plastic end up in the oceans every year. That’s like dumping a garbage truck full of plastic into the ocean every minute.

Source: https://worldanimalfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/plastic-pollution-in-ocean-review

3. There are more microplastics in the ocean than stars in the Milky Way.
4. More than 50% of sea turtles have consumed plastic. In pursuit of its dinner, the turtle devours the white blob floating nearby, thinking it is food. But it’s not jelly – it’s a plastic bag that can make the turtle sick.

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• Source: https://kids.earth.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Untitled-design-95-900×600.jpg

5. The amount of plastic in the world’s oceans could increase 10-fold in the next decade if adequate measures are not taken.
6. The largest contributors to ocean pollution are land-based sources such as oil, dirt, septic tanks, farms, motor vehicles, etc. Thousands of tons of waste and trash are dumped into the ocean daily.
7. Every year, over one million seabirds die from ocean pollution. Three hundred thousand dolphins and porpoises die every year as a result of entanglement in discarded fishing nets and other large garbage. One hundred thousand marine mammals affected by pollution share their fate.

• Source: https://passportocean.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/ocean-pollution–1237×800.jpg

8. There is an island of trash twice the size of Texas in the Pacific Ocean – the North Pacific Gyre (a giant slow-moving ocean current that rotates clockwise) off the coast of California. It is the largest ocean garbage site in the entire world. The number of floating plastic pieces there is six times the total number of marine life in the immediate area. It’s called “The Great Garbage Patch”.
9. Small animals at the bottom of the food chain ingest the chemicals as part of their food. These small animals then become food for the larger marine inhabitants, again increasing the concentration of chemicals in their bodies. Studies have shown that fish in the oceans have the highest levels of metals compared to all other foods we consume. Ingested harmful substances are also transferred to the fish eggs. Animals at the top of the food chain have pollution levels millions of times higher than the water they live in. Mussels, also known as purifying organisms for the seas, are the most dangerous to health as they filter the water and often particles of various pollutants get into them.
10. A recent study found that ocean pollution is more prevalent in deep water (depths greater than 2,000 feet), with plastic bags, metal cans, fishing equipment, glass bottles, shoes, tires, sunken marine gear, etc. being the most common pollutants.
11. There are dead zones in the oceans created by pollution, making life in these zones impossible for marine and plant life.
12. The damage to the economy from plastic litter dumped in the ocean is estimated at between €259 and €695 million, mainly affecting fisheries and tourism.

Source: https://kids.kiddle.co/Image:Obvious_water_pollution.jpeg

Fortunately, organisations are working hard and looking for effective solutions to these problems. These include UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), which publishes regular reports on the state of the oceans and the impact of pollution on marine life; IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), which monitors the status of endangered species and publishes a Red List that includes many marine life affected by pollution; and EEA (European Environment Agency), which provides information on the state of the environment in Europe.

See the following short video:

Think: What would happen if one day the oceans and seas disappeared?