We Need to Talk About the Ocean

Scientists tell us that all life on Earth began in the ocean. But much as it gave us life, so too can it take it away. The ocean is our life support system, and we are pulling the plug. This is a tale of collective suicide. While documentaries such as David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II and Seaspiracy have raised public awareness on these issues, we have barely begun to tackle the problem. So we must keep talking about these issues.

People must not be led to believe that they have done their part in tackling this issue and that all is well because they have ceased using plastic straws, as an example. In fact, as Seaspiracy highlighted, plastic straws only account for 0.03% of plastics in the ocean. Yet things like this are often the focal point of campaigns and action to tackle the problem, which leads people into a false sense of security. The truth is that if radical change does not occur and occur quickly, we are all doomed.

The Sixth Mass Extinction

In the past 540 million years, there have been five mass extinction events. The last of these was the Cretaceous-Tertiary event that occurred 65 million years ago and was responsible for wiping out the dinosaurs.

Mass extinction events of the past had various causes, including rising or falling sea levels, temperature changes or one-off catastrophic events such as an asteroid colliding with Earth or a massive volcano erupting.

There is general agreement that we are now living through the sixth major extinction event. This mass extinction event is known as the Holocene extinction, or Anthropocene extinction, because it is – tragically – human-induced. This event will involve the extinction of more animal and plant species between now and 2065 than have been lost over the past 65 million years.

It has been said that we are now on the threshold of the first major ecosystem collapse to be seen during this period, and this is set to occur in the oceans.

How The Ocean Supports Life on Earth

The ocean is effectively our life support machine. It supports life on Earth by helping to regulate the climate. The ocean absorbs around 90% of the additional heat resulting from global warming and around 30% of human carbon dioxide emissions. By absorbing and storing heat and greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, the ocean plays a huge part in reducing the effects of climate change seen on land. However, this comes at the cost of deteriorating ocean health, which subsequently impacts our health.

Ocean currents function to redistribute heat around the globe. Without this effect, regional temperatures would be more extreme, and, as a result, substantially less of the land on Earth would be habitable.

Almost all rainfall on land is a result of water that has evaporated from the ocean. This rainfall supports all life on land, plant and animal. As humans, we store rainwater to irrigate crops and provide drinking water.

The ocean also helps us to breathe. Tiny, plant-like organisms called Phytoplankton which live in the sea, are responsible for producing at least 50% of the oxygen on Earth. This means they are responsible for providing us with every second breath we take! If this is significant enough, they also consume carbon dioxide, diverting it away from the atmosphere and thus mitigating its harmful effects on our environment.

How Humanity is Harming the Ocean

Overfishing & whaling

Overfishing refers to the practice of catching fish faster than their populations can replenish. Fishing is the greatest threat to marine wildlife and has resulted in 90% of the world’s large fish being wiped out. Overfishing rates have tripled in the past fifty years, and a third of assessed fisheries globally are currently being pushed beyond their biological limits.

According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, one of the significant issues associated with overfishing is that of bycatch. This refers to the unwanted capture of certain sea life species while fishing for others. Bycatch causes the needless loss of billions of sea creatures, including turtles, fish, sea birds and cetaceans such as whales and dolphins.

Overfishing is a threat to the ocean’s ecosystem. Too often, the focus on this as an economic problem – i.e. less fish ‘stocks’ = higher prices, damaged economies and a threat to food security. While this clearly has a detrimental impact on humans at some levels, especially in poorer regions that should not be ignored, there are arguably even graver issues at hand.

To highlight this simply, let’s take a look at the issue of whales – the largest and most intelligent creatures in the ocean. It has been found that whales capture tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere. A study by the IMF found that each great whale, on average, sequesters about 33 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Entanglement in fishing gear is one of the greatest threats to whales, as well as dolphins and other cetaceans, and is estimated to cause around 300,000 deaths to these species every year. In addition to this, whales are still threatened in many places by the practice of whaling. Despite a ban by the IWC in 1986 to end commercial whaling, some countries persist in this cruel practice which involves hunting and killing whales to profit from their meat and body parts or for the misguided view that they are competition for other fish.

Wherever there are whales, there is phytoplankton. This is because whale poo has a multiplier effect on phytoplankton due to the nitrogen and iron it contains, which are required for phytoplankton to grow. Remember how we mentioned earlier that phytoplankton is effectively responsible for every second breath we take? The more whales in the ocean, the more phytoplankton and, subsequently, the more oxygen.

This gives a glimpse into the importance of sustaining balance within an ecosystem. When one species is taken out of an ecosystem – which can occur due to practices like overfishing – the entire ecosystem is at risk of collapse. When a species naturally declines and becomes extinct, it happens over a long period of time. This allows time for other species to fill the gap in the food chain. However, when it happens rapidly due to unnatural means, such as human choice and behaviours, this is not the case.

Plastic pollution

It is estimated that there are currently 150 million metric tonnes of plastic in the ocean. An additional 8 million tonnes is being added every year. Shockingly, it is forecast that if these trends continue, plastic in the ocean will outweigh fish by 2050. Microplastics are ingested by marine wildlife, which poses a threat to these species. Moreover, these plastics and the chemicals associated with them, which have been found to cause cancer, genetic issues and other harmful effects, have been found in table salt and the water we drink, as well as the seafood people, consume.

Much of the microplastics in the ocean have been broken down from macroplastics, 70% of which is attributable to fishing gear.

Perhaps the most overt example of the problem is The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, located between California and Hawaii. It is a massive area estimated to cover 1.6 square kilometres. It comprises an accumulation of plastic debris covering an area three times the size of France and containing somewhere between 1.1 and 3.6 trillion pieces of plastic. Fishing nets account for 45% of the waste found in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

While the Great Pacific Garbage patch is the largest and most densely polluted of its kind, it is not the only example. In fact, every major ocean in the world has been found to have its own garbage patch.

Other water pollution

Other types of rubbish, aside from plastics, also enter the ocean and pose a risk to marine wildlife. This includes general waste, such as food packaging, as well as cigarette filters, for example. Much of this results from littering on beaches and coastal areas.

Chemical contamination is an additional issue. This type of pollution arises from human activities such as farming. Chemicals, such as fertilisers used in farming, lead to the run-off of chemicals in waterways which ultimately end up in the ocean. Increased concentrations of chemicals such as phosphorus and nitrogen promote the growth of algal blooms. These can be toxic and cause harm to humans and animals. Algal blooms also starve waters of oxygen, leaving dead zones where few marine organisms can live.

Common man-made pollutants found in the ocean include oil, fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, detergents, sewage and industrial chemicals. When these enter the marine food chain, they pose a significant risk to the affected species and the ecosystem as a whole.

Global warming

Over the past two centuries, the oceans have absorbed one-third of the carbon dioxide produced by human activities as well as 90% of the additional heat resulting from the rising concentration of greenhouse gases. As the store of heat builds up in the ocean, a tipping point will be reached. The result of this is likely to be rising sea levels and temperatures as well as changing ocean currents, melting sea ice and more extreme weather events – all of which will have devastating effects on life on land, including humans.

Changing weather patterns, for example, will have negative consequences for food crops through changes to rainfall patterns and growing seasons. This could lead to serious food shortages. In addition, there will be a risk to coastal communities from flooding resulting from rising sea levels and potential devastation to life and property resulting from extreme weather events.

The excess carbon dioxide absorbed by the ocean causes acidification which harms coral, shellfish, plankton and other marine species. This has a knock-on effect on the wider ecosystem. Shellfish and plankton, for example, play a crucial role in the ocean’s food chain. As we discussed earlier when one species suffers or is wiped out, all species in the ecosystem suffer too.

What Action Can We Take to Turn the Tide on This?

If we act now, there is a good chance of reversing much of the damage being done to the oceans. This must involve a multi-pronged approach to tackling climate change, pollution and overfishing. There are several key ways we can affect positive change, both as individuals and societies.

What we can as individuals:

Adopt a vegan lifestyle

Many have suggested that adopting a plant-based diet, and excluding seafood, is one of the key ways individuals can tackle the problem. We would go one step beyond this and advocate adopting a vegan lifestyle rather than just a plant-based diet. This is because a plant-based diet, while of course being of benefit to non-human humans, is weaker in its ethical underpinnings. Veganism is a strong philosophical stance that advocates against all forms of harm and exploitation to animals. This perspective is needed if we are to change the way we view our planet’s oceans and wildlife as resources for exploitation and create lasting change.

Reduce waste and support local clean-ups

To help reduce the amount of waste pollution going into the oceans, we can be more conscious about reducing our own waste and living more sustainably. There are plenty of tips and advice on how to do this online. Be conscious of how you dispose of your waste, especially around coastal areas and outdoors.

You can take further action by searching up local organisations taking action to clean up areas around the coast and other bodies of water. Consider volunteering to support on clean-ups or starting a clean-up initiative of your own. These projects help to stop additional waste from entering rivers and seas.

Reduce your carbon footprint

We’ve been told about our carbon footprint for years now, but there’s still probably more we can do as individuals to reduce this. Perhaps you could be more conscious of your energy use at home and work, limit car use and air travel and switch to energy-efficient light bulbs and appliances. Other ways to reduce your carbon footprint include using reusable bags and products wherever possible, reducing waste and eating locally grown produce. Since animal agriculture is a significant factor in climate change, switching to a vegan diet if you haven’t already done so will significantly reduce your carbon footprint.

Raise awareness of the issue

Another way you can help the plight of the ocean is to play an active role in raising awareness around the issue. This could include simply talking to others about the issue, posting online or sharing relevant posts from organisations tackling this issue. This will help to raise public concern around the issue, which could eventually put pressure on governments to take greater action in dealing with the problem.

What we can do collectively:

End fishing subsidies

Billions in public funds – around $35 billion – are spent by governments globally every year subsidising the industries responsible for overfishing. If we are to end the practice of overfishing and bycatch, we must stop supporting it financially. While the WTO has been negotiating to tackle the issue of fishing subsidies for some years, the last round of talks in 2020 were unfortunately unsuccessful in reaching a deal. This critical issue must continue to be prioritised (you can support this agenda by joining the stop funding overfishing campaign here).

Enforce no-catch marine reserves zones

Advocated strongly by the creators of Seaspiracy, no-catch zones are areas where fishing cannot occur so that vulnerable populations and habitats may be given a chance at recovery. Seaspiracy makers recommend protecting 30% of global oceans in this way by 2030. If you haven’t already done so, you can sign the Change.org petition on this here.

Increase global and regional efforts to tackle climate change

Although governments regionally and globally have made some efforts to tackle climate change, there is still much more that can be done. It is a complex and global issue, and, as such, greater efforts must be taken collectively as nations to solve the problem. Certainly, this is an issue of such depth and magnitude it goes far beyond the scope of this article. However, some of the key areas for focus are:

• Reducing fossil fuels and investing in renewable energies
• Sustainable housing and building
• Sustainable transport
• Restoring nature and green spaces
• Addressing animal agriculture and encouraging a vegan diet
• Protecting oceans
• Protecting rainforests
• Reducing plastic use
• Reducing overall consumption

End fishing subsidies

Billions in public funds – around $35 billion – are spent by governments globally every year subsidising the industries responsible for overfishing. If we are to end the practice of overfishing and bycatch, we must stop supporting it financially. While the WTO has been negotiating to tackle the issue of fishing subsidies for some years, the last round of talks in 2020 were unfortunately unsuccessful in reaching a deal. This critical issue must continue to be prioritised (you can support this agenda by joining the stop funding overfishing campaign here).

Enforce no-catch marine reserves zones

Advocated strongly by the creators of Seaspiracy, no-catch zones are areas where fishing cannot occur so that vulnerable populations and habitats may be given a chance at recovery. Seaspiracy makers recommend protecting 30% of global oceans in this way by 2030. If you haven’t already done so, you can sign the Change.org petition on this here.

Increase global and regional efforts to tackle climate change

Although governments regionally and globally have made some efforts to tackle climate change, there is still much more that can be done. It is a complex and global issue, and, as such, greater efforts must be taken collectively as nations to solve the problem. Certainly, this is an issue of such depth and magnitude it goes far beyond the scope of this article. However, some of the key areas for focus are:

• Reducing fossil fuels and investing in renewable energies
• Sustainable housing and building
• Sustainable transport
• Restoring nature and green spaces
• Addressing animal agriculture and encouraging a vegan diet
• Protecting oceans
• Protecting rainforests
• Reducing plastic use
• Reducing overall consumption