The Catastrophic Effects of Worldwide Marine Pollution
Pollution has become a rising issue all around the world, something must be done in order to ensure the survival of marine life as well at the economy. According to the WWF, the main source of pollution is coming from our land, and 80% of it consisting of sewage remains being directly poured into the ocean (WWF, Line 1). If left untreated, it will cause several downfalls in the population of marine wildlife as well as the ecosystem, it will get to the point where climate change is unstoppable, and it will cause a major plummet in the economy. In order to turn the devastation of marine pollution around, we will need help from the government in all ways possible.
The downfall of the marine ecosystem should be our biggest worry, once the marine ecosystem dies, it will throw off the balance of everything. First of all, if the marine ecosystem were to die, it is completely irreversible, therefore causing several catastrophic effects politically as well as environmentally. On the environmental side of things, it will throw off the food chain considering there are many animals who consume oceanic creatures, such as a bird eating a fish. Humans also consume oceanic life, such as fish, and it happens to be one of the healthiest foods humans can eat. According to Marine Safe, “Over the last decade, we have produced more plastic than we have in the last 100 years. This sharp increase in plastic entering our waters harms not only marine life but also humanity.” The death of the marine ecosystem being irreversible is just about the worst thing that can happen to our society. Already, the Great Barrier Reef is dead, red tide has spread so badly that restaurants on beaches worldwide are closing for business. It is getting to the point where, there is so much dead wildlife that people won’t go anywhere near the ocean due to the smells as well as the horrific sights. Across the world, they are taking measures so ridiculously that they have created a metro cars machine that accepts trash rather than money in order to receive a metro ticket. The main request we have for the government is that they need to take initiative, even if it’s something as strange as putting trash in a machine, it’s surely making a difference. If no difference is made by how our government runs things, it’s a straight fall from here, no more food viable for consumers, no more beautiful beaches to lay out on, and no more chances at turning this around; the marine ecosystem will perish.
Another issue regarding the pollution of our oceans is climate change. The amount of pollution has gotten so bad that scientists have stated that climate change will be 100% irreversible in 12 years. According to Daily Nation, “A statement by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon termed the report a wake-up call to the world, adding that the planet is running out of time in efforts to prevent a global increase in temperatures by up to two degrees Centigrade.” Climate change is already bad enough in Florida and it is most definitely noticeable. I remember when I was in elementary school, it was actually cold on Christmas, I remember seeing frost on the grass outside. Now, we’re lucky if we even make it into the 70’s in December, our winter doesn’t hit now until about February. Soon, there will be no more winter or fall, it will be summer weather all year round. The amount of hurricanes being generated has increased catastrophically, the panhandle of Florida was just hit with an almost category 5 hurricane. This is getting completely out of hand now, imagine what it will be life in 12 years when there’s absolutely nothing we can do about it. The government needs to get the pollution under control, otherwise there really will be no way of getting our climate back to where it should be.
As far as the economic standing, this is about the worst thing that can happen to our government. Not only so they not care for the detrimental effects it is taking on our marine life, but they don’t care to fix it. The only way this is going to get the government to do something is if they notice the scarce decrease in the economy due to the loss of several businesses, loss of tourism, as well as the loss of consumers. According to Bloomberg, “If India could conquer its air pollution problem, its citizens and government would be much richer.” Clearly, it is a major economic issue due to how the air quality will be lowering tourism as well as causing health issues resulting in the need for more medical attention. We as a nation can do anything, we simply need the funding for it, which is where the government will come in. All of these things will happen if it is not stopped not, we need help from the government, otherwise its not going to be just an issue of the beaches, it’s going to be an issue for the economy that the government is supposed to be taking care of. It may be a financial leap but it’s an investment that can assure the survival of something that we need in order to survive,
This should be an eye-opener as to what the effects are going to be on our world, especially us as a nation. There are so many tragic things happening all over the world but this does not need to be one of them. With the initiative that we can surely get from millions of volunteers all around the world, this can be cleaned up, the death toll of marine life can be stopped, all if we just come together and make a difference. All we ask of the government is that we can receive some sort of financial support as far as equipment, and as far as spreading the word. In Conclusion, there are several things that can be done in order to avoid these mishaps such as the downfall of wildlife, climate change being irreversible, and a financial drop in our economy. It is not impossible and it needs to be taken seriously by the government otherwise the outcome could be something terribly unfortunate to the history of our nation.
Works Cited
Lonne, Torben. Marine Safe. 18 April 2016. AlterNet. <http://www.marinesafe.org/blog/2016/04/18/how-ocean-pollution-impacts-marine-life-and-all-of-us/>.
Marlow, Iain. Bloomberg . n.d.
—. Bloomberg LP. 21 October 2018. New Economy Forum. <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-10-21/the-world-s-fastest-growing-economy-has-the-world-s-most-toxic-air>.
Omboki, Aggrey. Daily Nation. 12 October 2018. <https://www.nation.co.ke/news/UN-warns-over-global-warming/1056-4801988-14qftq2z/index.html>.