Not Enough Ocean

By Rachel Drozdyk

          Have you littered before? You might think it doesn't have any effect.  It does. An effect that involves harming the animals, humans, Earth, and especially the oceans!

         The oceans take up 70% of the earth's surface. This means we should be keeping good care of them. Right? Nope, in fact we are doing the exact opposite of that. Humans dump around 1.4 billion pounds of garbage into the ocean every year. Sources of pollution are sewage, industrial waste, and oil spills. The biggest source is from something called nonpoint source pollution. Nonpoint source pollution is caused by runoff. Millions of motor vehicle engines drop small proportions of oil every day on places like parking lots and roads. A large portion  of it makes its way to the oceans, causing them to be polluted.

           Have you ever heard of the Pacific Trash Vortex? It is a large patch of plastic and garbage that floats in the Pacific Ocean. This vortex is claimed to be 700,000 square kilometers, which is about the size of Texas. This is a big problem, especially for the marine life. The United Nations Ocean Conference estimated that in the year 2050 there will be less fish and more plastic. It is also said that long-lasting plastics end up in the stomach of a marine animals.

Humans must take caution because ocean pollution can affect us. The ocean is 70% of the oxygen. It is also 97% of the world's water supply. Chemicals enter the oceans, but not just any chemicals, toxic chemicals. Chemicals like cadmium, mercury, tin, copper, selenium, arsenic, nickel, zinc, and lead. These toxic chemicals can be a potential threat for us humans; they cause diseases and allergies.

Ocean pollution doesn't just affect humans. It also affects marine life. It is said that more than 100,00 sea mammals are killed every year. Birds and fish must be weary of the oil because it can cover birds feathers and fish gills. Oil can cause irritation to the skin and eyes. It can also cause problems for the lung and liver. Pollution can even cause marine animals’ reproductive system to fail.

Ocean pollution is a very dangerous problem that needs to be fixed.  It does nothing but harm and kill.  If we take action, problems will be solved. So next time, think twice about littering, and save the oceans.