New Delhi: While the advancement of human civilisation has brought several boons for us, the progress has not really been beneficial for nature. Take, for example, the oceans and the seas. Over the years, especially in the last four or five decades, marine pollution has increased at a rapid pace. Pollutions like industrial, agricultural and residential waste, particles, noise, and excess carbon dioxide have severely damaged marine life. Plastic pollution has emerged as the most damaging thing for marine life, with numerous ocean animals losing their lives in recent years due the plastic consumption or by getting entangled in plastic waste.
Marine pollution: The bane of oceans
The problem of marine pollution is growing with each passing year and the oceans are being especially flooded with trash and chemicals. Chemical contamination is severely damaging the ocean ecosystem. It occurs when fertilizers are washed into waterways that flow into the ocean. The increasing amount of chemicals in the ocean, like nitrogen and phosphorus leads to the growth of algal blooms which is extremely harmful for those residing in the water. It also hurt humans by adversely affecting the fishing industry.
Nowadays, the most common waste found in the oceans is various plastic items like bottles, plastic bags, and plastic cans. Also, the situation is compounded by the dumping of cigarette butts, bottle caps, food wrappers, and fishing gear into the ocean. On top of that, it takes plastic items hundreds of years to decompose.
The plastic debris injures marine animals and some tragically eat the plastic bags mistaking them for food. Broken-down plastics which are known as microplastic are mistakenly eaten as food by small organisms and in recent years, numerous marine animals including whales have ended up dead after consuming plastic. Sometimes, when larger animals eat small organisms, they unknowingly consume microplastics which become part of their tissues.
How can we prevent marine pollution?
We can start by using non-toxic chemicals and disposing of herbicides, pesticides, and cleaning products properly so that they don’t end up in the ocean. One of the biggest steps in this goal is reduced usage of plastic and not dumping anything in the ocean. Also, we can contribute by reducing the catching of fish by a considerable margin.
We should start refusing to use single-use plastics in its products and substitute them with reusable versions of those products. Even if someone uses single-use plastics, they need to be recycled properly. Recycling ensures plastics are not dumped in the ocean and reduces the amount of ‘new’ plastic in circulation. Along with the preventive steps, we should also engage in cleaning up the beaches.
The problem of marine pollution is growing with each passing year and the oceans are being especially flooded with trash and chemicals. The plastic debris injures marine animals and some tragically eat the plastic bags. knowledge Knowledge News, Photos and Videos on General Knowledge
