Marine "Dead Zones" on the Rise

A jump in oxygen-starved zones of formerly thriving seas and oceans has scientists on alert. According to the United Nations Environment Program, they’ve seen a rise of more than a third in the number of affected areas in the past two years. Dead zones currently lurk off the coasts of the United States, Scandinavia, South America, Ghana, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal and Britain.

Unusual algae blooms are suffocating or driving out fish, oysters, sea grass, and other marine flora and fauna. Known triggers include rising loads of phosphorus and nitrogen from fertilizer, sewage, animal waste and burning of fossil fuels. If such pollution isn’t slowed, it’s expected to rise 14 percent from mid-1990s levels by 2030.

In related news, Congress has finally moved to clean up the giant floating garbage dump twice the size of Texas bordering the newly protected and biologically rich Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument. Recent samples show more tiny bits of plastic by weight than plankton per cubic meter of seawater. Disposable baby diapers, six-pack rings and fishing nets daily endanger sea life.

Between 60 and 80 percent of the trash washing into streams, rivers and beaches is land-based. The rest comes from ocean-based operations.

"Every single piece of trash has a person’s face behind it," says Seba Sheavly, coordinator of the National Marine Debris Monitoring Program. "It comes from improper waste management practices. It’s a fixable problem." The answer is education, awareness and a change of behavior.

We have "numerous compelling reasons for combating pollution to the marine environment," concludes Achim Steiner, executive director for the United Nations Environment Program. "These range from public health concerns to the economic damage such pollution can cause to tourism and fisheries."

Source: Environment News Service