ocean pollution

What is polluting the ocean and where does it come from?

Plastic, chemicals, runoff (fertilizers and pesticides from agricultural land), oil, discarded fishing nets, untreated sewage, rubbish from insufficient waste disposal procedures, containers falling off ships, or things simply left behind on a beach: the ocean is fighting a losing battle against pollution and marine life and ocean ecosystems are being severely impacted by it. About 80% of ocean pollution comes from land, the remaining 20% from activities at sea. Between 8 and 14 million tonnes of plastic (including about 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear) 2.1 million tonnes of oil, and uncounted amounts of industrial waste, waste water and untreated sewage enter the ocean every year.

While some marine pollution is easy to track and cleanup operations can be implemented, the problem with much marine pollution is that it can’t be seen and is near impossible to collect. This applies to chemicals entering the ocean from wastewater and agricultural and industrial processes, as well as to plastic pollution: the ocean contains a liquid smog of minuscule plastic particles which has developed as both larger plastic debris in the ocean is broken down by the sun, wind, waves and bacteria, and as microfibres and microplastics are released into the ocean via unfiltered sewage or carried there by wind, rain and rivers. These miniscule particles not only already contain chemicals which are toxic to the environment, they also attract other toxic chemicals like a magnet, and when absorbed or eaten the particles are passed along the marine food chain. Collecting microplastics from the seabed or water column or cleaning the ocean of excess fertilizer is one of our greatest challenges today. Whilst solutions are sought for collecting what has already entered the ocean, our attention must also be turned to the sources of ocean pollution - by stopping it at source, further pollution can be prevented.