As a sailor, I enjoy the beauty of the seas up close. I am in the middle of nature and keep watching animals. Dolphins are my constant companions on my journey around the world. I discover Whales, orcas for example, endless birds flying over the water, over and over again Dolphins.
I watch fantastic sunsets. I experience stormy days and real adventures.
But I also see how the seas are changing. What are the effects of pollution and
Climate change on the oceans? How long does it take for trash in the ocean to decompose?
Why do we humans need the seas?
Regardless of whether we live near the sea or not, the oceans play an important role in our lives.
They are the foundation of our lives. The world’s oceans cover over 70 percent of the earth’s surface.
The Pacific alone, as the largest ocean, accounts for 33 percent of this.
The world’s oceans are of huge importance for the ecological balance of the earth and therefore for the well-being of us humans, animals and plants. Because it’s not just trees that produce Oxygen. The sea is also an important supplier of oxygen. For its production are in the water microscopic algae and photosynthetic bacteria are responsible. In addition, the Oceans store enormous amounts of climate-damaging carbon dioxide in their depths, which they extract from the absorbed into the earth’s atmosphere. In this respect, too, the world’s oceans have a climate-regulating effect
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But they will not be able to stop climate change.
The importance of fishing for us humans should not be underestimated. In development and In emerging countries, a large proportion of the population meets their protein needs through fish.
How much trash ends up in the sea?
Ocean pollution is a major problem. Three quarters of the trash in the water consists of Plastics. Between 4.8 and 12.7 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans every year.
Most of waste floating in the water sinks to the seabed, revealing the true extent of the waste Pollution remains hidden from us. Some of the waste washes up on the beach, some more ends up in the stomachs of animals. A total of between 86 and 150 million is estimated so far Tons of plastic have ended up in the sea. However, the Alfred Wegener Institute Bremerhaven points out that that the total amount of plastic is difficult to calculate because the waste can only be recorded selectively and comes from many different sources.
What rubbish ends up in the sea?
Pretty much everything that people use can be found in the sea and on beaches: bags, razors, Lighters, cigarette butts, plastic bottles. According to a report by the Ocean Conservancy.
In 2021, by far the largest proportion of garbage on German coasts came from cigarette butts.
Food packaging and bags were also collected particularly frequently. In addition, a lot is achieved Microplastics into the oceans – this includes, for example, abrasion from car tires, Plastic particles from textiles or plastic particles that are found in cosmetic products such as Skin creams and shower gels are located. This also applies to the breakdown of larger plastic waste such as PET bottles.
First of all, microplastics are created.
Another source of waste is materials from fishing, especially fishing nets, which are thrown overboard go. Information about their share of total waste varies. According to WWF, around 20 percent of these come from Waste from the sea, 80 percent occurs on land. According to an assessment by the Alfred Wegener Institute The amount of waste thrown overboard has decreased in recent years.
Where is the most trash floating?
A particularly high concentration of plastic waste collects in the so-called garbage patches, Garbage stains. These are large, circling ocean currents that literally catch the rubbish. Through the With swirling movements, the waste gets deeper and deeper into the centers of these currents. Garbage Patches are found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The Great Pacific is particularly well known Garbage Patch, a gigantic garbage patch between California and Hawaii.
How long does it take for trash to decompose in the ocean?
Once it gets into the water, the trash stays in the ocean forever. Some plastic waste in particular survives easily a human life. According to figures from the German Nature Conservation Association (Nabu), it takes ten to 20 Years for a plastic bag to disintegrate in water. A plastic bottle can last up to 450 years count until it is completely decomposed, and with fishing lines, which today are also mostly made of plastic are made, up to 600 years. As the graphic shows, a glass bottle takes a million years, one Eternity.
For comparison: Cigarette butts “only” last one to five years, orange and
Banana peels decompose within two to five weeks. Glass and plastic in the sea are good how imperishable.
To what extent does garbage in the sea harm animals, plants and people?
Plastic poses an immediate danger to animals. Seabirds, for example, mix them up Plastic pieces often with food. This is why birds, but also turtles and whales come to it eaten garbage die. According to the WWF, they suffocate, become fatally constipated or starve with a full stomach. A second major danger to marine animals is lost fishing nets are and float in the water. Fish and marine mammals get caught in them. Because they don’t always manage to swim free again, many of them die in the nets. In addition, they can Nets cause damage to coral reefs.
The plastic parts in the sea also pose a risk for us humans. Take fish and mussels
Microplastics and therefore often toxins through their food and sea water.
With the Seafood enters the human food chain – to put it simply: it ends up in ours plates. The pollution is not an immediate danger to people, but it is unpleasant Coasts that go hand in hand with the plastic problem: In many seaside resorts, the beaches have to be cleaned regularly Driven plastic bottles, bags and other rubbish are removed.
What is being done about marine litter?
It has now been recognized that ocean pollution is a huge problem. Numerous
Environmental protection organizations are committed to the fight against plastic waste. Many countries follow national action plans to combat waste. There are also international efforts to dispose of waste seas. Since July 2021, single-use plastic products such as Coffee-to-go cups, straws, plastic cutlery and cotton swabs are prohibited. These products land particularly common in the sea. Microplastics in cosmetics have also now been partially detected in the EU
forbidden. In 2023, the United Nations adopted a high seas agreement that, above all,…
to create a legal framework for the establishment of marine protected areas. So far the high seas have been one legal vacuum.
What innovations can be used to protect the oceans?
It’s not just politics and environmental protection that’s happening. Research is also working on plastic to get it out of the sea again and to avoid further pollution.
In addition:
The scientists not only investigate where the plastic waste comes from and how it affects the marine environment and the health of living creatures. They also develop new technologies to.
To capture plastic waste in the oceans and ultimately remove it from the water. For this will The most modern technology is used – for example, researchers from the German Research Institute for…
Artificial intelligence (DFKI) in documenting garbage on AI. Through artificial intelligence.
In the future, more and more data about species, Quantity and size of waste is recovered.
What environmental problems do the oceans still suffer from?
Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing problems, but far from it
only. More come through shipping and especially through accidents and oil spills pollutants into the water. Ship traffic also brings in foreign species that…
disrupt the ecological balance of water bodies. Overfishing remains a major problem.
Due to the disproportionate pressure on fish stocks, biodiversity suffers – and does not Lastly, people: People in developing countries in particular are often dependent on getting by To provide for your own fishing. The way out of overfishing can be sustainable fishing Care is taken to ensure that fish stocks can continue to reproduce and thus be maintained. Also the Mining mineral resources from the sea can damage the environment.
How does climate change affect the ocean?
As described at the beginning, the world’s oceans play an important role in our climate system. The However, global warming has significant impacts on temperature, oxygen levels and pH Oceans – the climate crisis is depriving them of their climate-regulating powers. So have the seas in the There has already been a loss of oxygen in the last few decades; in some areas there is actually none Lack of oxygen. At the same time, the oceans are absorbing more and more CO2, which is gradually leading to…
acidification and can harm marine life. A sad consequence already: a large part
Coral reefs worldwide are affected by coral bleaching and their slow death.
Environmental protection organizations warn of the complete extinction of the reefs. Through the rising Fish, dolphins and whales also suffer from water temperatures. Feeding areas are shifting for them or rather they have to look for new habitats.
In addition, climate change is causing sea levels to rise – and this will affect residents in the future of coasts and islands. You will be affected by more extreme weather events like storms and floods.
Sources for this text were primarily the German Nature Conservation Association (Nabu), World Wildife Fund for Nature (WWF), the Federal Environment Agency, the European Parliament, the Alfred Wegener Institute, the statistics platform Statista and the Heinrich Böll Foundation.