World Oceans Day
According to the United Nations , about 75 percent of fish species are over-fished, some dangerously so. Perhaps up to 30 percent of these fish-stocks are as low as ten percent of where they should be. This is a disaster of epic proportions in the ocean and one with potentially dire consequences for an ever expanding world population.
In other studies , reports indicate that we only have about ten percent of the apex predators and other big fish left in the ocean. That means 90 percent of swordfish, sharks and tuna have been decimated. Big fish are the victims of sport fishing, commercial fishing (including the particularly onerous practice of shark finning and by-catch, in which large fish are caught in nets intended for smaller fish. By some estimates, humans kill more than a hundred millions sharks every.
Not only are we killing-off large ocean fish and food stocks, we are poisoning the waters we all need to survive. The ocean is the largest carbon dump in the world, absorbing more CO2 than the rain forests. Reefs are in integral part of that process. We often refer to reefs as the rain forests of the sea; a far more accurate way to say it would be, rain forests are the reefs of the land.
Right now, the Earth’s Grand Ecosystem is changing, perhaps permanently. Oceans are becoming more acidic making them less able to sustain delicate life. More acid means more small animals and plants do not survive, eventually killing larger animals that rely them for food.
This is the backdrop for the first United Nations World Oceans Day on June 8, 2009. Conservation groups have been pressuring the UN for more than a decade to create a day that acknowledges the importance of the world’s oceans and seas. It is a first step, but frankly not nearly enough.
When it comes to the land, we have many tools that we can use to repair damage. We can replant trees to re-forest, we can truck in top soil and apply nutrients to damaged dirt. None of that is possible under the water.
For anyone who cares about the oceans of the world, which means caring about the survival of the Earth, it’s time to get involved. We all have causes we care deeply about, but in this case the urgency is greater than in most. Some climatologists and marine biologists believe by the middle of this century some sea creatures may begin to literally dissolve.
There are ways you can get involved; the first way is to educate yourself, your family and friends about this crisis. One group that has been in the forefront of this battle is Oceana .
I will admit that for much of my life, I have been relatively skeptical about the various conservation and environmental movements in the US and around the world. While some organizations have clearly raised awareness and solved problems, I have always been concerned that others actually made some problems worse. Today I am less interested in the machinations of the individual groups and far more concerned with the fate of this planet.
You might say, I am a skeptical environmentalist. I am certain of this one thing, human activity is affecting the oceans and seas of the world in potentially catastrophic way and it time we all step up and do what we can to reverse that trend.
Here are some of the more reputable groups that work with the oceans. As always, do your research before you contribute, to be sure that you are comfortable with what the group does. “NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program”:http://www.coralreef.noaa.gov
Shark Savers
World Wild Life Fund Ocean Conservancy
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