Transcript Plastic debris endangers marine life

AP Environmental
Science
Mr. Grant
Lesson 78
Marine Pollution
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Mastery Check
Discuss three ways plastics affect marine life.
1.
2.
3.
Ingested plastics can also have toxic effects. Plastics themselves
contain harmful substances such as bisphenol A and pthalates. May
concentrate persistent organic pollutants
Floating debris can transport organisms great distances. Some of
these become invasive species.
Plastics are not easily removed, so prevention is key. The 2006
Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act aids these
efforts. Plastic pollution costs Asia over $1 billion in its fisheries and
tourism industries
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Objectives:
• Define the term pelagic zone.
• Assess impacts from marine pollution.
• TED - Capt. Charles Moore of the Algalita Marine Research
Foundation first discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch -an endless floating waste of plastic trash. Now he's drawing
attention to the growing, choking problem of plastic debris in
our seas.
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Define the term pelagic zone.
Pelagic zone:
The zone between the surface and floor of the
ocean
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Assess impacts from marine pollution.
• Plastic trash accumulate in ocean regions where it is
trapped by currents.
• Marine oil pollution results from non-point sources on
land as well as from spills at sea from tankers and
drilling platforms.
• Heavy metal contaminants in seafood affect human
health.
• Nutrient pollution can lead to dead zones and harmful
algal blooms.
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Marine Pollution
 People use oceans as a sink for waste and pollutants
 Even into the mid-20th century, coastal U.S. cities
dumped trash and untreated sewage along their shores
 Non-point-source pollution comes from all over
 Oil, plastic, chemicals, excess nutrients
 Also sewage and trash from cruise ships and
abandoned fishing gear
 Over 25 years, Ocean Conservancy volunteers picked
up 65 million kg (144 million lb) of waste from the world’s
beaches
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Marine pollution
In 2008,
391,000 Ocean
Conservancy
volunteers from
104 nations
picked up 3.1
million kg (6.8
million lb) of
trash from
27,000 km
(17,000 miles)
of shoreline
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Plastic debris endangers marine life
 Plastic items dumped into the sea harm or kill
wildlife
 Organisms can become entangled in debris and
drown
 May die from material eaten that they cannot expel
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Plastic debris endangers marine life
 Areas where circulating currents converge called
gyres bring and trap plastic trash
 The North Pacific Gyre contains the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch = an area larger than Texas where
floating plastic bits outnumber organisms by a 6 to 1
margin
 Plastic is designed not to break down so may drift
for decades
 Breaks into tiny pieces over time
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Plastic trash is accumulating in the oceans
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Plastic debris endangers marine life
 Trillions of tiny plastic pellets float in the oceans
 Some of the pellets sink, accumulating on the ocean floor
where they do not degrade
 Organisms mistake the floating plastic for food
 The average fish in the great Pacific Garbage Patch had
over two pieces of plastic in its digestive tract
 Over 40% of Albatross chick premature deaths have been
attributed to pieces of plastic in their food
 Over 260 species are affected by marine plastic debris
 Leads to an estimated 100,000 marine mammal and 1
million seabird deaths each year
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Nets and plastic debris endanger life
Trillions of tiny plastic
pellets float in the oceans
and are eaten
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© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.
Plastic debris endangers marine life
 Ingested plastics can also have toxic effects
 Plastics themselves contain harmful substances such as
bisphenol A and pthalates
 May concentrate persistent organic pollutants
 Floating debris can transport organisms great distances
 Some of these become invasive species
 Plastics are not easily removed, so prevention is key
 The 2006 Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and
Reduction Act aids these efforts
 Plastic pollution costs Asia over $1 billion in its fisheries
and tourism industries
© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.
Oil pollution comes from spills of all sizes
 About 30% of oil and 50% of natural gas come from
seafloor deposits
 North Sea, Gulf of Mexico
 Drilling in other places is banned
 Spills could harm valuable fisheries
 The Deepwater Horizon exploded off Louisiana’s
coast
in April 2010
 Spilled 1800 gallons/min for 3 months
 Hit coasts of four states
 Even ocean floor species miles away were affected
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Oil pollution
comes from
spills of all
sizes
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Oil pollution comes from spills of all sizes
 Major spills make headlines
 Foul beaches, coat and kill animals, devastate
fisheries
 Countless non-point sources produce most oil
pollution
 Half of all oil comes from natural oil seeps
 Also small boat leaks, runoff from land
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Oil spills have severe consequences
Major oil
spills cause
severe
environmental
and economic
problems
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Oil pollution comes from spills of all sizes
 Stricter regulations for oil tankers have been
enacted by many governments
 The U.S. Oil Pollution Act (1990) created a $1 billion
prevention and cleanup fund
 Requires that all ships have double hulls by 2015
 Spills from tankers have decreased over the last 30
years
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Oil spills
have
decreased
Recently,
oil spills
have
decreased
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Toxic pollutants can contaminate seafood
 Toxic pollutants can make food unsafe to eat
 Mercury contamination from coal combustion and other
sources bioaccumulates and biomagnifies
 Dangerous to children and pregnant or nursing women
 Highest mercury levels will be in fish at the top of the
food chain
 Avoid eating swordfish, shark, and albacore tuna
 Eat seafood low in mercury (catfish, salmon, canned light
tuna)
 Avoid seafood from areas where health advisories have
been issued
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Toxic pollutants contaminate seafood
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Excess nutrients cause algal blooms
 Nutrient runoff can allow explosive growth of marine
algae populations
 Harmful algal blooms = blooms where nutrients
increase algae that produce powerful toxins
 Dinoflagellate algae toxins attack the nervous system
 Red tide = algae that produce red pigments that
discolor water
 Cause illness and death among wildlife and humans
 Economic loss to fishing industries and beach tourism
 Reduce nutrient runoff
 Do not eat affected organisms
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Excess nutrients cause algal blooms
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TED Video
Charles Moore is founder of the
Algalita Marine Research Foundation.
He captains the foundation's research
vessel, the Alguita, documenting the
great expanses of plastic waste that
now litter our oceans.
"His findings have gone a long way toward educating the science
community, if not yet the public, on the magnitude of marine pollution and
its impact on life -- all life."
- Thomas Kostigen, Discover Magazine
Capt. Charles Moore On The Seas Of Plastic (7:23)
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