Transcript Oceans
Jasdeep Sandhu and Alex Broussard Runoff Acidification Biodiversity Ecological disruption Wetland Loss Extreme weather Melting ice caps Overfishing Trawling damage Pollution Rising sea levels Dead zones Coral bleaching Desalination Coastal erosion Introduced species Offshore drilling Heat sink- absorbs, stores, and then slowly releases large quantities of heat, the ocean buffers the climate of the nearby land and, over time, the entire planet Carbon sink-50 times as much CO2 as the atmosphere and absorbs about 1/4 of the CO2 emitted by human activities. CO2 emissions>ocean acidification>animals/reefs affected Disappearing acts- Boston, Manhattan, Caribbean islands, other coastal areas…I don’t want to have to vacation in Nebraska… Diversity: home to nearly 50% of the world’s life forms Productivity: roughly half of the world’s biomass Largely concentrated in coastal and polar ecosystems 70+% of the world’s primary production OXYGEN Size of TEXAS 80% plastic, also nets, marine debris, things that get loose from shipping containers… Sunlight photodegrades>smaller pieces>eaten by marine organisms>enter food chain East meets West…garbage From sewers, rivers, coasts, ships “If you put a major city through a trash grinder and sprinkle it on the water, that’s what you’re dealing with” Biological Magnification: Concentration of fat-soluble toxins in tissues of predators 181 fish species have been identified as threatened in US waters The capture of large, robust fishes leaves populations vulnerable to collapse Fishing techniques physically damage plants, soil, corals, etc. Disruption of food webs and native ecology Figure 2 Retrospective data showing baselines before ecosystem collapse. Published by AAAS J B C Jackson et al. Science 2001;293:629-637 Published by AAAS Be informed: Know what you’re eating, where it came from, and how it was harvested. Monterey Bay Aquarium: http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_s eafoodwatch/sfw_recommendations.aspx?c=lnSe afood Selector: http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=1540 Texas Bottle Bill http://shopping.dallasnews.com/ROP/ads.aspx ?advid=1478537&adid=10845357&cat=3987