Marine Debris
!st Period
Shai Shoulders, Jasmine Gordon, Alex Graham, Tony Santos, & Jecobbie Williams
What Is Marine Debris ?
Any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed indirectly or directly, intentionally or unintentionally, deposed or abandoned into the marine environment or Great Lakes. Which is creating problems in the sea.
http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/marinedebris.html
Why Is this a Problem ?
Marine Debris causes threats to the ocean, creating lots of problems for marine animals. Plastics can be seen floating in the ocean, seen on shorelines, can get caught on animals which is causing them to die. Marine debris damages alters habitats and can impact communities near by. Many animals get trash stuck in their digestive system which causes them to die. One-third of the worlds birds die as result of Marine Debris, it causes them to lose weight,clogged gizzards, and increases disease. Marine debris is endangering marine life and is a toxin in our ocean.
Conservation
- Use reusable cup
- Avoid products with excess packaging. Buy in bulk, fresh, and local.
- Use a reusable water bottle instead of using single-use plastic bottles.
- Bring in your own reusable bag not only to the grocery store, but to all stores to reduce use of paper and plastic bags
Benefits of a Clean Ocean
- increased water quality due to excess toxins not being in the water
- increased biodiversity of various organisms
- ocean based businesses contribute to more than 500 billion dollars to the world's economy.
ex: - seafood ( fish, lobster, shrimp crab etc.)
- jewelry ( pearls)
- transporting goods ( imports and exports )
http://www.protectplanetocean.org/collections/introduction/introbox/oceans/introduction-item.html
sea otter picture
http://www.oceanconservancy.org/our-work/marine-debris/
beach trash picture
https://www.thegef.org/gef/sites/thegef.org/files/publication/STAP%20MarineDebris%20-%20website.pdf