The ocean covers Seventy-one percent of our planets surface. Life isconcentrated, however, in about four percent of it, and it is this four percentthat is being polluted by the tons every day. Everyone needs to understand thatthe oceans are not endless, and not bottomless. They also much see that theocean contains much marine life which are essential to our eco-system.
And inorder to preserve this other world of life, we must stop polluting the oceans,and begin to clean them up. Although using the ocean for a toxic waste dump mayprovide for a cheap alternative, we must not succumb to these barbaric urges. If we neglect to deal with these ideals, than the world as we know it may not beas great a world for our children as it was for us. First, we need to understand that the oceans are not the vast resourcesthat we believe them to be, but just vulnerable natural resources. BeforeColumbus’ day, the ocean were thought to be boundless.
Although Columbus provedthis theory incorrect, the thought still remains in today’s societies. For weof the 20th century still treat the ocean as the endless, bottomless pit it wasconsidered to be in medieval times. (Heyerdahl) The majority of the world’spopulation still lives under the misconception that the ocean is a hungry abyss,eager to devour all their waste. These beliefs, however, are all untrue.
Theaverage depth of the oceans is only a little more than a mile, when in fact,some lakes exceed this depth rather handily. Although the size of the ocean isoften pondered, the thought that it may one day be gone, is never evenconsidered. The vast majority of all life in the ocean, inhabits only 1/25 of thesewaters, but it is these surroundings that are in the most danger. In thebeginning of the world, marine plankton was vital to the evolution of man. Today, it is even more important to us, being that it provides us with a greatpercentage of oxygen we receive.
These minute plant species manufactured somuch oxygen that it rose above the surface to help form the atmosphere we havetoday. (Heyerdahl) With the disappearance of the plankton through increasedpollution, the obvious result will be a total deprivation of our oxygen supply,in turn limiting all people to certain limits. And with urban expansion leadingto deforestation, our dependence upon marine life becomes heightened. Theimportance of marine plankton cannot be emphasized enough, yet most people failto recognize it as the vital life supply it is. Further, since the turn of the century, humans have continually pollutedthe waters of the ocean.
The trend has not lessened; but has increased as timehas passed. Most of our new chemical products are not only toxic: they are infact created to sterile and kill. And they keep on displaying these sameinherent abilities wherever they end up. (Heyerdahl) Although pollution reformsare in place, the clean-up efforts cannot keep up with the constant pollution. These wastes are not degradable; they remain in the ocean causing more deathuntil they wash up on a distant shore.
Through sewers and seepage they allhead for the ocean, where they remain to accumulate as undesired nuts and boltsin between the cogwheels of a so far smoothly running machine. (Heyerdahl) Everyday, over 40,000 tons of garbage from the major cities of America alone aretaken on a one-way excursion. Where to? The ocean, to sit like the manygenerations of waste before them. This constant abuse to our natural resourceswill not be endured for long; for even the ocean has limits.
In order to survive longer as a species on this planet, we must stoppolluting the oceans, save the fragile marine eco-system, and understand thateven the ocean has limitations, and that they are being pushed too far. Canman survive with a dead ocean?(Heyerdahl) The answer is clear and obvious: no. We cannot conceivably survive without the immeasurable subsistence the oceanprovides us. Currently, we are on the path to self-destruction.
We need get offthis often traveled beaten path, and blaze a new one for ourselves. These ideashave been around since the beginning; now its time to adhere to them.
