Today is World Oceans Day! So what.

World Oceans Day may seem like one of those weird manufactured ‘commemorative’ days that make most of us roll our eyes – like “Mother-In-Law Day” (celebrated on the 4^th Sunday of every October), or “National Good Neighbor Day “ (observed every September 28^th).  And it may well be a manufactured occasion… but while my dear Mom-in-law should not expect to receive an extra greeting card in October, I will be observing tomorrow as a very special day.

Why? Well of course, it has a lot to do with me being an oceanographer.  I am someone who’s been in love with the oceans for a very, very long time.  It’s hard for me, knowing what I know, not to worry about the kind of life our children will have on the planet they will inherit from us.  It’s critical to protect the oceans, for the numerous ways they support our lives on this planet.  That way we can go on celebrating mother-in-laws and neighbors and all of the great things we have come to appreciate about life as we know it!

I think the big thing is that people are just not aware of how bad the situation is in our Oceans.  So taking a day (or a moment) to consider this problem is very, very important.

For your awareness, some of the numbers:

• About 90% of the worldwide stocks of large ocean fishes (such as tuna and cod) have been removed from the oceans in the past 50 years.  As our hunger for seafood continues to grow, major fish species are driven to extinction.  That’s a problem, not only because our children will not have access to a major source of healthy nutrition, but because these fish play crucial roles in maintaining balance in marine ecosystems.  Once these fish are removed from the food web, the whole system collapses, all we’ll have left are jellyfish!

• More than 95,000 square miles of oceans are seriously compromised by pollution, resulting in what are called dead zones. Dead zones are coastal areas in which fertilizers and sewage that runoff from our cities and farms trigger dramatic growth of algae and bacteria, causing as consequence, an abrupt decline in the amount of oxygen that is available for other sea life to exist.

• More than 90% of all the heat of the warming that’s happened on earth during the past 50 years has gone into the oceans. The consequences of this relatively abrupt change in temperature have serious implications for life in the ocean and outside it too!  Warming of ocean water has direct impact on the biology of animals, plants and other beings that may not be able to adapt to warmer waters. Even if they manage to survive, their reproduction rates may be significantly altered, or they may become less resilient to stressor, such as parasites and competition with invasive species.  Ocean warming has been observed as far as 6,000 feet below the surface, but most of the heat is accumulating in the oceans’ near-surface layers.  This warming at the top layers of the ocean may shift the strength and routes of ocean surface currents, which will then affect weather patterns and climate all over the globe.

• Average oceanic pH has fallen by 0.025 units since the early 1990s. A solution’s pH measure how acidic or basic the solution is. Fresh, drinkable water is usually neutral, with a pH close to a 7, while lemon juice, a very acidic solution usually has a pH of 2.2. Milk of magnesia, which (you may need to overcome the heartburn you get from reading this terrible news) is very basic and has a pH of about 10.  Historically, normal ocean water’s pH is slightly basic, with a pH of about 8.2.  However, as we’ve pumped more and more CO₂ into our atmosphere, sea water has been chemically altered and it’s becoming more acidic.  Recent models forecast ocean water pH to drop to 7.7 by 2100, which is lower than any other time in the last 420,000 years. Shell- and bone- forming species can’t withstand these conditions, which will then have a feedback effect on the amount of organisms that can photosynthesize.

So, you may be thinking, “what exactly is there to celebrate on World Oceans Day? “ Well, unlike Mother-In-Law Day, World Oceans Day is actually an official international holiday, recognized by the United Nations since 2008.  The Canadian government proposed it during the 1992 Earth summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which seems to me like a perfectly logical place for a holiday to be declared.  I can picture a group of Canadians, sitting on the Arpoador rock, completely mesmerized by the beauty of the Atlantic Ocean, as it kisses the curvy shores of the city of Rio.  Suddenly, one of them stands up and shouts: “World Oceans Day! We should name today, June 8th, World Oceans Day!”

The intention behind their proposal is easy enough to understand: to create a special occasion in which we all talk about the ocean, and try to promote its conservation.  Folks from several organizations such as The Ocean Project (www.theoceanproject.org) and The World Ocean Network (http://www.worldoceannetwork.org) indeed do just that.  They come up with campaigns that use World Oceans Day as a backdrop for much more encompassing, timeless, initiatives aimed at saving our oceans. But what about us, everyday people who don’t have the means to stop our everyday lives to celebrate World Oceans Day as much as we may think we should?

Well, here are some simple suggestions to consider:

1. Eat sustainably caught fish only! This is the big one. Make sure the fish you are buying comes from a fishery that is properly managed with good scientific standards. One way to do that is to look for the Marine Stewardship Council label, seen on the right.  You can visit their website to find certified suppliers (http://www.msc.org/). Or you can also find out more about responsible restaurants at Fish2fork (http://www.fish2fork.com/).  Of course the famous Seafood Watch Program’s website has a lot of good information on the topic (http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx), and supplies those handy Pocket Guides that you are suppose to carry with you to the restaurants.
2. Reduce fertilizer runoff from your yard. Most people associate runoff with farming activities, but a lot of the pollution that triggers dead zones actually comes from our lawns! So, reduce the amount of fertilizers you use and make sure your sprinklers are not washing all these products into the gutter.  That’s not only a waste of your money, it’s also a direct harm our watersheds.  Ask yourself “do I really need impeccable grass year-round?”. Perhaps you may want to consider replacing your grass with a native garden that requires much less fertilization and watering.
3. Drive less, and if you must, drive a hybrid or an electric car. SUVs and Hummers are totally out of style, in case you haven’t noticed! Consider downsizing your vehicle, if you haven’t done so yet, and walk or bike whenever possible, to reduce your Carbon emissions.  And if you wanna get really serious about shrinking your footprint, think of ways to reduce your flying miles. That’s where we burn most of our “personal carbon quotas”.  Perhaps this summer you may consider a nearby vacation destination, or try to set up video conferences with some of your clients, if that means you can save up on plane gas!
4. Support alternative sources of energy. Wind power and solar energy need to become more integral parts of our lives, and we will only attain that by creating the right market incentives for these industries to develop.  It’s absurd to think that people who love the ocean are still holding back on offshore wind farms, because they think it may ruin the view! It’s time to recycle, not only our trash but our ideas as well.  Support and vote for candidates that are serious about shifting the existing oil subsidies to sustainable sources of energy.
5. Educate yourself and share with others. The worst type of ignorance is the perpetual one. In this day and age, when we are able to get so much information in the conform of our homes, there is no excuse to stay oblivious. It’s true that we are busier, and busier, and that we have very limited amount of time to read about science, politics, the environment and Paris Hilton. Nevertheless, we must try.

Unfortunately, being serious about eating only sustainably caught fish means you will probably eat less fish all together for two reasons: sustainably caught fish is 1) still difficult to find in most supermarkets and restaurants and 2) its more expensive than fish caught in the traditional ways.

The good news is that the more we restrict our purchases to sustainably caught fish, the cheaper it will get, as this will create an economic incentive for more segments of the fishing industry to also become sustainable, creating more competition and therefore dropping the prices-  much like what we’ve done with organic produce over the last decade.  So, let’s all bug waiters, restaurant owners, chefs and supermarket managers by asking about the origins of their fish, and asking them to bring in certified seafood that we can trust. And when in doubt, don’t eat it!

As for me, I will take tomorrow’s afternoon off to go surfing and renew my vows to the oceans. And then I’m going to call my mother-in-law to let her know how much I love her!

One Response to “Today is World Oceans Day! So what.”

1. Kathy Reager says:

   June 8, 2011 at 3:26 am

   Thanks Joana for making us aware of some of the things that are happening right under our sails.I will pass this along to our other cruiser friends.Oh and I didn’t know about Mother-in-law day.Love you Kathy

   Reply