...The current event I chose to write about is ocean pollution. Ocean pollution is a huge issue. Some people wonder why do people throw trash in the ocean? Well, people throw trash in the ocean because they are too lazy to get up and throw it away in a trash can or just can’t find one, so instead, they toss it in the ocean. They need to be aware of what it's doing to hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales, and other marine mammals, and more than 1 million seabirds. These creatures die each year from ocean pollution. You might not pollute in the ocean, but you might do it somewhere not realizing where it’ll go. Small pieces of trash that people throw on the street are usually washed into storm drains during rainstorms. The storm drains carry...
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...Ocean Pollutants Found in Tuna Weaken the Immune System There is actually an island of garbage twice the size of Texas in the Pacific Ocean. Has anyone ever wondered where all that trash came from? Where all that trash ends up? Or who gets affected by it? A solution should be made for ocean pollution for the sake of ocean life, but specifically, Yellowfin tuna. Ocean pollution is caused by many reasons, oil spills. Fertilizers, garbage, sewage disposal, and toxic chemicals. Ocean pollutants found in Tuna are weakening our immune system, is affecting the entire food chain, and is also harming sea life. With this in mind, ocean pollution is being detrimental to not only Tuna, but also the ocean and humans as well. As an illustration, ocean pollutants were found in Yellowfin tuna and is making our immune system weaker. Meaning, “Persistent Organic Pollutants, or POP, affected an important cellular protein found in most animals and plants.” (Ocean Pollutants Found in Tuna Weaken the Immune System, TakePart) TakePart also explains that, “The protein, called P-gp, usually ejects toxins from the body. But the team found that all 10 pollutants weakened P-gp’s protective function.” In other words, pollutants were found in yellowfin tuna which affects our protein cells and also weakens our immune system. Thus, ocean...
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...The variety of ocean creatures in an aquarium is supposed to represent the real variety of the ocean but at this rate, it may not stay that way for long. While the general idea is that the big threat to marine species is their natural predators, in reality a more silent and deadly killer threatens to wipe out thousands of marine animals: ocean pollution. Ocean pollution kills thousands of birds, fish, and sea mammals alike every year, by toxic particles released in the water and being strangled by plastic alike. How many species have been killed off by pollution, let alone ocean pollution, may never be known. To preserve all of the planet’s species, action must be taken. Ocean and beach pollution must be stopped to prevent the destruction of...
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...Oceanic Pollution and its Effects on Society “Around 8 million tons of plastic ends up in the oceans every year”,(Milman 1). Nowadays in our everyday society, plastic is used constantly from cups and plates, to bags and pencils. It is this same plastic that ends up in the world’s oceans due to various means of transportation, where it then harms the existing life and ecosystems present. Until something is done to combat this issue, the pollution will never cease to increase. Oceanic pollution harms the world’s oceans, it’s marine life, and ultimately ourselves due to the overwhelming influx of pollutants, and lack of action against it. The formal definition of marine pollution is as states, “Oceanic pollution also known as marine pollution is the spreading of harmful substances such as oil, plastic, industrial, and agricultural waste and chemical particles being released into the ocean”,(NOAA). Essentially there is no one cause to marine pollution, therefore there is also no one effect or solution to it either. Marine pollution is the accumulation of waste being emitted into the ocean both via natural, and unnatural means. A few of the most notable causes of marine pollution would include the following: sewage, industrial, land runoff, large scale oil spills, ocean mining, and littering. To go more into...
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...Georgia is the amount of pollution in our waters. The ocean waters we swim in have toxins dumped into it daily, increasing bacteria levels, making the waters unfit to swim in or eat fish from. There are several factors that affect our waters, such as the pulp paper mill industry. Paper mill companies are partially to blame for the pollution in our oceans, streams, rivers, and lakes. Fifty-three percent of the rivers and streams in the U.S assessed by the EPA remain too polluted for swimming, fishing and drinking. The government has established some Acts to help clean up the waters, but we need to also do our part to help the situation. With twelve pulp mills, eight panel and engineered-wood product mills, 97 saw mills and 73 other types mills currently operating statewide, the paper production industry generates roughly $20 billion in annual revenue for Georgia and create thousands of jobs for Georgians. Industrial companies, such as pulp paper companies, dump millions of pounds of toxic chemicals into America’s lakes, oceans, rivers and streams each year threatening our health. The discharge of toxic chemicals into our waterways poses a threat to the environment and human health. Toxic chemicals can accumulate in fish, riverbeds and the water column...
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...manufacturing and recycling process, which accumulate to pollution and waste. Most people are presumably not aware of the contamination that plastic bottled waters give off to the environment. The purpose of this paper is to inform people of the impairment that bottled water containers contribute to Earth’s atmosphere. Hopefully, this paper will inform people on this subject matter and help discover new ways to benefit Earth’s environment. In the article, Muddy Wars: The Public Health Risks and Sustainability of Bottled Water in China, written by Abigail Barnes, she states, “The three primary environmental issues that stem from bottled water...
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...is not only dynamic but also holistic and seeks to produce results of the complex problems. Systems thinking is the only critical way to solve complex issues impeding sustainability challenges and develop quality solutions. Since its conception in 1920 by Jan Smuts Holism, it has developed and solved many issues (Gharajedaghi p.2013 558). Pollution is a complex issue which is intertwined in different processes and impacts in diverse ways. Thus, the topic is significance in pursuing ways to help solve the pollution. Ocean pollution also referred to as marine pollution is a wicked problem which has been increasing in complexity day in day out. This is because of the increasing population growth which stands at 7.2 billion worldwide (Noga & Wolbring 2013 p.3615). The increased industry establishment is directly proportional to chemical waste which settle in the oceans. It causes death of marine animals and plants hence poor marine ecology. The aim of this essay is to use the knowledge and skills acquired in role of systems thinking to address Ocean pollution as a sustainability challenge. It will explore various sources of ocean pollution, types and elucidate possible strategies which could be adopted as mitigation...
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...National Geographic Society. “Great Pacific Garbage Patch.” National Geographic Society, National Geographic, 9 Oct. 2012, www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/great-pacific-garbage-patch/. The National Geographic has been known of posting many articles and videos about the concern and awareness of the water pollution of the Pacific Ocean. The article that is chosen is about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the National Geographic has many photo evidence of the harmful effects of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The article puts in perspective of how serious the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is by using quotes from captains that have sailed by the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and statistics of the mass size. The article will be supporting...
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...Environmental Pollution is an international journal that seeks to publish papers that report results from original, novel research that addresses significant environmental pollution issues and problems and contribute new knowledge to science. The editors welcome high quality papers where the pollutants are clearly defined and measured and can be directly related to biological, ecological, and human health effects. This includes air, water, and soil pollution and climate change. New techniques for the study and measurement of pollutants and their effects are also encouraged as well as papers on new types of environmental challenges such as pollution/antibiotic resistances of organisms. Emerging pollutions are of eminent interest, such as microplastics, electronic wastes, light or noise pollution as long as they can clearly be related to the biological effects mentioned above. Papers must be process-orientated and/or hypotheses-based to be considered for population. Papers based on field studies are given priority for publication over micro/meso cosmos studies. Papers, such as meta analyses, that report findings from re-examination and interpretation of existing data are welcome. Modeling papers are welcome only to a certain extent, i.e., they must be related to a specific pollution issue or process that is potentially of ecological and/or human health implications. Critical review papers and commentaries are also of high interest as are letters to the editor. The editors...
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...Does Polluted Water Hurts the Environment? Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Abstract Water pollution is the worst problem that the United States and other nations are facing today. Although, many people have known this issue, they are still contributing to it. People need to become more responsive on this issue by complying on several ways to prevent water pollution. The chemical industry and factory farms need to follow the guidelines of operating their business, by using proper disposal methods for hazardous materials and waste materials. Chemical industry and factory farms need to follow the guidelines behind water pollution. To begin with, factory farms should be regulated accordingly. They must obtain permits, monitor water quality and pay for cleaning up and disposing of their waste. Also, factory farms must strengthen their new technology standards. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must consider recent technological advances that significantly reduce pathogens. In addition, residents and local government should get involved and must have a say in whether to allow factory farms in their communities. The public also has the right to review and comment on the contents of pollution reduction plans and to enforce the terms, when a factory farm is in violation. The politically powerful chemically industry should enforce federal laws that permits underground waste disposal. A better and potentially...
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...12/01/12 Plastics in the ocean Imagine the massive breadth and spread of our great state of Texas. Now imagine every milli-inch of that piled high with trash: bottle caps, cigarettes, cigarette lighters, tampon applicators, plastic nets, discarded flip flops, Frisbees, soda bottles, milk jugs, diapers, six-pack rings, busted tennis rackets, empty pens, shampoo bottles, empty squeeze bottles of jam, you name it. Now take that image, double it, and plunk into the water. That's what is floating around the eastern corner of a 10-million-square-mile oval known as the North Pacific subtropical gyre. Nicknamed the "Eastern Garbage Patch," this buoyant stew of toxic pollution-most of which is plastic-is only one of five such garbage heaps caught in the swirling high-pressure currents characteristic of gyres. The others reside in the South Pacific, the North and South Atlantic, and the Indian Ocean. And each year, perhaps unwittingly, each one of us adds to plastic to the heap. Plastic makes it into our oceans in a variety of ways. About twenty percent of it comes from goods lost from boats: i.e. accidental loss of fishing tackle and other recreational gear, massive shipping containers carrying millions of plastic items washed overboard during severe storms; litter from pleasure boats, or illegal dumping of unwanted goods. Beachgoer’s debris is also a contributor. The other eighty percent is swept in from land. Just as Nonpoint Source Pollution from fertilizers, detergents...
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...A Systems Analysis of Plastic Debris in the Pacific Ocean Course: Integrated Environmental Systems Instructor: Steven Arnold Fall Quarter University of Denver By: Cletus Achibonga November 7, 2012 Table of content Title 1 Abstract 4 Introduction 5 1.1 Scope 5 1.2 Background 5 Animal and plant deaths 8 2.1 Birds 8 2.2 Mammals and other animals 10 2.3 Plants and plant food 11 Environmental impacts 12 3.1 Physical impacts 13 3.2 Chemical impacts 14 3.3 Biological impacts 14 3.4 Human impacts 15 3.5 Economic impacts 16 Societal Responds 17 Conclusion and Recommendation 20 References: 21 List of figures Figure 1: A pack of plastics at the shores of Kamilo Beach, Island of Hawaii 8 Figure 2: Bird corpse with ingested plastic 10 Figure 3: Seal entangled in fishing nets and lines 11 Figure 4: DPSIR model analysis of the pacific gyre 18 Abstract The pacific patch is the most devastating problem of our generation yet there is little public knowledge about the nature and severity of the situation. There is also little to no awareness as to the way we humans either intentionally or unintentionally contribute to the worsening situation in our water bodies. This study used the DPSIR model in analyzing the problem of the pacific gyre from a systems perspective. It focused on the impacts of the pacific gyre on the environment, plants, animals as well as the ecosystem...
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...Environmental Risk Perception John D. Neil PSY/460 June 9, 2014 Stephen Brown Environmental Risk Perception Environmental risk is something that is perceived differently by many people the world over. With so many different environmental areas under investigation, it is difficult to assess with 100% accuracy. Global warning has been one of the more commonly discussed environmental issues in recent memory. The following is a risk perception paper utilizing two articles. One article rates global warming as being a high-risk issue, while the other does not seem to be overly concerned about global warming as a major issue. The first article is a research study focused on the impact of the tourist transport industry on the environment, specifically global warming. This article points out that the tourist transport (i.e. bus, car, train, plane, etc.) is the main component of the tourism trade because it gets the tourist from his or her home to the tourist destination (Cristina, 2013). According to the authors of the article, both air and road transport burn large quantities of fossil fuel, and release high levels of pollutants into the atmosphere (Cristina, 2013). This article goes on to suggest that at ground level, parking and car movement can be harmful to landscapes and the undisturbed nature of protective areas (Cristina, 2013). Two of the major concerns of this article are air transport and road transport. The article points out that air transport is the main gas responsible...
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...Natural Resources and Energy Paper SCI/256 July 09, 2013 . Marine Ecosystem Out of all of the large and natural resources available for generating electricity in the United States, it is the ocean. Ocean energy may be the last investigated for its potential. The ocean is so vast and deep, until recently, it was assumed that no matter how many chemicals or how much trash humans dumped into the ocean, the effects would be negligible. Dumping into oceans have even got the catchphrase: “The solution to pollution is dilution” (National Geographic, 2013) Impacts Associated With Agriculture Pollutants from agriculture have affected the marine’s ecosystem in ways that may not be reversible, and may also be slowly harming rivers, streams, and coastal waters. Pesticides and fertilizer are two major components that have disturbed the marine’s ecosystem; both contain harmful chemicals that can be hazardous to living organisms in the water. Fertilizer and pesticide run-off from large farms may have initiated bursts of marine algae which may disrupt the ocean’s ecosystem by causing massive blooms in marine waters (Schwartz, 2005). Winds cause nitrogen and other nutrients from the seafloor to surface, which promote the growth of algae called phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is a main source of food for many living organisms in the marine waters. Agricultural pollutants may have triggered phytoplankton to produce harmful blooms in tides, which are giving-off poisonous toxins to marine life...
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...Atmospheric Pollution As I had started my research on atmospheric pollution, I had come to find that it all coincides with global warming. Due to the gases that are being released in the air from vehicles, it starts to destroy the atmosphere. However, it is not just the gases from the vehicles, there are also gases from power plants and aerosol cans, for example, hairspray. Smokers also contribute to the pollution in the atmosphere. All of this will be discussed further into the paper. The one thing that was asked was to give a detailed description of the problem. Coming up with a detailed description was not a problem but difficult and time consuming. I have come up with a number of problems that atmospheric pollution, or global warming, has on people, animals and the world. Map Results I have found a map that shows the locations where there is air pollution. On this map, there are images of blue, purple and red dots. These dots represent the U.S. Industrial facilities that use toxic chemicals. The city and states with a high count of toxic usage had the blue and red dots next to them. These city and states are as follows: Phoenix, Arizona, Salt Lake City, Utah, San Diego, California, Los Angeles, California, Riverside, California, Bakersfield, California, San Francisco, California, Stockton, California, Sacramento, California, Las Vegas, Nevada, Portland, Oregon, and Seattle Washington. There are 34 city and states including Canada that are highlighted...
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