By: Javion Baxter
LSCM YR 4 GROUP B
Sustainable Development
Marine pollution is seen as one of the biggest man-made threats to the ocean, it is described as the contamination of the ocean by means of throwing plastic and other waste materials in channels that leads back to it (The Commonwealth, n.d.). (Ecogold, 2019), states that there are nine (9) types of pecan pollution which are garbage, sunscreen and other topicals, oil seepage, sewage, agriculture and aquaculture runoff, industrial waste, eutrophication, carbon dioxide and waste. Some of the materials that can pollute the ocean includes residential waste, pesticide run off, chemical discards from industries, oil spills and other pollutants that might come from ships which had accidents in the water. These materials enter the ocean and cause a lot of damage to the marine life and their habitats. Based on the research that was done, it was evident that an estimate of eighty percent (80%) of marine pollution starts on land. The land-based pollution are the areas that contribute largely to what is called an “ocean dead zone” which is defined by (National Ocean Service, 2021) as an area in the ocean where there is less oxygen present, because of the marine life that died out or fled the area. Studies have shown that there are roughly 500 dead zones around the world.
Based on my research, the Vision 2030 is a long-term strategic development plan that Jamaica created to cover a period of twenty-one (21) years from 2009 to 2030 (PIOJ, n.d.). Due to the number of environmental problems that are developing overtime because of marine pollution, the (The Human Journey, 2021) wrote in an article that if not already, then soon the weight if all plastic in the oceans of the world will weigh more than all the fishes in the ocean. The fishes, turtles, other marine animals and sea-birds even eat some of the plastic and marine waste which they mistake for food and this can be harmful to them especially because the waste isn’t digestible and it makes them feel full while they starve to death, it is also harmful to even humans who eat them.
Pollution has a deep economic impact on the whole gross domestic product (GDP). Pollution is responsible for over 7% of annual healthcare spending in middle-income countries that are heavily polluted and rapidly developing. There were even reports that states that economic costs would rise as the association between pollution and disease becomes clearer (Times, 2018).
Over the last few months, there has been evidence of many large companies including Coca Cola and the like, who are responsible for creating large amounts of plastics, packaging and waste joining the UK Plastic Pact with the aim of tackling the causes of plastic waste and not just the symptoms. This persuaded some other companies and big brands in the plastic industry to practice rebranding and show themselves as pro-active and part of the solution which will be good in the future (Schroder, 2018).
(Sphera, 2020) defines environmental sustainability as the responsibility to conserve natural resources and protect global ecosystems to support health and well-being now and in the future. (National Geographic, n.d.) states that marine pollution is a growing problem in today’s world, as the ocean is being flooded with both chemicals and trash. Chemical contamination or nutrient pollution is concerning for health, environmental and economic reasons. This kind of pollution happens when there is run off of fertilizers from farms and the run in to the ocean and other waterways. The negative effects on health and the environment caused by algal blooms hurt local fishing and tourism industries. Marine thrash is made up of manufactured products which is mostly plastic materials that ends up in the ocean. Trash poses dangers to both humans and animals. Fish become tangles and injured in the debris, and some animals mistake them for food and eat them. The microplastic pollution migrates up to the food chain and eventually it becomes a part of the food that humans eat. Solutions for marine pollution include preventing and cleaning up. Disposable and single-use plastic is used a lot in today’s society, from shopping bags to shipping packaging to plastic bottles. Changing nation’s approach to plastic use will be a long and economically challenging process. Cleanup, in contrast, may not be plausible for some items. Many types of thrashes (plastics included) do not float, so they sink deeper in the ocean.
(NDC, 2020), outlines that Jamaica remains committed to making its contributions as the world moves to address the challenges of climate change. In line with requirements of the Paris Agreement, the country has increased its ambition of the mitigation components of its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). Jamaica has also broadened its sectoral scope and taken steps to move towards an economy-wide target and will bring emissions from the and use change and forestry sector within its NDC for the first time.
Dr Marie Morganelli defines systems thing as a holistic way to investigate factors and interactions that could contribute to a possible outcome. A mindset more a prescribed practice, systems thinking provides an understanding of how individuals can work together in different types of teams and through that understanding, create the best possible processes to accomplish just about anything (Morganelli, 2020). The problems that are faced today is marine pollution which is seen as a sustainability problem which destroying out water bodies and the organisms within it. Marine pollution occurs when garbage isn’t disposed of properly and it reaches the waterways that leads to the ocean and also when chemicals run off from the farmlands. It can get better if people practice better ways to dispose of garbage, stop using too much plastic and try to limit the use of chemicals or try not to let it get in the waterways.
References
Ecogold. (2019, January 23). Retrieved December 17, 2021, from Spring Power&Gas: https://springpowerandgas.us/how-do-we-pollute-9-types-of-ocean-pollution/
Morganelli, D. M. (2020, March 18). What is systems thinking? Retrieved December 19, 2021, from Southern New Hampshire University: https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/business/what-is-systems-thinking
NDC. (2020, June). Retrieved December 19, 2021, from https://www4.unfccc.int/sites/ndcstaging/PublishedDocuments/Jamaica%20First/Updated%20NDC%20Jamaica%20-%20ICTU%20Guidance.pdf
National Ocean Service. (2021, March 8). Retrieved December 17, 2021, from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration US Department of Commerce: https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/deadzone.html
PIOJ. (n.d.). Retrieved December 19, 2021, from Vision 2030 Jamaica: https://www.vision2030.gov.jm/
Sphera. (2020, May 19). Sphera. (B. S. Team, Editor) Retrieved December 19, 2021, from What Is Environmental Sustainability?: https://sphera.com/glossary/what-is-environmental-sustainability/
Schroder, P. (2018, June 8). Under the surface – the global politics of ocean plastic pollution. Retrieved December 19, 2021, from https://www.ids.ac.uk/opinions/under-the-surface-the-global-politics-of-ocean-plastic-pollution/
The Human Journey. (2021). Retrieved December 19 2021, from https://humanjourney.us/our-plastic-earth/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAzfuNBhCGARIsAD1nu-_xVn1DVHMOQXZ40WC0uQU-tFwrqN1sWvqIcU3J3l8jZYnR4YCQ5UQaAuQNEALw_wcB
The CommonWealth. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2021, from CHOGM RWANDA2021: https://thecommonwealth.org/marine-pollution
Times, T. E. (2018, October 31). Economic Impacts of Pollution Growing Too Huge for India. Retrieved December 19, 2021, from https://weather.com/en-IN/india/pollution/news/2018-10-31-economic-impacts-of-pollution
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