Cornell Notes
Lecture,
Name: ____Mrs. Stahl_______________________________
reading/chapter/novel/article
during class, power point,
Class: ___Marine Science Honors______________ Period: ____F____
movies (if need to collect info.)
Date: _____October 2015 _________
Topic:_Oceans in Jeopardy
Essential Question: How are humans affecting our world’s oceans and what other factors are
involved?
Notes:
Questions/Main Ideas:
What does the word pollution
mean to you?
What are the major threats to
oceans and wildlife?
POLLUTION
A. Ocean Dumping
Trash, sewage, chemicals, oil spills, high nitrogen levels, runoff, PCB’s,
DDT’s, destroyed food webs.
Pollution
Overfishing
Fishing damage
Climate Change
Invasive species
Seafloor damage
Seafood farming
Coastal development
Humans use the ocean as a dumping site
Trash
In 2007, Coastal Clean-up cleaned up 6 million pounds of debris.
1.3 million cigarette butts
349,143 glass bottles
308,292 metal cans
6,435 syringes
61% of the trash was plastic
235 animals were found in trapped debris
Plastics
-Estimated that naval and merchant ships legally dump 77 tons of
plastic annually.
- 149,000 tons of fishing nets, ropes, traps, and buoys = 2,600 tons of
plastic packaging.
- 1 million tons of plastic waste enters the ocean annually. Enters by
wind, being dumped by boats, and being flushed into drains.
- Some scientists consider plastic trash to be as harmful as oil spills and
toxic chemicals.
-One plastic six pack ring = 450 years to break down.
How does plastic harm
marine animals?
- Mostly endanger larger animals and birds.
- 30,000 fur seals killed annually (estimated)
- Discarded nets harm fish and turtles.
- Shellfish traps left unmanaged trap and kill animals = starvation.
- Florida: 100,000 traps set, 25,000 lost
- Whales and dolphins are suffocated by plastic bags.
- Birds are entangled by fishing line.
- Sea turtles eat plastic bags because they resemble jellies.
Photodegrade
Commercial Dumping
Military hardware and
munitions
Radioactive Waste
- The plastics do not get digested, but they block the digestive tract and
cause the animals to starve.
Plastics are broken down slowly by radiant energy which causes the
plastics to turn into microscopic plastic particles that smaller organisms
will ingest.
Toxic substances that are not only harmful but also demand a lot of
oxygen. The decomposition of these materials by microorganisms tends
to deplete the water of oxygen.
Upwelling brings up all of the toxic substances to the surface = kills
shallow water species.
-WW II: toxic gases and chemicals removed from Germany were
dumped in the N. Atlantic. In the Pacific trucks, tanks, etc. were
dumped.
- Vietnam War: vehicles and munitions were dumped off of Southeast
Asia.
- Gulf War: munitions and hardware were dumped into the Arabian
Gulf.
-It can poison marine life but the metal can also create artificial reefs.
Electronic, chemical, and defense industries and nuclear facilities
produce large amounts of highly toxic / radioactive waste that is kept
above ground in repositories or landfills.
They want to dump it into the deep sea at subduction zones around
trenches – sucked back into the mantle eliminating the problem.
What happens if they rupture?
Urban Pollution
Surface runoff from cities
Pesticides
Fertilizers
Chemicals from oil and gasoline
Residue from industry
Bacteria from raw sewage
All drains really do lead to the ocean!
Pesticides and Toxic
Materials
-Everything we do on land directly influences the ocean.
-Damages recreational areas as well as coastal fisheries.
-Chlorine added to drinking water and then later to sewage during
treatment forms chlorinated organic compounds in seawater that are
toxic to some marine organisms.
-Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, DDT
-Polychlorinated Biphenyls, PCB’s
-Mercury, lead, zinc, chromium
- DDT was suspended in the 1960’s.
-DDT and PCB’s stay concentrated in the ocean for long periods of
time.
- DDT carried by runoff from land.
-DDT was banned and another pesticide was created called dicfol- it
still contained 1-7% of DDT and was used until 1988.
PCB’s
Biological Magnification
-Birds were feeding on fish that were contaminated and the birds were
laying eggs with really thin shells. When the parents sat on them they
would break.
-This decreased brown pelicans and bald eagle populations.
Plastics, solvents, electrical insulators= enter the atmosphere via
precipitation.
Some particles do not dissolve in water but are absorbed by suspended
particles of clay and detritus. They clump together and sink to the
bottom. DDT and PCB’s get concentrated in the sediment and it moves
up the food chain, starting with phytoplankton.
Organisms can’t break them down so they become concentrated in their
tissues.
The concentration can become so high that organisms will feed on the
contaminated flesh and die.
1953-1960, Minamata, Japan: dumped waste into the bay that had high
amounts of mercury, which formed organic complexes and entered the
food chain (shellfish and fish). Severe mercury poisoning and death
resulted. It also caused damaged nervous system in young kids (if there
mom ate fish while she was pregnant it was worse).
Plankton and toxic
compounds
Phytoplanktons are susceptible because they are the base of the food
web. Zooplankton then eats the phytoplankton, and then larger animals
eat like crustaceans, fish, sharks, and humans. The toxic compounds
interferes with cell division, this is not well studied.
Increased pollution in the N. Atlantic = decreased phytoplankton and
zooplankton numbers.
Air Pollution
Human Waste
Eutrophication
Agricultural Waste
Petroleum Pollution
Burning of fossil fuels – CO2 released and sulfur dioxide= dissolve into
the water and enter the ocean = acidic water.
-Reduce water quality by adding harmful microorganisms and nutrients.
- Clams, mussels, oysters filter large amounts of microbes such as
hepatitis and salmonella-meat can be unfit to eat.
- Coliform bacteria: found in animal intestines and are a great indicator
as to how much waste is entering the water.
-Raw and treated sewage adds large amounts of nutrients; nitrates,
ammonia, and urea = algal blooms.
- Increased phytoplankton makes the water turbid and hinders primary
production in the deeper waters.
- Phytoplankton dies and gets decomposed by aerobic bacteria,
decreases oxygen, kills organisms, releases hydrogen sulfide (harmful),
and more death occurs.
Fertilizer and animal waste.
Continual runoff= hypoxic zones (abnormally low oxygen levels).
-High demand
- Released through runoff, industrial discharge, offshore drilling
accidents, cargo ship accidents that transport oil, etc.
Where does the oil go, what
does it do?
Oil Spills
Thousands occur each year
Ecological Effects of Oil
Spills
Oil Spill Clean-up
Climate Change
Increased carbon dioxide
levels
Petroleum Products: Crude oil (mixture of 10,000 different chemical
compounds) = most of the compounds are organic molecules / carbon
based.
-Two major types are aromatic hydrocarbons (form ring structures) and
aliphatic hydrocarbons (straight chains).
-Spreads like a film on the surface
- Lighter components evaporate
-Absorbed by clay / sediment and taken to the bottom.
- Bacteria can digest simple oil / smaller molecules.
- Larger molecules create what’s called “tarry chunks” where they float
on the surface or lay on the bottom.
-We don’t know how oil affects deep sea organisms.
-Suffocates upper level organisms.
- Refined petroleum such as gasoline and kerosene are more toxic than
crude oil.
Largest in the U.S.
1. Deepwater Horizon / BP MC252 on April 20, 2010. An
estimated 134 million gallons went into the Gulf of Mexico. The
oil seeped out for 89 days at a depth of 5,000 ft. The depth and
volume made it really hard to contain.
2. Ixtoc-1, 1979 in the Gulf of Mexico: 126 million gallons of oil.
3. Exxon Valdez in Alaska, 10.8 million gallons of oil.
-Birds / Mammals: oil coats bird wings, swallow it, weighs them down,
etc.
-In cold weather, one drop of oil can cause hypothermia in animals.
-Example- Sea otters: oil blocks the animal’s natural ability to insulate
itself. Clogs ears, nostrils, and irritate the eyes. Some sources say it can
cause cancer in otters.
- Invertebrates and Algae: Less visible. Sandy habitats: oil seeps into
the spaces between the sand, which kills the crabs and organisms living
in and between the grains. Bivalves: flesh becomes contaminated and
passed up the food web. Molluscs: oil is a narcotic and causes the
animals to lose their hold and the tides take them away.
-Oil booms
- Oil skimmers
- Straw: collect and burn. Then it goes into the air.
- Genetically engineered bacteria: breaks down / degrades most of the
crude oil (organic compounds).
-Naturally occurring bacteria that live near the seeps.
-Last 100 years temperatures have increased. .74 C (1.33. F)
-Example: Glaciers freeze at 32 F (0 C), melt at 33 F, therefore if the
temperature is at 33 F, then they are slowly melting.
-Increased sea temperatures: alter distribution and diversity of species,
oxygen levels, coral reef health, and wind / rainfall patterns.
Species distribution: Water temperatures are causing animals to move
into areas they wouldn’t normally go.
Example: Venus clam and Eastern oyster: warm water heads north,
therefore they are expanding, which results in competition with the
native species. From there diseases are spread and native species can be
driven to extinction.
Water temperature and fishes: Alters spawning, growth rates, larval
survival, food availability, and disrupts weather fronts.
Oxygen levels: Increase in temperature, decreases the amount of oxygen
in the water. Warmer temperatures also increase metabolism, which
increases oxygen need.
Coral Reefs: coral bleaching (stress, which increases diseases). Corals
lose their zoozanthellae (60-90%) and they look pale because the
calcareous skeleton shows through the now translucent tissues.
Melting glaciers also raises sea levels because more freshwater is added.
The increase in sea level could be devastating for corals because they
won’t receive adequate sunlight.
Rainfall and Wind: El Nino = Pacific= changes ocean current patterns,
decreases productivity, and decreases marine organisms.
The more rainfall, the more acid rain and the more freshwater added to
our oceans, which will decrease salinity and stress marine organisms
out.
Increased wind along coastlines increases upwelling and changes
currents. When the currents are changed the larvae won’t be properly
dispersed.
Increased upwelling also increase productivity because it mixes up the
nutrients from the bottom and brings them to the top. However, this
may seem good, but it increases the productivity too much leading to an
anoxic event = mass killings
Also disrupts food, distribution, and increases death.
Nonnative Species
Also known as alien or exotic. Organisms that have been introduced or
intentionally placed into a region / body of water.
Ships’ Ballast:
Ballast: compartment within a ship that holds water.
Back in the day rocks were commonly used and they would take them
from the shoreline. The rocks would contain little organisms on them
and when they reached their destination (ports) they would change the
rocks out and discharge the water.
Ex: European green crab: voracious predator that feeds on native clams,
oysters, snails, and other crabs (Delaware -> Nova Scotia).
Aquaculture: Humans raise nonnative species and then release themcompeting with native species as well as introducing disease.
Ex: 1970’s Eucheuma (alga) was imported from the Philippines to
Hawaii for studying purposes (looking at using it for a food additive
called carrageenan). Most widely farmed seaweed and had taken over
the fringe reef where it smothers and kills coral. They have been trying
to clean it up with a large vacuum cleaner that sucks up 159 pounds an
hour.
Accidental Introduction: Venomous lionfish (native to the Indo-Pacific)
are residing in the coral, rocky, and artificial reefs along the SE coast of
the US and Bahamas.
Coastal Development
Destruction of Habitats
They were accidently added into our ecosystems during Hurricane
Andrew. In 1992 an aquaria shattered and six lionfish spilled into
Biscayne Bay (Miami). In 2008, they were found in N.C., Florida,
Caribbean, and as far south as Cuba. They are beautiful but they have
no natural predators and they compete with local species for resources.
They also prey on young species.
Wetlands / Seagrasses: they are crucial habitats for juvenile organisms.
They act as a nursery, providing critical nutrients, shelter, and spawning
grounds.
These habitats make up most of the brackish estuary.
About 80% of all juvenile organisms grow up in estuaries.
Industrial and residential development and dredging channels are the
altering these habitats.
Beaches: Vacation spots, retirement, recreational fun, and lots of hotels
along the shoreline.
Causes a decrease in animal populations and disturbs animal nesting
sites (birds, horseshoe crabs, and turtles).
People ride dune buggies, bring pets, lay in the sun, leave their trash,
and disturb the animals.
Building beach front homes, docks, and seawalls really disrupts
habitats.
Beach Erosion: Development of beaches decreases sand dunes and
vegetation.
Each year hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent restoring the
beaches that were destroyed the year before.
Damming rivers: prevents natural erosion from occurring.
Breakwater and jetties in coastal zones also produce changes in beaches,
preventing longshore currents from occurring.