Moving to a "blue" economy is crucial for the sustainability in our world's oceans, say experts at the 5th World Ocean Summit happening in Mexico this week. But what is "blue economy" actually about?
Image: Imago/StockTrek Images
Advertisement
Despite the fact that oceans are critical to our survival and to that of the majority of the world's plants and animals, we continue to abuse the vast blue.
Sea lovers have joined businesses and politicians at the 2018 World Ocean Summit in Mexico (March 7-9) to boost economic growth around oceans while preserving them for future generations. This is what they refer to as the "blue economy."
"Moving to a blue economy would benefit food security, human health, underdeveloped communities — and of course, the environment," Alexandra Cousteau, senior advisor for Oceana, told DW.
Plastic pollution is among the main threats to ocean healthImage: WWF-UK/Shoot The Earth/Georgina Goodwin
Bad for the seas, bad for us
About a billion people rely on fish protein for their survival, and some small island states depend almost entirely on fish according to the World Health Organization. However, about 90 percent of the world’s fish stocks have already been exploited to their maximum, United Nations figures show.
"Overfishing leads to severe health problems and puts food security at risk," Karin Kemper, senior director of environment and natural resources at the World Bank, told DW.
Continuous overfishing has devastated the Sea of Cortez, for instance — which Alexandra Cousteau's grandfather, the legendary Jacques Cousteau, once called "the world's aquarium," she said.
Climate change is making oceans warmer and more acidic, endangering coral reefs — which is a home and nursery grounds for many fish species.
And sea level rise is heavily affecting communities in places like West Africa, where coastal areas are home to one-third of the population. Based on World Bank figures, countries there are losing up to 10 meters of coast per year, Kemper said.
Then there is the plastic scourge. Beside environmental harm, plastic pollution has high economic impact — from cleanup costs to a decline in coastal tourism, the World Trade Institute indicates.
Microplastics: Our daily companions
Tiny pieces of plastic, or microplastics, are everywhere — despite potentially harmful effects on the environment and human health. Here are just a few of the products in our day-to-day life that contain microplastics.
Image: picture alliance/JOKER/A. Stein
Plastic in your mouth
Microplastics are defined as smaller than 5 milimeters in diameter. But these tiny particles accumulate in the sea, can enter the food chain, and are even found in the air. Personal care products containing microplastics, such as toothpaste, represent one of the most common intentional uses of microplastics in our daily lives.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Sauer
Cleaning your skin with plastic
Some cosmetic products can contain as much plastic added as the amount of plastic in which they are packaged, experts indicate. Exfoliating daily washes very often use of microplastics, often termed "micro-beads," which then get flushed into the household wastewater stream.
Image: picture-alliance/empics/Y. Mok
Mmm, plastic
Via wastewater, microplastics reach the oceans, where they move enter the food chain through feeding zooplankton. In 2017, researchers found that 25 percent of marine fish tested in markets in Indonesia and California had plastic and textile fibers in their guts. Research is still lacking as to whether consuming microplastics through fish harms humans.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Anka Agency International
Plastic condiment
Several studies published in 2017 showed that microplastics have also been found in sea salt from the United States, Europe and China. It's not surprising, considering how plastic debris represent between 60 to 80 percent of the total marine waste, and that up to 12 million tons of plastic waste ends up in the ocean every year.
Image: picture alliance/Bildagentur-online/Tetra
No way to escape
Beside microplastics in seafood like fish, shrimp and mussels, scientists point to other foods, such as honey. In the recently adopted European Union plastics strategy, honey was mentioned as one of the food products containing microplastics — to motivate a push toward a ban.
Image: Colourbox
Wearing plastics
Aside from micro-beads in hygiene products, synthetic textiles also release a vast amount of tiny plastic fibers into wastewater. Researchers found that a typical 6-kilogram (13-pound) washing load of acrylic-fabric items (like fluffy blankets) generates more than 700,000 individual fibers. Synthetic fabrics account for around a third of ocean microplastics.
Image: Imago/Mint Images
Dirty wheels
Vehicles tires are also a main source releasing microplastics into the environment. Tires are made of synthetic polymers mixed with rubber, which grinds down when used. This generates microplastics that are either blown around by the wind or washed away by rain. Norwegian and Swedish researchers agree that a large proporation of particles found in the sea come from car tires.
Image: Colourbox/Akhararat
Open the tap, and ... microplastics
Microplastics have also been found in tap water. In an analysis of tap water samples from countries around the world, more than 80 percent were contaminated with some amount of plastic fibers. If synthetic fibers are in tap water, they are also likely to be in a number of other basic foodstuffs, like bread.
Image: Imago/Westend61
No, not my beer!
And yes, if tap water contains microplastics, beer could very well also be contaminated. A 2014 study found plastic particles in a total of 24 German beers - but variability in the results was high, and further research would needed for verification, the German Environment Agency has pointed out. In any case, cheers for now.
Image: picture alliance/PIXSELL/Z. Basic
9 images1 | 9
Sustainable growth for oceans
The European Commission has estimated the world's ocean economy to be worth around €1.3 billion ($1.6 billion), and this could more than double by 2030.
More than 90 percent of global trade is carried out through shipping. Lisa Emelia Svensson, oceans director with UNEP, described the sea as a "highway" used to transport two pillars of our lives: energy and food.
Fishing activity covers at least 55 percent of the world's oceans — four times the land area covered by agriculture, a recent study shows.
The blue economy concept puts such activities within a sustainability framework through mechanisms such as regulation and cross-sector cooperation.
A few years ago in Peru, for instance, the anchoveta — one of the world's largest single-stock fisheries — was threatened due to overfishing and climate events like El Nino. But control measures and fishing quotas have helped the anchoveta rebound.
The blue economy also supports other growing sectors that could promote development and sustainability.
Aquaculture already provides for half of the global seafood supply and could be an efficient alternative to wild-capture fisheries.
Offshore wind could become the leading power generation technology by 2030, the International Renewable Energy Agency forecasts.
Coastal tourism is the largest employer in the blue economy, including employing a large proportion of young people — still, conditions remain precarious.
In terms of living sea organisms, marine biotech's potential is as important as ensuring food and fuel security in a near future, experts say.
Critics point out that all of these sectors have environmental impacts. Aquaculture is an intensive industry that can cause pollution and harm local wildlife, along with being blamed for misuse of marine feed.
Coastal tourism is often far from sustainable, pushing coastal regions to rapid urbanization and bringing pollution. The long-term effects of offshore wind turbines on marine ecosystems are still largely unknown, and there is concern over impacts on certain species like sharks and rays.
Mining the seabed remains the most controversial of the blue economy activities. The World Bank highlights a lack of knowledge on deep-sea habitats, their recovery capacity and the potential impact on ecosystems, economy and society in general.
Deep-sea mining
This browser does not support the audio element.
The blue economy also includes protection and recovery of oceans and coastal areas. Restoring mangrove forests, for instance, help prevent coastal erosion; cultivation of bivalves like mussels can help clean up pollutants from the water, Svensson points out.
Corporate contribution
All of this would need cooperation among multiple stakeholders to reach long-term agreements, Kemper said.
And the private sector plays a determining role. Big companies with consumer loyalty help engage people. Business choices on the materials they use, for instance, can make a huge difference for ocean health.
And if one big company acts, all the others will too.
Blue economy is also about developing a common understanding of what we need to do to keep the best of our oceans, Kemper concluded.
Svensson hopes: "Let’s not repeat in the ocean the mistakes we made on land."
Fish have feelings too
Fish have so much more going on inside their heads than most of us realize.
Fish were long believed to be unfeeling, dead-eyed animals. But now scientists are discovering the intrinsic social life of fish. They grieve, engage in cooperative hunting and some have very weird sex lives. Take an underwater journey to learn more about the greatly misunderstood and underappreciated fish.
Image: Fotografie Dos Winkel, www.dos-bertie-winkel.com & www.seafirst.nl
Bodyguards
Fish have each other’s back. The rabbit fish even go out for lunch together: While one of them feasts on the algae found on deep-water reefs, the other is on the look out for predators. Then they switch. Scientists call this virtuous behavior. The rabbit fish make sacrifices for another by waiting their turn.
Image: gemeinfrei
The fearful fish
It was long believed that fish cannot feel fear because they’re missing the part of the brain where other animals and humans process it. But scientists have now shown that fish do feel fear, pain and stress. It is still a contested issue among researchers, though. Fish welfare lobbyists say the new findings are an inconvenient truth as it means we would need to rethink our fishing practices.
Image: picture-alliance/blickwinkel/H. Goethel
Red lips are made for kissing
Those lush lips look like they are made for smooching! One fish species goes even further and uses their mouths to procreate. The female drinks the male's sperm which passes rapidly through the intestinal systems and fertilizes the eggs. It’s a pretty weird sex practice not often observed in the animal kingdom. But the red-lipped batfish pictured here actually procreates the traditional way.
Image: Imago/Imagebroker/N. Probst
Full house
The world-famous clown fish are very social creatures: They share their anemone homes with other fish. The venomous anemones offers life-saving protection to the little fish, as they are immune to its sting. As a result, it often gets a bit tight in their cozy homes.
Image: Fotografie Dos Winkel, www.dos-bertie-winkel.com & www.seafirst.nl
Hunting pals
The mean-looking grouper cooperates with the moray eel while hunting. The grouper initiates the hunt by shaking its head at the eel. The eel then follows it to the prey hiding in a hole and enters the hide-out. It's a 50/50 chance whether the eel corners and eats the prey or it escapes out of the hole into the grouper's mouth. This kind of team effort is extremely unusual in the animal kingdom.
