Monthly Archives

August 2017

SOME NUMBERS TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE OCEANS AND THEIR ECOSYSTEMS FOR HUMANITY.

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  1. Oceans cover 70% of the planet’s surface. 
  1. More than 90% of the planet’s living biomass is found in the oceans. 
  1. 40% of the world’s population lives from the first 60km near the coast. 
  1. ¾ of the mega cities of the world are located near the shores of the planet. 
  1. On 2010 approximately 80% of the world’s population lives within the first 100km from the coasts of the planet. 
  1. More than 90% of goods traded between countries are transported by vessels across the world’s oceans. 
  1. There are about 4000 species of fish living in the coral reefs of the world, which makes coral reefs one of the most important ecosystems in the oceans. 
  1. More than 3.5 million people depend on the oceans as their main source of food. By year 2025 this number could be duplicated. 
  1. Mangroves provide habitats for 85% of commercial fish stocks in the tropics. The Great Barrier Reef that measures around 2000km long, is the longest living structure on earth and can be seen from the moon. 

Source: http://www.eurocbc.org: 50 Key facts about oceans.

10 REGRETTABLE BUT CERTAIN FACTS ABOUT THE OCEANS.

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  1. Plastic waste kills about one million sea birds, one hundred thousand marine mammals and countless fish each year. 
  2. Even after being the cause of the death of many marine animals, plastic remains in the ecosystems to kill more animals over and over again. 
  3. An estimated 21 million of barrels of oil reaches the oceans of the world every year by runoff, wastewater from factories and by washing tanks for transport of that fuel. 
  4. About 40% of the remaining reefs in the world are at significant risk of being lost over the next 20 years. 
  5. The average level of the seas has increased about 10cm to 25cm over the past 100 years. If all the ice in the world melts, the oceans would increase their level by about 66 meters! 
  6. Beyond 70% of the sustainable limit of the marine edible resource has already been obtained from the oceans. 
  7. Attractively commercial fish stocks such as tuna, cod, swordfish and marlin have declined by about 90% during the last century. 
  8. Destructive fishing practices are killing hundreds of thousands of marine species each year and also causing the destruction of important deep ocean habitats. 
  9. About 100 million sharks are hunted each year for their meat and fins that are used for shark fin soup. Hunters regularly catch sharks to remove their fins and while still alive they throw them back into the ocean where they unfortunately die from drowning or bleed to death. 
  10. Incidental capture mortality only of small whales, dolphins, and porpoises is estimated to be slightly larger than 300.000 annual specimens. 

Source: http://www.eurocbc.org: 50 Key facts about oceans.