Oceans, the Face of our Future by Si Ga

Oceans, the Face of our Future Erasmus+ student project by the 3.G class

Gimnazija Jožeta Plečnika Ljubljana 1

Editor: Sara Žitko, student of 3.G Mentors: Darja Silan, MSc, biology teacher Maja Zupe, English teacher Photos: online sources

Gimnazija Jožeta Plečnika Ljubljana Ljubljana, 3rd February 2018

INTRODUCTION Many people believe that oceans are one of the most mysterious places on Earth. They cover three quarters of the Earth’s surface, contain 97 percent of the Earth’s water and represent 99 percent of the living space on the planet by volume. Oceans absorb about 30 percent of carbon dioxide and they provide key natural resources. In this assignment my classmates and I, with a guiding hand from our biology professor MSc Darja Silan and our English teacher Maja Zupe, decided to write about different subjects regarding the ocean, its biodiversity and various problems that are crucial for our future. Firstly we took a look at some interesting proverbs and myths about the deep dark sea. Then we did some research on some of the lead organizations that work to improve conditions and the quality of the marine animals’ lives. After that we went deeper into the sea and explored the biodiversity of different parts of the oceans. We next focused on the problems regarding the oceans, such as pollution, whale hunting and overfishing. Globalization has been influencing the evolution of oceans and the evolution of humanity. There are big differences between the interests of the international community and profit-making policies. The consequences can have a huge influence on the future of our planet and can cause permanent damage to our ecosystem. To prevent negative outcomes of pollution, that is caused by many factors including: uncontrolled construction sites, leaking sewer lines, accidental spills and leaks, improper discharge of wastes, mining activities, foundries, animal waste, etc., we first of all need to inform people about the dangerous actions that we subconsciously do in our everyday lives. These can be as simple as not turning off the lights or dumping waste into the ocean. By doing such things we are endangering many sea species and their natural habitats. Here we also need to think about over three billion people that depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods. Marine fisheries employ over 200 million people, and it must not be overlooked that the oceans are also a place for tourism, industry and recreation. The most common opinion that appeared among all the separate presentations, which I merged into one big “Book of the ocean”, was very clear and talked about the importance of keeping the ocean clean and safe for the different animals living there. We all agreed that we should take notice at all the pollution happening at all times and affecting our future on this planet. Many said that they didn’t know much about their topic of righting at the start, but are now much more educated about it. I personally think that we should do our best to reduce actions that endanger the oceans, because after all they are our past, our present and our future. A project, very important for the education of people about these problems, is called Simul'ONU. This project is bring together pupils and teachers from four European institutions to reflect on a given theme, that is The ocean as of 2018, in line with the UN conference that was held from 5th - 9th June 2017 in New York. 3

In addition to the consideration of a poignant and topical issue, the simulation aims to encourage students to argue and debate in English. The exchanges between the participants are done in English, as much during the preparation phases ahead of the simulation as during the simulation itself, as well as further down the line during the feedback on the experience. Our project is furthermore an exercise in autonomy, a fundamental quality to develop for all students. They will have to make decisions and take stances on different issues. The specific target audience is comprised of more than 100 participants. The simulation will be taking place in Saint-Claude, France, during 6th to 8th of February. I would also like to mention the project called Erazmus + in which the whole Gymnasium of Jožeta Plečnika was involved in. All of the students participated in the making of this project, even though they will not all be present at the project meeting in St. Claude. Now let’s take a look at the amazing project assignments edited by me, Sara Žitko, the author of this introduction, and done by the class of 3.G, which is shown in the picture below.

Contents PROVERBS ABOUT THE SEA, THE OCEANS ................................................................................. 6 OCEAN MYTHS AND LEGENDS.................................................................................................. 10 OCEANS (GENERAL PRESENTATION) ........................................................................................ 15 MARINE BIOLOGY STATION PIRAN ........................................................................................... 20 THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS (UN) ................................................................................ 23 THE LAW OF THE SEA ............................................................................................................... 28 MEDITERRANEAN SEA AND ITS WATERWAYS.......................................................................... 32 TRADE ROUTES OF THE OCEAN ................................................................................................ 40 VOLCANOES IN THE OCEAN...................................................................................................... 47 OCEANS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; OUR FUTURE SEAMOUNTS ..................................................................................... 51 PLANKTON ................................................................................................................................ 56 BIODIVERSITY OF THE CORAL REEF .......................................................................................... 61 ARCTIC WATERS........................................................................................................................ 64 NON-NATIVE SPECIES IN THE ADRIATIC, MEDITERRANEAN .................................................... 68 MARINE POLLUTION ................................................................................................................. 74 PLASTIC OCEANS....................................................................................................................... 79 ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY: THE INFLUENCE OF LIGHT POLLUTION ON THE SEA ECOSYSTEM .... 84 OCEAN ACIDIFICATION ............................................................................................................. 89 WHALING .................................................................................................................................. 94 OVERFISHING............................................................................................................................ 99 DESALINATION........................................................................................................................ 103 MODERN DAY PIRACY............................................................................................................. 110 MARICULTURE ........................................................................................................................ 114 CLIMATE CHANGES AND OCEANS .......................................................................................... 121 DECADE OF OCEAN SCIENCE .................................................................................................. 126

PROVERBS ABOUT THE SEA, THE OCEANS Karin Leban

A proverb is a short saying that expresses a traditionally held truth or piece of advice, based on common sense or experience. Nothing defines a culture as distinctly as its language, and the element of language that best encapsulates is its proverbs. There are many proverbs known to man. Planet Earth has five great oceans and 113 seas. They represent 72% of the surface of the globe, and together they've been an endless source of inspiration for humankind. The sayings come from all around the world from Japan and China to Somalia and Malawi. There are also some older, traditional sayings.

Let's take a look at some examples of proverbs from around the world: Chinese Proverbs: -If rain bothers you, you can always jump into the sea. -No matter how big the sea may be, sometimes two ships meet. Danish Proverbs: -A ship on the beach is a lighthouse to the sea. -The best pilots are ashore. English Proverbs: -Worse things happen at sea.

-The ship that will not obey the helm will have to obey the rocks. Greek Proverbs: -Women are as changeable as the sea. -If you can no catch a fish, do not blame the sea. Traditional Proverbs: - You can often find in rivers what you cannot find in oceans. - Sailors have a port in every storm. 7

There are also some proverbs that were said by known people. For example: -The heart of man is very much like the sea, it has its storms, it has its tides and in its depths it has its pearls too (Vincent van Gogh) -I must be a mermaid, Rango. I have no fear of depths and a great fear of shallow living. (AnaĂŻs Nin) -I pass with relief from the tossing sea of Cause and Theory to the firm ground of Result and Fact. (Winston S. Churchill)

Some proverbs are similar in different countries e.g. A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner. (English Proverb) and Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors (African Proverb). The meaning is the same only different words are used. Every proverb has a different meaning. For example ''You can lead a horse to water but you cannot make him drink'' means that you can tell someone something but they will not do it or remember it.

I agree with most of the sayings. I think that the sea is a beautiful thing. As the sea is a big part of our lives I think we should respect it and treat it nicely. I think we pollute the sea way too much. Sources: https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/proverbs.html http://proverbicals.com/sea/ http://www.coastalboating.net/Resources/Quotes/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proverb#Definitions http://gallantnavigator.blogspot.si/2005/11/nautical-proverbs.html https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/sea https://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/11215-the-best-sea-and-ocean-quotes-of-all-time

OCEAN MYTHS AND LEGENDS KLEMEN PRAÅ NIKAR

INTRODUCTION A long time ago, when people sailed the seas, they took huge risks. The ones, who were lucky enough to come back, told stories about ocean creatures no one has ever seen before, monsters and dragons were also involved in their stories. For me, those kinds of stories are fun to read or listen to. Some of them even give me goose bombs. That is why Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve decided to do a little research and share a couple of these stories with you.

1. Mermaids We all know the Disney story of a little mermaid who became human, so she can be with the man of her dreams. Because of that, most children believe in them but when they get older they realize itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just a story made up by famous cartoon maker somewhere in history. But can we be 100% sure? Is one of the most famous Disney stories really made up? Some people claim that they have seen a sea creature whose upper body was female, but legs were tied up in a tale of a fish. Even Christopher Columbus has reported seeing them. But of course, there is no evidence of their existence.

2. THE BLOOP (The) Bloop was an ultra-low-frequency and extremely powerful underwater sound detected by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1997. In 2002 it was said to be consistent with large marine animals, though it was also consistent with the noises generated by earthquakes in large icebergs, or large icebergs scraping the ocean floor. By 2012 NOAA concluded that the noise was ice-related. No one knows where the sound came from. Some believe it was caused by enormous deepsea creature, even bigger then Megalodon when he still swam around the oceans. Others claim it was just iceberg crashing in to the ocean. I guess we will never know, so we can create our own definition of that mysterious sound. 11

3. ASPIDONCHELONE Aspidonchelone is a giant sea monster, described as a massive turtle. It is so big that it appears to have mountains and valleys on its back, with trees and other greenery growing all over it. Raising from the depths of the sea it lays dormant on the ocean surface for years. It appears as a massive island, enticing sailors to make landfall on its huge shell. Once disturbed by them, it goes into quick dive, drowning all the people and taking all the ships to the bottom of the ocean.

4. IKU- TURSO A sinister sea monster in Finnish mythology is known as the ox of death and the demon of the diseases. His appearance in unclear but he is described as a thousand headed and the one that lives on the brink. He comes from the far north land of Pohjola, which is described as forever cold and the heart of all evil. The Finnish word for octopus is derived from his name, and the famous ww2 submarine was also named iku- turso.

5. CHARYBDIS At one side of a narrow Chanel, opposite to Scylla, another sea monster. Three Charybdis is a massive sea monster from Greek mythology believed to live under a rock on times a day Charybdis is said to swallow huge amounts of water, creating large whirlpools that can drag entire ships underwater. Though the actual size of Charybdis remains unknown it is thought that the whirlpools reached over 23 meters across.

6. KRAKEN The legend of kraken goes back over a thousand years. It is described as massive sea monster that lives of the coasts of Norway and Greenland. For centuries it has serve as a source of fear for sailors. Some still believe that it might as some form of huge sea animal that has yet to be discovered. Later depiction of the kraken describes it as a large octopuslike creature with massive spikes on its suckers. Because of this it has been written off as sailors seeing a giant squid. But in the original tales, the kraken was not described as having any tentacles at all. Instead it more closely resembled a massive whale or crab but was unlike anything else in the animal world. 13

SOURCES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BgD0R4Epss https://online.kidsdiscover.com/unit/oceans/topic/ocean-myths-and-legends https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mermaid

OCEANS (GENERAL PRESENTATION) Urša Jecelj

The word « ocean » comes from the figure in classical antiquity, Oceanus, the elder of the Titans in classical Greek mythology, believed by the ancient Greeks and Romans to be the divine personification of the sea, an enormous river encircling the world. On Earth, an ocean is one of the major conventional divisions of the World Ocean. These are, in descending order by area, the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern (Antarctic), and Arctic Oceans. The ocean contains 97% of Earth's water, and oceanographers have stated that less than 5% of the World Ocean has been explored. The total volume is approximately 1.35 billion cubic kilometers with an average depth of nearly 3,700 meters.

What is the ultimate origin of water? A water molecule is made up of one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms. Hydrogen was created in the Big Bang and oxygen in the cores of stars more massive than the Sun. Enormous amounts of water, in gaseous form, exist in the vast stellar nurseries of our galaxy. Water molecules exist in the Orion Nebula and are still forming today. The nebula is composed mostly of hydrogen gas; other molecules are comparatively rare. Even so, the nebula is so vast that it creates enough water every day to fill Earth’s oceans 60 times over. As global temperatures rise, the ocean responds by expanding. Factoid: Ocean levels are currently rising at the rate of 0.13 inches per year. The Greenland ice sheet is melting at the rate of 287 billion tons a year, and the Antarctic ice sheet is losing 134 billion tons a year. Both will be factors in sea level rise. Earth’s oceans are teeming with life, which creates changes in ocean color that are visible from space. Tiny plants, phytoplankton, bloom for hundreds of miles, coloring the oceans and giving us clues about complex marine ecosystems. Earth is not the only ocean world in our solar system. Water on other worlds exists in diverse forms on moons, dwarf planets, and even comets. Ice, water vapor in the atmosphere and oceans on other worlds offer clues in the quest to discover life beyond our home planet. 16

Our atmosphere and oceans are experiencing drastic change: they are warming up and changing composition, faster than ever recorded. This has consequences on a global scale. Some are increasingly obvious: rising sea levels, extreme weather conditions, ocean acidification, dead zones and invasive species. The impact on coastal communities is dramatic. Virtually every corner of the world’s oceans is affected by pollution, a growing global challenge with an acute environmental, social and economic impact. Plastic litter and urban waste are accumulating worldwide at an alarming rate. In some areas, micro plastics already outnumber plankton by six to one. International law requires a minimum of 10% of marine and coastal areas to be effectively protected by 2020. Today, only 4% of marine and coastal areas are protected by law, and less than 1% is fully enforced. The Pacific is the largest of these oceans, covering 165,200,000 km². It fills the area between the western coastline of the Americas, the eastern coastlines of Asia and Australia, and is capped to the North and South by the Arctic and Antarctic regions. It also holds the deepest point on the earth’s sea floor, the Challenger Deep in the Marianas Trench, near the island of Guam. It would be thought that life forms could not exist at that depth and extreme water pressure. But beginning with radiolarians dredged by the Challenger, hundreds of different species have been found in the Challenger Deep, including shrimp, flatworms, and singlecelled protists thought to be very similar to Earth’s earliest life forms. The next largest ocean is the Atlantic, with an area of 106,400,000 km². It is bounded by the Americas to its west and by the western shores of Europe and Africa to its east. It includes the Mediterranean, Caribbean and Baltic Seas, and the Gulf of Mexico. Like the Pacific Ocean, it reaches to the Arctic and Antarctica. In European History, the Indian and eastern Atlantic Oceans were the most completely charted of the world’s seas until the 15th Century. The warm, stormy waters of the North Atlantic once supported great populations of cod and sperm whale. Cod has been an important human food source for hundreds of years, notably during the founding of America’s colonies, when North American settlements relied heavily upon cod’s easily preserved high-quality flesh. The sperm whale, at over 20 meters in length, is the largest living toothed animal. The Indian Ocean covers a 73,556,000 km² area between the eastern coast of Africa, the shores of the Middle East and India to its north, and is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by Southeast Asia and Australia/Oceania. Home to a great variety of human kind throughout history, the Indian Ocean is also rich in exotic plant and animal species, and still supplies the world with spices such as black pepper, nutmeg, and ginger. At 5,400,025 sq. miles (13,986,000 km²), the Arctic is the smallest and shallowest of the five Oceans, and falls mostly within the Arctic Circle. It is surrounded by the Eurasian and North American continents, and includes Hudson Bay and the North and Barents Seas. For most of the year, these seas are a mass of ice often hundreds of feet thick; even during the brief summer months ice can make the Arctic Ocean impassable, and it was not known until modern times that there is little solid ground in the most northern reaches of the Earth. The 17

water’s salt levels vary throughout the year along with temperature, though the Arctic generally contains less salt than the other four oceans due to its low evaporation rates and the large amount of freshwater that is contributed to the ocean by rivers and streams. Portions of sea ice can be moved across the ocean by wind and water currents. Icebergs may break off frozen land areas and create dangerous conditions for ships that sail across the Arctic. The Arctic Ocean’s ecosystem is very fragile and is home to many endangered species. Phytoplankton is the only plant type that lives in the Arctic Ocean, and it plays a very crucial role in the local ecosystem. They consume nutrients from streams that travel from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and photosynthesize during the summer months when there is virtually endless sunlight. This abundant sunlight allows phytoplankton to reproduce very quickly.

The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean is an enormous body of water that surrounds the entire continent of Antarctica and reaches Australia and the southern end of South America. This ocean is a smaller body of water compared to the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean but is bigger than the Arctic Ocean. It covers approximately four percent of the earth’s surface, which measures out to be 20,327,000 km². This Ocean is deeper than the other ones, ranging from 13,000 to over 16,000 feet. The water is very cold because the ocean is located on the outermost edge of the Southern Hemisphere and it contains huge icebergs as well as smaller ones that cover much of it. The current from the Southern Ocean provides more water than any other current on the planet. A unique feature, known as the Antarctic Circumpolar Current allows the waters to flow around Antarctica. "Forests are our planet's green lung, but oceans are its blue heart. It is now up to all of us to keep this blue heart beating." KARMENU VELLA European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries 18

My opinion: I think it is important for us to know that oceans are a big part of our lives. We do not often realize that the very first living creature was formed in water. Many benefits are obtained from the oceans. They are supplying the ecosystem and are home to many species. Life just would not work without oceans. Sources: https://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean http://www.whatarethe7continents.com/the-worlds-five-great-oceans/ https://www.nasa.gov/specials/ocean-worlds/ http://www.ourocean2017.org/

MARINE BIOLOGY STATION PIRAN Urša Femec

Marine Biology Station Piran is the only Slovenian institution that studies the sea and monitors its quality. It operates within the framework of National Institute of Biology. The researchers are focused on the research in the areas of physical, chemical and biological oceanography. Today, the Marine Biology Station currently ranks as one of the more important marine centers in the Mediterranean. It is listed on the European marine research Picture 1: Marine Biology Station institutions grid, it exists as an innermost reference for the Piran regional programs of the United Nations on the Mediterranean and it brings Slovenian cooperation in international oceanographic committees. It managed to establish a vigorous international cooperation in the framework of the action group Alps â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Adriatic, as well as in bi-lateral programs with France, UK, USA and with the neighboring states of Croatia and Italy. Research on marine biodiversity is crucial in understanding what is happening in the sea and to comprehend the impact of anthropogenic factors on the marine environment. At the same time this kind of research is indispensable for assessing the ecological and environmental status of the sea as identified in European environmental legislation. In concordance with this legislation, the Marine Biology Station Picture 2: Biodiversity is selecting several biological indicators for the appropriate evaluation of the status of the sea at the level of species, habitat types, and benthic and nektonic communities. In this context they are continually monitoring the status of benthic invertebrates, macroalgae, seagrass meadows, fish assemblage, Mediterranean stony coral, biogenic formations and other target species. They prepared a detailed and comprehensive monitoring program for the Slovenian sea, which contains both biological elements and supporting physico-chemical elements, in the context of the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Oceans and seas represent the largest part of the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biosphere and marine microbes are the most abundant group of organisms, capable of growing in all marine habitats. Microbes are the key players in marine food webs and are involved in all biogeochemical cycles. The central focus of research is to study the impacts of variable supply regimes of different inorganic and organic matter on Picture 3: Microbial ecology the function and diversity of the microbial communities, mainly Bacteria and Achaea, in shallow enclosed coastal marine ecosystems. Their projects are especially focusing on the microbial community response to changes of physiochemical environmental parameters, phytoplankton blooms, massive gelatinous zooplankton outbreaks and accumulations of organic matter. 21

Their research area is mainly physical oceanography of coastal waters. They are engaged in both experimental oceanography and modeling in coastal waters, including the exploration of the dynamics of water masses, which is based on data from operational oceanography, that is, the numerical forecasting. They are engaged in data mining of oceanographic data and combining the oceanographic knowledge with the ecological dynamics and sediment transport.

Picture 4: Meiofauna

The meiofauna research at the Marine Biology Station started back in 1976. Meiofauna is an ecological unit, defined by formal size fraction between 38 Îźm mesh size as lower limit and 1000 Îźm as upper limit. The permanent meiofauna is composed of various higher taxa, among which the most abundant are Nematoda Picture 5: Piran and Harpacticoida. The majority of recognized marine phyla have meiofaunal representatives. This group is characterized by a short life span and a fast reproduction cycle. Moreover, the meiofauna is very effective in utilizing a wide variety of available food resources and can be bottom-up controlled by the concentration of food. This makes them good indicators of pollution. I think that what Marine Biology Station Piran is doing, is very important for oceans, earth and consequently for people. Oceans are a big part of our living, they affect our lives. The food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe all can come or be transported by the ocean. That is why we need to be more careful with pollution of the oceans. What Marine Station does, is controlling oceans and their state (among other things). Many people are not aware of the importance of the seas and oceans. We need to change that and then the future for nature, sea life and consequently for us is going to be better. We must not forget about all the animals that are living in the oceans. We need to think about them as well. Sources: http://www.nib.si/mbp/en/ http://www.portoroz.si/en/experience/natural-attractions/marine-biology-station

THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS (UN) Antea Juvančič

The role of the United Nations (UN)

The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization. Its primary task is to promote international cooperation and to create and maintain international order. It has six principal organs and 17 sustainable development goals â&#x20AC;&#x201C; SDG. The 14th goal is called ÂťLife below waterÂŤ. The main problems are marine pollution regardless of its source, and overfishing. The problems our Earth is facing are growing, and some actions must be taken. Ocean acidification is more rapid than ever in the history of the Earth, and they can not support life that can not quickly adjust. Many species are going to become extinct, from shellfish to corals and the fish that depend on them. Another problem are oil spills into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity. Oil spills can have disastrous consequences for society; economically, environmentally, and socially. Coral reefs support a huge amount of small sea life, which in turn supports both larger sea life and people, not only for immediate food needs but also economically, and jet coral reefs which are of utmost importance for the overall health of the oceans are dying, mostly because of higher sea temperature, and pollution. The number of dead zones in the oceans caused primarily by the use of fertilizers and pesticides that run off into the open ocean is also growing. And we certainly should not ignore a giant patch of plastic soup in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Trash that lacks the ability to decompose is polluting oceans and seas all over the world, and is killing marine life and damaging human health. Overfishing is having some serious impacts on our oceans. By overfishing we are wiping out certain species, and consequently also the other species of marine animals that are dependent upon those fish for survival. The UN is aware of these problems, which demand action and can be solved, or at least reduced, only with participation of all the states of the world. And how does the UN deal with these problems?

The organization has set the following 10 targets: 1. Prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution (land-based activities, marine debris, and nutrient pollution) 2. Protect marine and coastal ecosystems 3. Minimize the impacts of ocean acidification 4. Effectively regulate harvesting and put an end to overfishing (including illegal and unreported fishing) 5. Conserve at least 10 percent of coastal and marine areas 6. Prohibit certain forms of fisheries subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing 7. Increase the economic benefits to Small Island developing States 8. Increase scientific knowledge, develop research capacity and transfer marine technology 9. Provide access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets 10. Enhance the conservation and sustainable use of oceans and their resources by implementing international law

The United Nations-Oceans The UN-O is a mechanism of the United Nations set up to enhance cooperation and coordination of activities connected with world oceans and coasts. It was formed in September 2003. Participation in the UN-Oceans is open to UN system organizations related to ocean and coastal areas and the International Seabed Authority. The UN Secretariat has several departments and offices: the Division for Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea (UN-DOALOS); the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA); the UN Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, the Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS); the Office for Disarmament Affairs (ODA); the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); every department has its own specific task. Agenda 21 (Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992) is an international program of action for global sustainable development for the 21st century. Chapter 17 of Agenda 21 specifically deals with the protection of the oceans.

Chapter 17: ÂťPROTECTION OF THE OCEANS, ALL KINDS OF SEAS, INCLUDING ENCLOSED AND SEMI-ENCLOSED SEAS, AND COASTAL AREAS AND THE PROTECTION, RATIONAL USE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR LIVING RESOURCESÂŤ.

UN Atlas of the Oceans As an information system, UN atlas of the Oceans was created under the authority of the UN-Oceans. It was designed for policy makers and scientists. With its help they increase their knowledge about the Oceans (for example its biology, geology, research and exploration for sustainable development and food security). Issues: governance, sustainability, food security, human health, emergencies, climate global change, environmental impact, etc. The focus is on sustainable development of the oceans, considered at the global, regional and national level. The large marine ecosystem concept has proved another useful level of organization.

United Nations Ocean Conference The Conference took place on June 5th-9th 2017. The goal of this meeting was to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources. The next conference is scheduled for 2020. Outcomes: 1. "Call for Action" - A concise, focused, intergovernmental agreed declaration by consensus. 2. Partnership dialogues - They will aim on strengthening cooperation, scaling up and replicating existing successful initiatives and launching concrete and new partnerships that will advance the implementation of Goal 14. 3. A list of voluntary commitments for the implementation of Goal 14

My opinion For the better future of the oceans we need to help and prevent the decline of conditions. And why are the oceans so important? They cover three quarters of the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface, contain 97 percent of the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s water and represent 99 percent of the living space on the planet by volume. Oceans absorb about 30 percent of carbon dioxide and they provide key natural resources. Maintaining healthy oceans supports climate change mitigation. Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods, marine fisheries employ over 200 million people, and it must not be overlooked that they are also a place for tourism, industry and recreation. There are hundred reasons why we should treat them with care. I personally think that the best and the most reasonable solution to this problem has not yet been discovered and we should at least do our best to reduce actions that endanger the oceans, because after all the they are our past, our present and our future. Dr. Sylvia Earle, an American marine biologist, gave the most important reason of all and I could not agree more: No water, no life. No blue, no green.

Sources: http://www.un.org/en/index.html http://www.unoceans.org/ https://oceanconference.un.org/ https://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agenda_21 http://www.oceansatlas.org/ https://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/the-ocean-has-issues-7-biggest-problemsfacing-our-seas-and-how-to-fix-them.html https://www.plasticoceans.org/the-facts/ https://www.plasticoceans.org/infographic-ocean-pollution-affects-humans/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2011/06/13/losing-our-coral-reefs/

THE LAW OF THE SEA Luka Đekić

INTRODUCTION The oceans and seas of our beloved planet Earth are very important for humanity, more than most people know. Besides being the largest oxygen suppliers of the planet, they are also a source of renewable and non-renewable energy sources. Last but not least, they are an important medium for transport. To maintain productivity, order and peaceful relations on the sea, following three international conferences, the United Nations have agreed to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Before the passing of the UNCLOS, the sea territories were divided by the old ‘freedom of the seas’ concept, dating from the 17th century; national rights were limited to a specified belt of water extending from a nation's coastlines, usually 3 nautical miles (5.6 km). All waters beyond the national boundaries were considered international waters, meaning that they were free to all nations but belonging to none of them. But in the early 20th century, this system of division was found unfitting for the aspirations of some nations, who desired to extend national claims: to include mineral resources, to protect fish stocks, and to provide the means to enforce pollution controls. The League of Nations (a predecessor of the UN) called a 1930 conference at The Hague, but no agreements resulted. After Harry S. Truman’s expansion of United States control to all the natural resources of its continental shelf, using the customary international law principle of a nation's right to protect its natural resources, many nations decided to follow his example. UNCLOS I This led to the first United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS I) in 1956 at Geneva, Switzerland. It was considered a success, but it left open the important issue of breadth of territorial waters. UNCLOS I resulted in four treaties concluded in 1958:    

Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone, entry into force: 10 September 1964 Convention on the Continental Shelf, entry into force: 10 June 1964 Convention on the High Seas, entry into force: 30 September 1962 Convention on Fishing and Conservation of Living Resources of the High Seas, entry into force: 20 March 1966 29

UNCLOS II In 1960, the United Nations held the second Conference on the Law of the Sea ("UNCLOS II"). Unfortunately, the six-week Geneva conference did not result in any new agreements. UNCLOS III The question of varying claims of territorial waters was raised in the UN in 1967 by Arvid Pardo of Malta, and in 1973 the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea took place in New York. The conference used a consensus process rather than majority vote in order to prevent the possibility of groups of nation-states dominating the negotiations. The conference lasted until 1982, with more than 160 nations participating. The convention was opened for signature on December 10th, 1982 and entered into force on 16 November 1994 with the signature of the 60th party that ratified the convention. The convention has been ratified by 168 parties (shown on a map in Figure 1), which includes 167 states (164 member states of the United Nations plus the UN Observer state Palestine, as well as the Cook Islands, Niue and the European Union). Several provisions were introduced at the convention. The most significant issues covered were setting limits, navigation, archipelagic status and transit regimes, exclusive economic zones (EEZs), continental shelf jurisdiction, deep seabed mining, the exploitation regime, protection of the marine environment, scientific research, and settlement of disputes. The convention set the limit of various areas, measured from a carefully defined baseline. The areas were divided as follows (graphically imagined on a map in Figure 2):      

Internal waters Territorial waters Archipelagic waters Contiguous zone Exclusive economic zones – EEZs Continental shelf

PART IX AND THE 1994 AGREEMENT Part XI of the Convention provides for a regime relating to mineral riches on the seabed outside any state's territorial waters or EEZs. It establishes an International Seabed Authority (ISA) to authorize seabed exploration and mining. The United States objected to the provisions of Part XI of the Convention on several grounds, arguing that the treaty was unfavourable to American economic and security interests. Because of Part XI, the United States refused the ratification of the UNCLOS, although it expressed agreement with the remaining provisions of the Convention. 30

CONCLUSION I believe that United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is very important, due to its role in securing and protecting our oceans, which are, as said in the introduction, very important for humanity and our planet in general. Preserving peace on the sea will become more important in the future as a result of melting of the Arctic ice. It is rumored that underneath the ice surface there are many natural resources and this new opportunity for business could sparkle an international conflict. Therefore, we must pay attention to the situation in the High north and remain cautious. I think that the UN will probably have to make an additional convention regarding this specific issue.

PHOTOS:

Figure 1: Parties of the UNCLOS

Figure 2: Division of territories

SOURCES: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/lawofsea.html http://legal.un.org/avl/ha/uncls/uncls.html https://www.google.si/search?q=unclos&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj59vf6ytXYAhXRZlAKHSxlBukQ_AUICigB&biw=1 536&bih=710

MEDITERRANEAN SEA AND ITS WATERWAYS DORIAN BULIÄ&#x2020;

HISTORY: For starters The Mediterranean sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Southern Europe, on the south by North Africa and on the east by the Levant (Western Asia). Several ancient civilizations were located around the Mediterranean shores, and were greatly influenced by their proximity to the sea. It provided routes for trade, colonization, and war, as well as food (from fishing and the gathering of other seafood) for numerous communities throughout the ages. Darius 1 of Persia, who conquered Ancient Egypt, built a canal linking the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. Darius's canal was wide enough for two triremes to pass each other with oars extended and required four days to traverse. Mediterranean Sea now is more used for shipping and tourism than for wars. The Mediterranean Sea is arguably among the most culturally diverse block basin sea regions in the world, with a unique combination of pleasant climate, beautiful coastline, rich history and various cultures. The Mediterranean region is the most popular tourist destination in the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;attracting approximately one third of the world's international tourists. MEDITERRANEAN BASIN: The typical Mediterranean climate has hot, humid, and dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Mediterranean Sea is divided in two basins: Western Basin: On the west: A line joining the extremities of Cape Trafalgr (Spain) and Cape Spartel (Africa). On the northeast: The west coast of Italy. In the Strait of Mesina a line joining the north extreme of Cape Paci with Cape Peloro, the east extreme of the Island of Sicily. The north coast of Sicily. On the east: A line joining Cape Lilibeo the western point of Sicily, through the Adventure Bank to Cap Bon (Tunisia). Eastern Basin: On the west: The northeastern and eastern limits of the Western Basin. On the northeast: A line joining Kum Kale and Cape Helles the western entrance to the Dardanelles. On the southeast: The entrance to the Suez Canal. On the east: The coasts of Syria and Israel

Mediterranean Basin is the largest of the world's five Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub regions. It has a great supply of plants. A much known one is the olive. The Mediterranean Basin contains out of different regions, which are scrublands, savannas, woodlands (dominated by oak and pine). Biodiversity of Mediterranean Basin is arguably very wide. From including 22,500 endemic vascular plant species to bird diversity of 497, 225 mammals, 228 reptiles and 77 amphibians species.

Canals on Mediterranean Sea: Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez. Constructed by the Suez Canal Company between 1859 and 1869, it was officially opened on November 17, 1869. The canal offers watercraft a shorter journey between the North Atlantic and northern Indian Oceans via the Mediterranean and Red seas by avoiding the South Atlantic and southern Indian oceans, in turn reducing the journey by approximately 7,000 kilometers. It extends from the northern terminus of Port Said to the southern terminus of Port Tewfik at the city of Suez. Its length is 193.30 km including its northern and southern access channels. The Mediterranean–Dead Sea canal is a proposed project to dig a canal from the Mediterranean Sea to the Dead Sea, taking advantage of the 400-metre difference in water level between the seas. The project could correct the drop in the level of the Dead Sea observed in recent years. The canal could also be used to generate hydroelectric power because of surface difference and maybe by salinity gradient power, and desalinate water by reverse osmosis. I am counting Canal du Midi here too, because it is one of the canals that helps getting from Atlantic Ocean (France) to Mediterranean Sea faster. The canal connects the Garonne River to the Étang de Thau on the Mediterranean and along with the 193 km long Canal de Garrone forms the Canal des Deus Merx, joining the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The canal runs from the city of Toulouse down to the Étang de Thau near the Mediterranean. Strictly speaking, "Canal du Midi" refers to the portion initially constructed from Toulouse to the Mediterranean — the Deux-Mers canal project aimed to link together several sections of navigable waterways to join the Mediterranean and the Atlantic: first the Canal du Midi, then the Garonne which was more or less navigable between Toulouse and Bordeux, then the Garrone Lataral Canal built later, and finally the Gironde estuary after Bordeaux.

Suez Canal 1

Suez Canal 2 RIVERS: A very important river is The Rhone. It is one of the major rivers of Europe and has twice the average discharge of the Loire (which is the longest French river), rising in the Rhone Glacier in the Swiss Alps at the far eastern end of the Swiss canton of Valais, passing through Lake Geneva and running through southeastern France. At Arles, near its mouth on the Mediterranean Sea, the river divides into two branches, known as the Great RhĂ´ne and the Little RhĂ´ne. The resulting delta constitutes the Camargue region. The Rhone is as important now as it was in the past. It was the main trade route from the Mediterranean to east-central Gaul. The only problem with Rhone was its suffering from fierce currents, 35

shallows, floods in spring and early summer when the ice was melting, and droughts in late summer. After World War 2 the river was improved with a series of dams and diversion canals, with a navigation lock beside the hydroelectric power plant on each of these canals. The locks were up to 23 meters deep.

Rhone 1 Danube originates in Germany and then passes through the border of Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine before emptying into the Black Sea. Donau is the second longest river in Europe. The river has been part of a trans-European waterway from Rotterdam on the North Sea to Sulina on the Black Sea, a distance of 3,500 km. Three sections are discernible in the riverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basin. The upper course stretches from its source to the gorge called the Hungarian Gates, in the Austrian Alps and the Western Carpathian Mountains. The middle course runs from the Hungarian Gates Gorge to the Iron Gate in the Southern Romanian Carpathians. The lower course flows from the Iron Gate to the delta like estuary at the Black Sea. The Danube river basin is the most biodiverse region in Europe, and is home to hundreds of fish species, such as pike, zander, huchen, wels catfish, burbot and tench.

Kazan Gorge, cut by Danube 1 36

Danube 2

Po River is the longest river in Italy, rising in the Monte Viso group of the Cottian Alps on Italyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s western frontier and emptying into the Adriatic Sea in the east after a course of 652 km. The Po forms the boundary between the regions of Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna and Veneto. It receives the waters of the Dora Riparia and the Dora Baltea below Turin. The Tanaro, the Scrivi and Trebbia are the most important streams that drain into Po. The river ends at a delta projecting into the Adriatic Sea near Venice.

Po delta 1

The Turkish Straits are a series of internationally significant waterways in northwestern Turkey that connect the Aegean and Mediterranean seas to the Black Sea. As maritime waterways, the Turkish Straits connect various seas along the Eastern Mediterranean, the Balkans, the Near East, and Western Eurasia. Specifically, the Straits 37

allows maritime connections from the Black Sea all the way to the Aegean and Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean via Gibraltar, and the Indian Ocean through the Suez Canal, making them crucial international waterways, in particular for the passage of goods coming in from Russia. The waterway connecting the Sea of Marmara with the Mediterranean in the southwest is called The Dardanelles.

Giblartal was important base during World War II for the Royal Navy as it controlled the entrance and exit to the Mediterranean Sea. Gibraltar's territory covers 6.7 square kilometres and shares a 1.2-kilometre land border with Spain. The town of La line de conception, a municipality of the Province de Cadiz, lies on the Spanish side of the border. The Spanish hinterland forms the comarca of Campo de Giblartal. The shoreline measures 12 kilometres in length. There are two coasts of Gibraltar: the East Side, which contains the settlements of Sandy Bay and Catalan Bay; and the Westside, where the vast majority of the population lives. Gibraltar has no administrative divisions but is divided into seven Major Residential Areas. SEA ANIMALS: Sea animals that we can find in Mediterranean Sea are Loggerhead Turtles, the shortfin mako shark, the probeagle shark, the giant devil ray, Mediterranean Monk Seal, striped dolphin, long-finned pilot whale, sperm whale, blue fit tuna, hake, pufferfish… All the Mediterranean Sea animals are subjected to serious threats for several reasons. This includes overfishing, and a number of fish being killed as unintended bycatch, which also includes whales and dolphins. Additionally, human activity in the area is responsible for subjecting animals to collisions with vessels, habitat destruction, noise pollution, and pollution caused by plastics and chemicals. TRANSPORT Some of the world's busiest shipping routes are in the Mediterranean Sea. It is estimated that approximately 220,000 merchant vessels of more than 100 tones cross the Mediterranean Sea each year—about one third of the world's total merchant shipping. These ships often carry hazardous cargo, which if lost would result in severe damage to the marine environment. The discharge of chemical tank washings and oily wastes also represent a significant source of marine pollution. The Mediterranean Sea constitutes 0.7% of the global water surface and yet receives 17% of global marine oil pollution. It is estimated that every year between 100,000 t and 150,000 tons of crude oil are deliberately released into the sea from shipping activities. Approximately 370,000,000 tons of oil are transported annually in the Mediterranean Sea with around 250–300 oil tankers crossing the sea every day. Accidental oil spills happen frequently with an average of 10 spills per year. A major oil spill could occur at any time in any part of the Mediterranean.

THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS: With the research I have done I now know a bit more about Mediterranean sea. About its good and poor side. The sea is very beautiful on the outside but I kind of feel bad for what we are doing with all the transport, sailing, tourism and wars and therefore slowly destroying the nature. Each day the sea is getting more and more polluted and more animals are dying which doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sound good. In my opinion people have to be more careful with all the oil getting in water, we must not kill so many animals to the point where they will become instinct, because once they are gone and there is no food left it is all downhill from there. All this time we were only looking out for ourselves (for example building all those canals, which are impressive I have to say), but now I feel like it is time to give a hand to the nature and start treating it better. Because we all know how important it is for us and for other species.

SOURCES: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean%E2%80%93Dead_Sea_Canal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Canal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_Sea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_Basin http://www.incomme.org/mediterranean-regions/mediterranean-basin-animals.html https://www.lifegate.com/people/news/whales-dolphins-mediterranean-sea-tethys http://fletcher.tufts.edu/Maritime/~/media/Fletcher/Microsites/Maritime/pdfs/Oceanic_Chokepoin ts.ashx https://sciencing.com/animals-mediterranean-sea-8537277.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danube https://www.britannica.com/place/Danube-River https://www.britannica.com/place/Po-River

TRADE ROUTES OF THE OCEAN Just Karlo Kante

INTRODUCTION A trade route is the shortest and the most efficient possible path between the producer/supplier and the consumer of a certain good or service. It is made from a series of pathways and stoppages which together form a logistical network. The main advantage of modern trade routes is the freedom for anyone to buy or sell anything to anywhere in the world. But trade also brings new cultures to new places and is the biggest reason for cultural diffusion THE HISTORY OF TRADE These are the most important benchmarks for the evolution of trading 

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7,500 BCE; The first sign of longer trade routes occurs. They only traded obsidian (volcanic glass).Two chains of connection are already evident: obsidian from the Bingöl region of south-east Turkey reached Iraqi Kurdistan (via the Hilly Flanks route), and obsidian from the Cappadocian area of central Turkey was carried across the Taurus to the middle Euphrates. 4000 - 3500 BCE, the invention of a wheel in Mesopotamia, with that there were also newer wheeled vehicles which meant easier transport of goods.

A wing sail

Trade route of the Indus civilization

Supposedly how an Egyptian wing sail looked

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  

c. 3,000 BCE - c. 2,600 BCE; The rise of the Indus Valley civilization. They were the first to trade overseas. Trade in the Indian Ocean was made possible by and followed the patterns of the seasonal changes in the monsoon winds. They traded with Egypt, Sumerians and with China. The main trading goods were cotton and rich stones. 3200 BCE; Sailing was invented in Egypt. Sailing employs the wind acting on sails, wing sails or kites to propel a craft on the surface of the water. This was a huge discovery for long sea travel. 1500 BCE; Coins were invented in Lebanon. That was a breakthrough in trading because before they had no common money and would only trade well for good. 1000 BCE; The domestication of camels around helped encourage trade routes over land, called caravans, and linked India with the Mediterranean. 600 BCE; the first lighthouse was built in Egypt. From that lighthouse more were built on coastal cities. Lighthouses helped over sea trade.

ď&#x201A;ˇ

12th century; The Mariners compass is invented in China. This is the most important tool that is used for sea travel.

INDIAN OCEAN TRADE HISTORY The first Ocean to ever have ocean trade routes was the Indian Ocean. From at least the third century BCE, long-distance sea trade moved across a web of routes linking all of those areas as well as East Asia (particularly China). Long before Europeans "discovered" the Indian Ocean, traders from Arabia, Gujarat, and other coastal areas used triangle-sailed ships to harness the seasonal monsoon winds. Domestication of the camel helped bring coastal trade goods - silk, porcelain, spices, slaves, incense, and ivory - to inland empires, as well. Another major export item along the classical Indian Ocean trade routes was religious thought. Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism spread from India to Southeast Asia, brought by merchants rather than by missionaries. Indian Ocean trade routes were found later in 1498 by Portuguese sailors under Vasco da Gamma. They found it while round the. The Portuguese were eager to join in the Indian Ocean trade, since European demand for Asian luxury goods was extremely high. However, Europe had nothing to trade. The people around the Indian Ocean basin area had no need of wool or fur clothing, iron cooking pots, or the other meager products of Europe .As a result, the Portuguese entered the Indian Ocean trade as pirates rather than traders The end of the traditional Indian trade came in 1602, an even more ruthless European power appeared in the Indian Ocean: the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Rather than insinuating themselves in to the existing trade pattern, as the Portuguese had done, the Dutch sought a total monopoly on lucrative spices like nutmeg and mace. In 1680, the British joined in with their British East India Company, which challenged the VOC for control of the trade routes. As the European powers established political control over important parts of Asia, turning Indonesia, India, Malaya, and much of Southeast Asia into colonies, reciprocal trade dissolved. Goods moved increasingly to Europe, while the former Asian trading empires grew poorer and collapsed. The two thousand year-old Indian Ocean trade network was crippled, if not completely destroyed. East India Company logo. The company ruled over The Indian Ocean trade after the 16th century

ATLANTIC OCEANS TRIANGULAR TRADE ROUTE Before Columbus found America the Atlantic Ocean did not have much importance in the international trade. But in the 16th century the Triangular trade route was formed. A triangular trade route is an ocean sea route which consists of three ports or regions. In our case the route was between Europe, Africa and both Americas. The Transatlantic Triangular Trade involved three journeys each with the promise of a large profit and a full cargo. In reality, the journey was more complicated with ships travelling from all over Europe carrying manufactured goods to different ports along the African coast to trade for slaves. The Atlantic Ocean Triangular trade route Manufactured goods were sent to Africa which needed refined goods because they did not have the technology to make them. From Africa slaves were deported to America. The journey was very cruel and about 15% of slaves died in the process itself. America needed slaves for working on plantations, and on the plantations raw materials would grow. Then the raw materials were sent back to Europe for manufacturing. Then the process was redone. This trade route was made very smart because Europe still had all the capital in their possession and was in control of Africa and America .The route lasted until the 19th century when African slaves were set free. THE EXPLORATION OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN The Pacific Ocean is the biggest ocean there is it covers nearly 28% of the Earth. In history it took a lot of time and dedication to really discover the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. Europeans knew that there was a vast ocean to the west, and the Chinese knew that there was one to the east. Intellectual Europeans presumed t that the world was round and that the two oceans were one. In 1492 Columbus sailed west to what he thought was Asia. Little did he know that there was a whole continent- America in between? That happened in 1492 than later In 1519 a Spanish expedition led by the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan He sailed from Europe to the bottom of America and then to the Philippines .He never made it back to Europe alive but a little of his crew did . And thanks to him it was 43

confirmed that the Earth is round and with that also came many new trade options with the east. For the next 250 years Spain dominated the Pacific Ocean transpacific trade routes .In the upcoming years both Spain and Portugal became familiar with vastness of the Pacific Ocean and even explored the North and South Pacific where they found Antarctica and Arctic. Further wise more and more European countries wanted to join the Colonization. More and more of the world was discovered and by the end of the 18 th century with the discovery of Australia by James Cook the world naval map was finally complete.

Magellans voyage arroudn the world

MODERN DAY OCEAN TRADE ROUTES Today’s trade routes all follow the template that history gave us. All the main trade routes are still the same as 500 years ago. And the epicenters of modern day trade are still the same (China,Europe,America,India). But modern day trade is way faster and way easier than it was back in the day. Big contributors are canals which shortened the travel time by around 20%. Ships don’t have to go around continents anymore, instead they just go through canals and save up a lot of energy and time. The most valuable are:  The Panama canal which links the Atlantic ocean with the West Pacific  The Suez canal which links the Indian ocean with the Mediterranean  Gibraltar which links Mediterranean with the Atlantic ocean

This photo shows modern day trade routes which are almost the same as 500 years ago with the exception of using canals

Technology also got way better and the tankers which can carry up to several hundred tons of cargo now exist. Our key trade routes are no longer contiguous and they extend right across the globe. Air freight allows for goods to be transported as directly as possible between countries and shipping sea lanes allow for larger cargoes to be moved, albeit more slowly. Highly developed railway systems are a vital part of the multi-modal transportation network that links business and manufacturers with their end consumers. This new network â&#x20AC;&#x201C; coupled with the digital trading empire of the internet â&#x20AC;&#x201C; has grown and woven interconnected bonds to become a trade route on a scale never experienced before in human history But with all the pros there are also some cons to modern day ocean trade routes. The biggest problem is pollution of the ocean mainly with oil spill. The whole ecosystem around the spill dies and so do the animals. The second problem of modern day ocean trading are also pirates which can produce major minus to the whole business but in the upcoming years security will become so good that even the most cunning pirates wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be able to steal any cargo.

A modern day tanker which can carry up to several hundred tons of cargo

The aftermath of an oil spill which always leads to the death of many marine animals

OPINIONS: Before I started making my assignment I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know that trade had such a big impact on the planet. What we learn from history is that trade lead to discovery of new continents and new inventions .I believe that if trade wouldn't exist humanity would still be in the stone age and we wouldn't have advanced in technology so much. In modern day trade I personally think that sooner or later air trade will take over sea trade, becouse humanity strives more in the sky than in the ground, plus the planet will be less polluted. In the recent years with the blossom of Online trade services worldwide trade became more accessible to everyone but with that also my biggest concern is that the whole worldwide trade route network is being run by a few large Global corporations and they have all the strings in the modern society. I hope that my assignment made you value trade more and that you learned as much as I did.

SOURCES: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_international_trade http://mrfarshtey.net/classes/AP-Trade_Networks.pdf http://factsanddetails.com/asian/cat62/sub406/item2575.html http://www.archatlas.org/ObsidianRoutes/ObsidianRoutes.php https://www.livescience.com/4823-ancient-trade-changed-world.html https://www.currencycloud.com/news/blog/the-evolution-of-international-trade-andmodern-day-trade-routes/#null https://balajiviswanathan.quora.com/Fear-of-Foreign-is-un-Indian

VOLCANOES IN THE OCEAN (SUBMARINE VOLCANOES) Nina Arh

Scientists believe that 80 percent of the volcanic eruptions on Earth take place in the ocean. Submarine volcanoes are underwater vents or fissures in the Earth's surface from which magma can erupt. Volcanic eruptions occur only in certain places and do not occur randomly. This is because the Earth’s crust is broken into a series of slabs known as tectonic plates. These plates are rigid, but they “float” on a hotter, softer layer. As the plates move, they spread apart, collide, or slide past each other.

Sixty percent of all active volcanoes occur at the boundaries between tectonic plates. Most volcanoes are found along a belt, called the “Ring of Fire” that encircles the Pacific Ocean.

Volcano Island

The volcanoes at mid-ocean ridges alone are estimated to account for 75% of the magma output on Earth. Although most submarine volcanoes are located in the depths of seas and oceans, some also exist in shallow water, and these can discharge material into the atmosphere during an eruption. The total number of submarine volcanoes is estimated to be over 1 million, of which some 75 000 rise more than 1 km above the seabed.

Effect of water on volcanoes The presence of water can greatly alter the characteristics of a volcanic eruption and the explosions of underwater volcanoes in comparison to those on land. For instance, water causes magma to cool and solidify much more quickly than in a terrestrial eruption, often turning it into volcanic glass. The shapes and textures of lava formed by submarine volcanoes are different from lava erupted on land. Upon contact with water, a solid crust forms around the lava. Advancing lava flows into this crust, forming what is known as pillow lava. Pillow lava

Below ocean depths of about 2200 m, where the pressure exceeds the critical pressure of water, it can no longer boil; it becomes a supercritical fluid. Without boiling sounds, deepsea volcanoes can be difficult to detect at great distances using hydrophones. The critical temperature and pressure increase in solutions of salts, which are normally present in the seawater. The composition of aqueous solution in the vicinity of hot basalt, and circulating within the conduits of hot rocks, is expected to differ from that of bulk water.

Topographical activity Scientists still have much to learn about the location and activity of underwater volcanoes. The Kolumbo underwater volcano in the Aegean Sea was discovered in 1650 when it burst from the sea and erupted, killing 70 people on the nearby island of Santorini. More recently, NOAA's Office of Ocean Exploration has funded exploration of submarine volcanoes, with the Ring of Fire missions to the Mariana Arc in the Pacific Ocean being particularly noteworthy. Scientists studied underwater eruptions, ponds of molten sulfur, black smoker chimneys and even marine life adapted to this deep, hot environment. Using Remote Operated Vehicles (ROV), scientists studied underwater eruptions, ponds of molten sulfur, black smoker chimneys and even marine life adapted to this deep, hot environment.

ROV

Volcano forming land

Many submarine volcanoes are seamounts, typically extinct volcanoes that rise abruptly from a seafloor of 1,000 - 4,000 meters depth. They are defined by oceanographers as independent features that rise to at least 1,000 meters above the seafloor. The peaks are often found hundreds to thousands of meters below the surface, and are therefore considered to be within the deep sea. An estimated 30,000 seamounts occur across the globe, with only a few having been studied.

THE DEEPEST OCEAN VOLCANOE EVER FOUND: In May of 2009, scientists captured the deepest ocean eruption ever found. Nearly 4000 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean – in an area between Samoa, Fiji and Tonga- the West Mata volcano was discovered. The explosions of molten rock were spectacular. This volcano was producing Boninite lavas – believed to be among the hottest erupting on Earth. Scientists also witnessed molten lava flowing across the deep-ocean sea floor and spotted shrimp living near the volcano’s most active areas. This research allows us to closely examine how ocean islands and undersea volcanoes are born. It may also shed light on how heat and matter transfer from the interior of the Earth to the surface, and how life adapts to some of the harshest conditions on our planet. Finding West Mata was a huge break for scientists and for those interested in seeing what takes place in the deepest depths of our ocean.

West Mata volcano I think discovering the underwater volcanoes was a huge break for scientists and for those interested in seeing what takes place in the deepest depths of our ocean. It is extremely important for people to know as much as they can about our planet, how it works and why it works that way, because if we understand it and learn as much as it is possible about it, it will help us live on it. Sources: https://oceantoday.noaa.gov/deepoceanvolcanoes/ https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/volcanoes.html https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/volc/submarine.html http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20160808-the-volcanoes-hiding-in-the-ocean https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/12/underwater-volcano-eruption-predictionaxial-seamount-science/

OCEANS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; OUR FUTURE SEAMOUNTS Patricija Zore

INTRODUCTION Geologists have discovered that Earth surface is divided to lithosphere boards, which carry the oceans and the continents and are in constant movement.

Picture 1: tectonic plates

The boards are built from the earth's crust and part of the upper layer. Some boards carry only one ocean, some boards only continents, and some the oceans and the continents. The construction of the earth's surface is mostly the result of billions of years of slow moving, forming and breaking tectonic plates. The plates are spaced on the ocean bottom, where there are chains of seamounts and reefs. They are moving from 1 to 18 centimeters per year. The Pacific Rim creates about 10 centimeters of crust each year. Reefs occur when magma is solidified and cooled in water. CREATION The oceanic basins used to be considered to be the complement to the continents, with erosion dominating the latter, and the sediments so derived ending up in the ocean basins. More modern regard the ocean basins more as basaltic plains, than as sedimentary depositories, since most sedimentation occurs on the continental shelves and not in the ocean basins. The most occurred kind of rock on the bottom of the sea is basalt, which is basically lava that creates seamounts and lies beneath thick layers of deep-sea sediments. A basalt rock containing microbial life from deep within Earth's crust. The fine crack in the middle is a vein that remained free of contamination during the drilling process. The darker area surrounding it indicates water diffusing from the vein into the surrounding rock.

Picture 2 : basalt rock with internal vein

ABOUT SEAMOUNTS Seamounts are found under water and many people still not know about their existence. They can be found in every ocean basin in the world, distributed extremely widely both in space and in age. A seamount is technically defined as an isolated rise in elevation of 1,000m or more from the surrounding seafloor, and with a limited summit area of conical form. There are over 100,000 seamounts in the world ocean. Only 350 have been studied. They are formed due to volcanic activity and are normally found near plate boundaries. However, they can also be located in the middle of plates where there are particular hot spot areas. Some have wide flat top in the depth 2500m; the flat top is for sure too wide and we accept the fact that this is saturated volcanic through. Because of that the new assumption came that in the past they were above sea level volcanos that have stopped working because they were flooded by the sea. LIFE AROUND IT The waters above seamounts are filled with ocean predators, marine mammals, sharks and tuna. Seamount disrupts the smooth sea current. Above the bulk of seamountain it behaves strangely and it shapes into a spinning donut or so called vortex. Currents have been measured at up to 0.9 knots, or 48 centimeters per second. At the center a downward flow brings the plankton on to the summit, which feeds many different creatures. There is a variety of organisms including sponges, corals and fish. With clear water around the seamountain there is an oasis of life in the wide ocean, where tuna and other predators come to feed. Much of the open Pacific is empty of life, but above seamounts life is abbundant. Sponges create habitats for other animals like crabs and between variety of species of corals there are Moray eels and many fish. Because of the large number of fish near coral reefs there is a lot of fishing and many species are near to extinction. HIGHEST MOUNTAIN We know that the highest mountain in the world is supposed to be Mount Everest and it holds the record for the highest elevation on land, but the tallest mountain in the world is actually Hawaiiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mauna Kea. It is a dormant volcano and is 10.200 meters tall when measured from base to peak, meanwhile Everest is only 8.850 meters. Only 4.000 meters of Mauna Kea is above sea and is visible to us.

HISTORY If we would have looked at Earth without oceans as this picture from an old scientific article shows, we would see that only the oceans make Earth look round. That means that it shows the sea ground and the real shape of our planet, which would be if it was not for water.

Picture 3: Earth without water

Picture 4: Earth round shaped

Underwater archeologist Robert Ballard said that the story we all know from Biblia: Noet's boat, may have actually happened. They searched for the signs that the big flood actually have happened. Scientists claim that in the Black Sea area, extensive floods have actually taken place. They believe that the Black Sea was once a freshwater lake surrounded by agricultural land. With the help of radiometric dating of the shells on the basis of carbon isotope 14C, scientists found that the shore was flooded about 5000 years before our count. Though this is not so verified yet it is still interesting.

Picture 5 Sea level rising shot by NASA satellites

MY OPINION I have come to a closure that there are many of underwater mountains that were once a dryland and above sea level. The sea level is constantly rising and soon there will be new mountains under water, maybe it will even reach some of the continents. The seamounts are important for organisms that live in water. It offers them place to live and food to feed with. Seamounts are created by underground volcanos or by the moving of tectonic plates. 54

There is a lot of species, life and things in the sea that the human kind doesn't have a clue about yet because of the lack of technology. Sources: -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rb5HzR26OM -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkTStXXxZPQ -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiVIZ9rMGaM -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NUaxdxt2sE -https://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oceanska_kotlina -http://www.publishwall.si/.publishwall.si/post/234771/flat-earth-teorija-ravne-zemlje-jesmesna -https://www.dnevnik.si/1042567257 -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seamount (Also Picture 5) -The Joy of Knowledge Encyclopedia: Our home Earth, slovenian edition;Mladinska knjiga 1982. Picture 1 : http://www.gis.si/egw/GOS_T09_P02b/index.html Picture 2 : http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/03/15/intraterrestrials-life-thrives-inocean-floor.html Picture 3,4 : http://www.publishwall.si/.publishwall.si/post/234771/flat-earth-teorija-ravne-zemljeje-smesna

PLANKTON Nina Ložar

1. Plankton 1.1 Introduction

Plankton, marine and freshwater organisms that, because they are nonmotile or too small or weak to swim against the current, exist in a drifting state. The term plankton is a collective name for all such organisms—including bacteria, archaea, algae, protozoa and drifting or floating animals that inhabit—for example—the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or bodies of fresh water. Essentially, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than any phylogenetic or taxonomic classification. Though many planktonic species are microscopic in size, plankton includes organisms over a wide range of sizes, including large organisms such as jellyfish. Plankton is distinguished from nekton, which is composed of strong-swimming animals, from benthos, which includes sessile, creeping, and burrowing organisms on the seafloor, and from organisms on the surface of the water, which are called pleuston.

1.2. Trophic groups of plankton Plankton is primarily divided into broad functional (or trophic level) groups: 



 

Phytoplankton, autotrophic prokaryotic or eukaryotic algae that live near the water surface where there is sufficient light to support photosynthesis. Among the more important groups are the diatoms, cyanobacteria, dinoflagellates and coccolithophores. The phytoplankton are microscopic, single-celled organisms. Smaller objects have a greater surface area relative to their volume, and hence mass. Being small in the oceans has several advantages: Phytoplankton cells are so small that their weight is, to a large extent, offset by the frictional drag exerted on them by the water. Thus, they sink very slowly, enabling them to stay within the surface, sunlit waters. Many species of phytoplankton have ornate spines and appendages which appear to both increase drag, and serve as defence mechanisms. Phytoplankton cells do not have roots, and must take up nutrients from their surrounding environment. Having a large surface area relative to their volume ensures that they maximise their chances of attaining enough resources for growth. Zooplankton, small protozoans or metazoans that feed on other plankton. Some of the eggs and larvae of larger nektonic animals, such as fish, crustaceans, and annelids, are included here. Bacterioplankton, bacteria and archaea, which play an important role in remineralising organic material down the water column. Mycoplankton, fungi and fungus-like organisms, which, like bacterioplankton, are also significant in remineralisation and nutrient cycling. 57

1.3 Ecological importance Plankton is the productive base of both marine and freshwater ecosystems, providing food for larger animals and indirectly for humans, whose fisheries depend upon plankton. Plankton ecosystems also play a role in the biogeochemical cycles of many important chemical elements, including the ocean's carbon cycle which affects the climate. Through photosynthesis, phytoplankt on consume carbon dioxide on a scale equivalent to forests and other land plants. Some of this carbon is carried to the deep ocean when phytoplankton die, and some is transferred to different layers of the ocean as phytoplankton are eaten by other creatures, which themselves reproduce, generate waste, and die. Worldwide, this â&#x20AC;&#x153;biological carbon pumpâ&#x20AC;? transfers about 10 gigatonnes of carbon from the atmosphere to the deep ocean each year. Even small changes in the growth of phytoplankton may affect atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, which would feed back to global surface temperatures. Plankton are most important for oxygen production. It is estimated that about 50% of the world's oxygen is produced via phytoplankton photosynthesis. Phytoplankton absorbs energy from the Sun and nutrients from the water to produce their own nourishment or energy. In the process of photosynthesis, phytoplankton release molecular oxygen (O2) into the water as a waste by-product. The rest is produced via photosynthesis on land by plants. Furthermore, phytoplankton photosynthesis has controlled the atmospheric CO2/O2 balance since the early Precambrian Eon. Zooplankton are the initial prey item for almost all fish larvae as they switch from their yolk sacs to external feeding. Fish rely on the density and distribution of zooplankton to match that of new larvae, which can otherwise starve. Natural factors and man-made factors can strongly affect zooplankton, which can in turn strongly affect larval survival, and therefore breeding success. The importance of both phytoplankton and zooplankton is also well-recognized in extensive and semi-intensive pond fish farming. Plankton population based pond management strategies for fish rearing have been practiced by traditional fish farmers for decades, illustrating the importance of plankton even in man-made environments. 1.4 Distribution Plankton inhabits oceans, seas, lakes, ponds. Local abundance varies horizontally, vertically and seasonally. The primary cause of this variability is the availability of light. All plankton ecosystems are driven by the input of solar energy, confining primary production to surface waters, and to geographical regions and seasons having abundant light. A secondary variable is nutrient availability.

Since plankton are influenced by a large number of environmental factors and as a result are not distributed randomly in the oceans and seas. Plankton biodiversity is constrained by hydro climatic parameters such as temperature, bathymetry and oceanic surface currents, which are thought to be the most important factors in explaining the geographical distribution of species. Other factors are water quality that can influence pelagic ecosystems over large areas, tidal currents, types of substratum, the harbour effect and freshwater inputs that can be relatively important. Since the surface ocean is a well-mixed, homogeneous environment that only permits the strongest competitor for a specific resource to persist, ultimately leading to only few coexisting species and a low level of biodiversity in the plankton.

1.5 My thoughts on plankton I think that most people don’t think of conservation issues when it comes to microscopic organisms like plankton and that’s because we don’t give them enough credit for keeping our planet in such stable conditions as it is. And whether that is because they’re mostly too small for a human eye to see or because many people just don’t know their significance, they play an absolutely critical role in the ecosystem of the oceans and the planet. To lose such majestic microscopic species to threats like pollution and climate change would be a tragic thing indeed. By helping to conserve our oceans, we are preserving not only whales and fish and corals (which ultimately rely on plankton), but also the beautiful array of plankton that are not only fascinating but constitute a central piece in the puzzle of life on our planet.

Picture 6 A collection of marine zooplankton composed of copepods, Daphnia (water fleas), and other tiny animals. < https://media1.britannica.com/eb-media/63/162063-004-BEADB98D.jpg >

Picture 7 Phytoplankton from the species Pleurosigma angulatum, which is found in parts of the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, as seen through a microscope. < https://media1.britannica.com/eb-media/65/129565-004-C0EF77C5.jpg >

2. Sources 1. https://www.britannica.com/science/plankton 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plankton 3. http://www.marbef.org/wiki/Marine_Plankton

BIODIVERSITY OF THE CORAL REEF Tia Počkar

To begin with I would like to explain what biodiversity and coral reefs are. Biodiversity is a variability of life on Earth. It is not evenly distributed, because of Earth's diverse conditions. Biodiversity is greater near the equator due to warm climate. It is richer in the tropics and warm shallow waters like the coral reefs. The coral reefs are underwater ecosystems build out of excretion secreted by the corals. They are built by colonies of tiny animals in water that contains nutrients. Most coral reefs are also built out of stony corals and thrive in warm, shallow, clear and sunny water. They are often called '' rainforests of the sea'' for their biodiversity which is one of the greatest in the world, yet they occupy less than 0.1% but contain more than 25% of all marine species. The coral reefs are fragile ecosystems because of their water temperature sensitivity. Many threats exist as a result of their sensitivity. Some of the major threats are climate change, oceanic acidification, blast fishing, cyanide fishing, over use of the coral reef's resources and water pollution (excess algal growth). Luckily many organizations are trying to diminish or completely forbid the harmful elements. Coral reefs are important for the coastline protection by absorbing wave energy, fisheries and tourism.

The biodiversity of the coral reef is the variety of creatures living on the coral reef. The coral reefs are some of the world's most productive ecosystems. They provide complex and varied marine species habitats that serve as a shelter or source of food. Some of the animals are just visitors and for some the coral reef is its home. The coral reef is beneficial for everyone the animals (land and sea), plants and especially humans. For some the reef is the means for survival. The estimated value of this diverse ecosystem is around â&#x201A;Ź30- 375 billion. The coral reef's habitants help each other, they are codependent. What is someone elseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wais is someone's gain. Most of the reef's creatures are invertebrates. They eat seaweed and play an important part in defending the ecosystem from alges that try to overrun reefs. Not 62

many mammals are on the reef except a few visitors like dolphins and whales. Sponges are incredibly important to the reef because the large materials that corals and alges produce they break them down into smaller pieces. They are a kind of a filter of the reef. Near the reefs we can find fascinating sea birds that are so very rare, but most of their population is gathered on the reef. The reason for the coral reefs biodiversity is still unclear.

My thoughts on the coral reefs biodiversity are that it is incredible. So many different creatures in one place working and benefiting from each other is marvelous. I believe people should try and stop their activities on the coral reef and let it flourish on its own.

Sources: https://coralreef.noaa.gov/aboutcorals/values/biodiversity/ https://coral.org/coral-reefs-101/coral-reef-ecology/coral-reef-biodiversity/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coral_reef Pictures: 1) https://timeincsecurea.akamaihd.net/rtmp_uds/293884104/201703/2681/293884104_5360456295001_5360434 467001-vs.jpg?pubId=293884104&videoId=5360434467001 2) https://wbmfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/what-isbiodiversity.jpg?w=565&h=277

ARCTIC WATERS Eva Marolt

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and the shallowest ocean out of all the world’s oceans. Its average depth is 1038 meters. It is divided by ridges. Between the ridges are basins. The ocean is covered with ice sheets. In different seasons the ice has different thickness. Because of that sailors can not sail the Arctic Ocean with normal ships. They have to use icebreakers. Temperature and salinity depend on the season because they are affected by melting and ice formation.

Picture 1: The Arctic Ocean

The biggest fishing area is near the land. Due to excessive catch of fish flocks sharply decreased. In the Arctic Ocean is a lot of herrings, salmon, cods … There are not a lot of mammals because of the cold. Those who are there, however, are protected by fat. These are seals, walruses and whales. One of the whales is actually best known for living in the Arctic Ocean – narwhal. Narwhals are medium-sized whales, which live up to 50 years and are often killed by suffocation when sea ice freezes over. Another cause of death (specifically for young narwhals) is starvation. They have been harvested for a long time by Inuit people for meat and ivory. Narwhals now qualify for Near Threatened under the criterion of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Picture 2: Narwhal

Endangered marine species include other whales and walruses. The area has a fragile ecosystem which is slow to change and slow to recover from disruptions of damage. The Arctic Ocean has relatively little plant life except for phytoplankton. Phytoplankton is a tiny plant organism that floats freely in the water. They are the largest producers of oxygen on Earth. During summer the sun is out day and night and that is enabling the phytoplankton to photosynthesize for long periods of time and reproduce quickly. However, during winter, they struggle to get enough light to survive.

Picture 3: Phytoplankton My opinion about all this is that some people should help all the animals that are dying in the ocean and try to save them. And I also think that people who are killing these animals should stop because that is just horrible.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_Ocean https://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkti%C4%8Dni_ocean https://www.google.si/search?rlz=1C1GGRV_enSI751SI751&biw=1454&bih=688&tbm=isch& sa=1&ei=ZWhGWrvrCozWkwW8mpWYAw&q=phytoplankton&oq=phy&gs_l=psyab.3.0.0i67k1j0j0i67k1j0l7.212493.215565.0.217205.3.3.0.0.0.0.98.259.3.3.0....0...1c.1.64.ps y-ab..0.3.257....0.rAFfHUkhPGo#imgdii=7fcyG_1EiQCqqM:&imgrc=RWVAhPHML-3awM: https://www.google.si/search?rlz=1C1GGRV_enSI751SI751&biw=1454&bih=688&tbm=isch& sa=1&ei=PmlGWvOaOI2ZkwXLhbvwBw&q=narwhal&oq=narwhal&gs_l=psyab.3..0l3j0i30k1l7.1567593.1569070.0.1569427.7.4.0.3.3.0.103.341.3j1.4.0....0...1c.1.64.psyab..0.7.369...0i67k1.0.z7L-DLZPD9Y#imgrc=KLfVVHzuiQ4JAM: https://www.google.si/search?q=arctic+ocean&rlz=1C1GGRV_enSI751SI751&source=lnms&t bm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj3iYeU1K_YAhWPKFAKHUjAC_kQ_AUICigB&biw=1454&bih=6 88 https://www.britannica.com/place/Arctic-Ocean

NON-NATIVE SPECIES IN THE ADRIATIC, MEDITERRANEAN Tina Simčič

WHAT ARE NON-NATIVE SPECIES? Non-native species, subspecies or taxon is a species of lower category that is introduced outside the area past or current natural prevalence. This includes any part of the organism, gametes, seeds, eggs or other parts of the organisms that can survive and are capable of reproduction. In Europe every year, hundreds of non-native organisms get carried in, but not all of them become invasive. In fact, most of them do not survive in the new environment, either because they are unable to adapt to new environment, or the present lack of specimens for successful reproduction. Some species, called the transitional non-native species can remain in the environment for long periods of time, either because of the long life expectancy, occasional propagation or repeated. Individual species, however, gradually, over a period of several years can also be adapted to the new environment, and start (sexual or asexual) reproduction. Non-native species, that regularly breed in the wild and populations are maintained without the intervention of man, are called naturalized species. Descriptions of the two categories of non-native species can be abbreviated in short definitions: Transient non-native species are non-native species that occur only occasionally in a certain region. It can even be reproduced occasionally, but does not form permanent populations and is maintained only by resettlement. For these species we sometimes use the term acclimatized species. The naturalized species is a non-native species, which regularly reproduces in the new environment and independently, without the intervention of a human, maintains the populations, but does not yet cause detectable damage in the environment. Invasive non-native species, by definition, of the Convention on Biological Diversity is a nonnative species that has stabilized and spreads, thereby endangering ecosystems, habitats or species. The definition of the invasive non-native species used by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) is broader and more invasive than non-native species that endanger human health, the economy and/or indigenous biodiversity.

NON-NATIVE SPECIES IN THE ADRIATIC In the last decades, the non-native sea species have also been heavily populated in the Mediterranean Sea. The true highway for the exchange of species is the latest expansion of the Suez Canal, and climate change, with the rise of sea temperatures, offers favorable conditions for their survival. Of course, not all non-native organisms present in the Mediterranean and, consequently, the Adriatic Sea, have negative effects, but some of them can be very harmful. In the new environment, they do not have natural enemies, and therefore large populations, which begin to spread rapidly and replace native organisms, are settled and often formed. Damage is made to the natural ecosystem, fisheries and indirectly to tourism. Among them is the type of zooplankton called comb jellyfish (Ctenophora) that caused considerable damage to fisheries in the Black Sea years ago and also settled in the Gulf of Trieste. The Italian, Slovenian and Croatian marine experts therefore closely monitor this outward series.

It is notorious because it is an extremely invasive species and because it feeds on plankton and fish eggs. They look like jellyfish, about ten centimeters in length, clear and has gelatinous rollers that do not have any stingers. It self-reproduces and can lay up to 8000 eggs in a day. In the Adriatic Sea, 14 new fish species have been recorded in the last ten years, which were not previously observed in the Adriatic Sea. This can be extremely dangerous for the existing ecosystem. The silver-cheeked toadfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus) is common in the tropical waters of the Indian and Pacific oceans. It is a recent Lessepsian migrant into the eastern Mediterranean Sea. It has been caught off the coasts of Israel, the south of Turkey, in Cyprus, the south coasts of mainland Greece, Crete and Rhodes. 70

The Atlantic blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) is a well-known crustacean of Portunitae family, also known as swimming crabs. The blue crab has invaded the coasts of many countries in the Baltic Sea, Black Sea and Sea Azov and at least 12 countries of the Mediterranean. The first Mediterranean record of this species dates back to 1948 (Venice).

The spotted sea hare (Aplysia Dactylomela) is a species of large sea slug. It is without a shell and can grow to 20 cm in length. This species is widespread in the tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean and very common in the Canary Islands. It has been recorded for the first time in the Mediterranean in the early 2000s and has been observed only occasionally along the Adriatic coasts. Some researchers do not consider it an actual nonindigenous species, as it might have entered by natural dispersal through the Strait of Gibraltar. If disturbed, the spotted sea hare may emit a repellent purple liquid.

Caulerpa taxifolia is a species of seaweed, an alga of the genus Caulerpa. Native to the Indian Ocean. It is thought that the seaweed was accidentally released into coastal waters of 71

the Mediterranean Sea just below Jacques Cousteau's Oceanographic Museum of Monaco in 1984. But the claim was made that Caulerpa had grown to cover 7,400 acres (30 km2), and was preventing native plants from growing.

Ragworm (Perinereis linea) is an exotic worm that has reached the Western Mediterranean (Mar Menor lagoon) via importing live fishing-bait as it is commonly used by anglers in Mar Menor lagoon, an area largely used for recreational fishing.

For the time being, it appears that the migration of non-native species to the Mediterranean and the Adriatic will only intensify. OTHER FISH (FUGU) In the south of the Adriatic, so-called puffer fish (tetraodontidae) were observed. The fish itself is not dangerous. The Japanese use it to prepare a notorious dish which occasionally leads to accidental death. Its inflammers contain tetrodotoxin (TTX), a neurotoxic alkaloid that causes paralysis and death. Only the most experienced masters that have undergone vigorous training can prepare the fugu. In Japan every year, many deaths occur due to the consumption of this fish. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s supposedly 200 times more lethal than cyanide.

In my opinion the transition of non-native species is dangerous to our sea life but I do not know how to prevent it from expanding even more. Although some are not invasive and 72

present no danger, there is a lot of species causing inconvenience. Despite the research I have done I am not qualified enough on the topic to discuss the solutions.

Sources: Svet 24.: http://novice.svet24.si/clanek/novice/slovenija/57bac0dba9c61/invazijasmrtonosnih-rib-v-jadranu RTVSlo.:https://www.rtvslo.si/radiokoper/zgodbe/morske-raziskovalce-skrbi-pojavtujerodne-rebrace-v-trzaskem-zalivu/423759 Gozdarski inĹĄtitut Slovenije, Jana Kus Veenvliet & Paul Veenvliet, Zavod Symbiosis, so.p:.http://tujerodne-vrste.info/splosno-o-tujerodnih-vrstah/ Ĺ˝urnal 24:https://www.zurnal24.si/vizita-za-zivali/novice/nevarna-invazivna-vrsta-rebace-vnasem-morju-295522 Delo: http://www.delo.si/novice/slovenija/rebraca-grozi-ribam-in-ribicem-v-jadranu.html Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caulerpa_taxifolia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aplysia_dactylomela https://alchetron.com/Lagocephalus-sceleratus https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308724529_NEW_SPECIES_IN_THE_ADRIATIC_S EA_WHAT_TO_DO_HOW_TO_RECOGNIZE_THEM_A_guide_for_smallscale_and_sport_fishing https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272771413003582 https://www.researchgate.net/figure/227619116_Interactions-between-native-species-andinvaders-may-lead-to-coevolution-as-either-a http://www.delo.si/assets/media/picture/20160911/670x420_Zadnja_stran___DSC5940a_1 20_hires.jpeg0.jpeg?rev=2 :https://alchetron.com/Lagocephalus-sceleratus https://epadigestive.weebly.com/atlantic-blue-crab-callinectes-sapidus.html https://saltybottomreefcompany.com/Spotted-Sea-Hare_p_132.html https://www.freshnmarine.com/collections/macroalgae-marine https://www.solentbaits.co.uk/product/ragworm-bulk-deal/

MARINE POLLUTION Alja Ana Križman

1.) Definition Marine pollution occurs when harmful, or potentially harmful, effects result from the entry into the ocean of chemicals, particles, industrial, agricultural, and residential waste, noise, or the spread of invasive organisms. Eighty percent of marine pollution comes from land. Air pollution is also a contributing factor by carrying off pesticides or dirt into the ocean. Land and air pollution have proven to be harmful to marine life and its habitats. PHOTO 1,2: CONSEQUENCES OF PLASTIC WASTE IN THE OCEAN

2.) Causes of ocean pollution ď&#x192;&#x2DC; PLASTIC DEBRIS Marine debris is mainly discarded human rubbish which floats on or is suspended in the ocean. Eighty percent of marine debris is plastic. The mass of plastic in the oceans may be as high as 100 million tonnes. Discarded plastic bags, six pack rings, and other forms of plastic waste which finish up in the ocean present dangers to wildlife and fisheries. Aquatic life can be threatened through entanglement, suffocation, and ingestion. Fishing nets, usually made of plastic, can be left or lost in the ocean by fishermen. Known as ghost nets, these entangle fish, dolphins, sea turtles, sharks, seabirds and other creatures, restricting movement, causing starvation, laceration, which can lead to infection and in those that need to return to the surface to breathe, suffocation. Many animals that live on or in the sea consume flotsam by mistake as it often looks similar to their natural prey. Plastic debris, when bulky or tangled, is difficult to pass and may become permanently lodged in the digestive tracts of these animals. Thereby blocking the passage of food and causing death through starvation or infection. Plastics accumulate because they cannot biodegrade in the way many other substances do. They will photodegrade on exposure to the sun, but they do so properly only under dry conditions, and water inhibits this process. In marine environments, photodegraded plastic disintegrates into ever-smaller pieces while remaining polymers, even down to the molecular level. When floating plastic particles photodegrade down to zooplankton sizes, jellyfish attempt to consume them, and in this way the plastic enters the 75

ocean food chain. Many of these long-lasting pieces end up in the stomachs of marine birds and animals including sea turtles and black-footed albatross.

PHOTOS 3,4,5: ANIMALS CAUGHT IN PLASTIC WASTE

ď&#x201A;ˇ

ACIDIFICATION

The oceans are normally a natural carbon sink, absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Because the levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide are increasing, the oceans are becoming more acidic. The potential consequences of ocean acidification are not completely understood, but there are concerns that structures made of calcium carbonate may become vulnerable to dissolution, affecting corals and the ability of shellfish to form shells. Oceans play an important role in the global carbon cycle and have removed about 25% of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities between 2000 and 2007 and about half the CO2 released since the start of the industrial revolution. Rising ocean temperatures and ocean acidification means that the capacity of the ocean carbon sink will gradually get weaker. ď&#x201A;ˇ

TOXINS AND CHEMICALS

Many potentially toxic chemicals adhere to tiny particles which are then taken up by plankton animals, most of which are either deposit feeders or filter feeders. In this way, the toxins are concentrated upward within ocean food chains. Many particles combine chemically in a manner highly depletive of oxygen, causing estuaries to become anoxic. When pesticides are incorporated into the marine ecosystem, they quickly become absorbed into marine food webs. Once in the food webs, these pesticides can cause mutations, as well as diseases, which can be harmful to humans as well as the entire food web. Toxic metals can also be introduced into marine food webs. These can cause a change to tissue matter, biochemistry, behavior, reproduction, and suppress growth in marine life. Also, many animal feeds have a high fish meal or fish hydrolysate content. In this way, marine toxins can be transferred to land animals and appear later in meat and dairy products.

PHOTOS 6,7: OIL SPILLS ON THE SURFACE OF THE WATER

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UNDERWATER NOISE

Marine life can be susceptible to noise or the sound pollution from sources such as passing ships, oil exploration seismic surveys, and naval low-frequency active sonar. Sound travels more rapidly and over larger distances in the sea than in the atmosphere. Marine animals often have weak eyesight and live in a world largely defined by acoustic information. This applies also to many deeper sea fish, who live in a world of darkness. Noise also makes species communicate louder, which is called the Lombard vocal response. Whale songs are longer when submarine-detectors are on. If creatures don't "speak" loud enough, their voice can be masked by other sounds. These unheard voices might be warnings, finding of prey, or preparations of net-bubbling. When one species begins speaking louder, it will mask other species voices, causing the whole ecosystem to eventually speak louder.

PHOTO 8: PASSING SHIPS

3.) Conclusion Before this task I had no idea how big problem marine pollution actually is. After reading some articles about it and seeing photos of animals suffering got me thinking. We really need to start informing people, because I think we aren’t enough aware of the problem. We are destroying marine animal’s living space and in general we are destroying oceans. I truly believe that solution to the plastic waste crisis exists, but it requires us to change our lifestyles and for corporations to take responsibility for the products they make. We can fight for total bans on plastic materials (bags, bottles…) but we also need governments to enforce requirements that corporations who manufacture or distribute plastic, take responsibility for recycling 100% of their production and distribution. Many ecological organizations are fighting against the problem, but change starts with every individual 77

reducing their plastic waste. After banning plastic bags, which is a good start, we need largescale global bans on throw-away plastic containers, including water bottles, juice or drink bottles and other packing materials. With a right solution and after spreading information I think we could change the situation or at least we could improve it.

PHOTOS 9,10,11: CLEAN OCEAN

4.) Sources - wikipedija, onesnaĹževanje morja - national geographic, marine pollution - photos: marine pollution, ocean, oil spill, toxic waste, marine pollution animals

PLASTIC OCEANS Eva Potokar

Every year, ocean is more polluted and people are the biggest polluters and the biggest problem for nature in general. Our oceans are full of waste: plastic bottles, corks, plastic bags etc. Plastic is the name we give to a group of substances mostly made from carbon based molecules arranged in many repeat units in long chain known as a polymer. Plastic is very hard to break down. In the natural environment, the main things that break down plastics are sunlight, oxygen and water. Because of the currents in the ocean, we have points â&#x20AC;&#x201C; enormous areas where is the most of plastic waste, for example the part between Hawaii and California. The biggest worry is the fact that the plastic on the sea surface is only 5% of all the plastic waste in the sea, the other 95% is under the sea surface and endangers animals. The research has shown, that Asian countries: China, Indonesia, Philippines, Tailand and Vietnam throw the most plastic waste in the ocean, about 60% of all the waste in the ocean is produced by them. There are a few reasons for that. One of them is that Asian countries started to pick up american consumer habits and the waste they are making, is not properly storaged and recycled and it ends up in the sea. Other possible reason is that rubbish dumps are located near sea or rivers and the wind blows waste in the sea. There has been made a catamaran called The Plastiki is an innovative catamaran which included using 12,500 postconsumer plastic bottles for buoyancy. Their mission is to witness some of the most devastating waste accumulation on our planet, including the Pacific Garbage Patch. Big problem is also the difference in the packaging of products, for example shampoos. In Europe and America cosmetic products are storaged in bigger packaging then in Asia, they have small package for every product which means they produce more plastic. Because of all of this reasons, humans throw about eight million tons of plastic waste per year in the ocean. It is really hard to quantify just how much plastic is in the ocean, but the latest figures estimate there are up to 51 trillion particles or 236,000 tones. Between now and 2028 we will produce as much plastic as we produced [from the 1950s] until now. This is becoming a huge problem these days, because many sea animals and also birds are endangered by that. They get stuck in dropped fishing nets or they die when plastic, they ate gets into their stomach. The research has estimated that between 5,000 and 15,000 sea turtles are entangled each year by derelict fishing gear washing ashore in northern Australia. In plastic, there are many chemicals and when fish eats a piece of plastic, those chemicals get in her body, and maybe the fish does not die but the person who eats this fish gets those chemicals in his body. That means that plastic does bad also to humans but we just have not realized it yet. And because this is endangering everybody, we should do something to stop that. Picture 1 : Animal eating plastic

Picture 8: Plastic waste on the sea shore

Picture 3: Animal stuck in fishing nets

Because this problem is becoming more and more important, there is an organisation called Plastic Oceans Foundation, which engages people of all ages, to understand the danger of continuing to perceive plastic to be disposable. When they become aware of the ultimate threat to human health, it will become personal choice to prevent plastic in the oceans. To inform people about this important topic, they use films and pictures, so that people can imagine it better. The foundation has its own website, where you can see their projects and films. About plastic in the ocean there is also a film called A Plastic Ocean in which people reveal what is really happening in our oceans and try to aware others and to encourage them, to start behaving more responsibly. There is also campaign called Clean Seas, which is urging governments to pass plastic reduction policies, targeting industry to minimize plastic packaging and redesign products and calling on consumers to change their throwaway habits, before irreversible damage is done.

And there definitely is a way to stop this. We started to live irresponsibly and use plastic more than it is necessary. A fact that should worry us is definitely that every year we use 63 billion liters of oil just to provide USA with water bottles which are in 90% used only once. This is unnecessary because there are other ways we could find to provide people with water. But USA is not the only country responsible for what is happening in the ocean. In Europe 39.9% of plastic is used only for packaging, also 96% of floating litter sampled in the Mediterranean is plastic. Plastic has been found in depths up to 3000m in the Mediterranean. Plastic is very big problem, because it takes long time for plastic to break down. Here are some examples: Apple core Cigarette butt newspaper Styrofoam cup Plastic bottle Fishing line

Two months 1-5 years 6 weeks 50 years 450 years 600 years

Plastic bag is a product that everybody uses for shopping and it is also a product that is very harmful for our environment. It is easy for wind to carry and because of that it can ends up anywhere. A lot of plastic bags and other plastic end up in the great pacific garbage patch. That is an area in the Pacific Ocean where plastic gets stuck in because of the currents and then breaks down into smaller pieces and continues its way in the ocean. In my opinion each of us can do something to help with this environmental issue. We can make sure, that we never dump any waste in the ocean, we can use less plastic, for example we can buy products in bigger package and reuse our shopping bags, we could also start using biodegradable plastics, made out of plants. I think, we can see that the world is becoming aware of this huge problem, for example stores are offering reusable shopping bags that are not made of plastic, some of the shops have offers, you bring five empty packages of their products and you get a new product for free and the packages you bring back, they recycle. This is a great idea, because people are satisfied when they get a product for free and they are also doing well for the environment. I think we need to take care of our sea and not only use it as a tourist attraction and place to get our food but also to make sure it is clean and if we do not want to swim in between plastic bags we should take this problem very seriously and finally do something about it.

Sources: https://www.plasticoceans.org/ , 2.1.2018 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zrn4-FfbXw , 2.1.2018 http://www.slovenskenovice.si/novice/svet/kdo-zmece-najvec-plastike-v-oceane, 2.1.2018 https://www.podcvetococesnjo.si/ , 2.1.2018 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLgh9h2ePYw, 18.1.2018 https://meilin5giantclam.wordpress.com/2017/10/18/plastic-oceans-plastic-seafood/ 18.1.2018

https://waste-management-world.com/a/in-depth-celebrity-backing-as-un-declares-war-onplastic-waste-in-the-oceans, 18.1.2018 https://21stcenturychallenges.org/plastic-pollution-in-the-ocean/, 18.1.2018 http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2017-02-27/plastic-and-plastic-wasteexplained/8301316, 18.1.2018 http://bit.ly/2EjYDVv, 2.1.2018 https://www.google.si/search?q=plastic+ocean&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUK Ewjk8sSf68bYAhUELlAKHe7ABEQ_AUICigB&biw=1280&bih=628#imgrc=0IFw6ptw5WTffM:&spf=1515362063638, 2.1.2018 https://www.google.si/search?q=plastic+ocean&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUK Ewjk8sSf68bYAhUELlAKHe-7ABEQ_AUICigB&biw=1280&bih=628#imgrc=xxchaCOi0GNVM:&spf=1515362063638, 2.1.2018

ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY: THE INFLUENCE OF LIGHT POLLUTION ON THE SEA ECOSYSTEM Eva Sajko

ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY AND SEA ECOSYSTEM An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem in a body of water. Communities of organisms that are dependent on each other and on their environment live in aquatic ecosystems. The two main types of aquatic ecosystems are marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystems. Marine waters cover two-thirds of the surface of the Earth. These ecosystems are essential for the overall health of both marine and terrestrial environments. Marine ecosystems usually have a large biodiversity and are therefore thought to have a good resistance against invasive species. However, exceptions have been observed, and the mechanisms responsible in determining the success of an invasion are not yet clear. First of all, we have to clear up what ecosystem diversity really means. The ecosystem diversity deals with the variations in ecosystems within a geographical location and its overall impact on human existence and the environment. Diversity in the ecosystem is significant to human existence for a variety of reasons. For example: Ecosystem diversity boosts the availability of oxygen via the process of photosynthesis amongst plant organisms domiciled in the habitat. Diversity in an aquatic environment helps in the purification of water by plant varieties for use by humans. Diversity increases plant varieties which serve as a good source for medicines and herbs for human use. A lack of diversity in the ecosystem produces an opposite result. This basically means that water and land animals, plans, humans and all other organisms canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t live without each other.

LIGHT IN THE SEA Firstly I would describe how the ecosystem diversity affects the light in the sea and the living organism in the sea. On land, most photosynthesis occurs at or just above ground level, and there is no easily visible change in light as the altitude increases. Things are quite different in the sea! Photosynthesis can only occur when enough light penetrates down the water column. This area is called the photic zone and varies from a few meters to as deep as 150 meters in some places. The amount of light that can penetrate the surface is limited by a number of factors. For example, rays of light that approach at a low angle (at sunrise and sunset) are immediately reflected off the surface. Particles of organic matter and sediments from land also affect how much light is absorbed. All primary productivity occurs in the photic zone, and as a result, about 90% of all marine life lives in this upper zone. Because of all the trash and pollution we put out to the sea, the animals have to adapt and start living in the upper zone. They are reaching for the light so they could use photosynthesis and therefore stay alive. Have a look from a different prospective? How would we feel if the sunlight has been taken away? Sunlight is needed for plants to grow, animals to live, people need sunlight for energy and work, for sunbathing and other multiple reasons. Now we put a cloud of plastic and pollution on the earth ozone layer and there is no more bright sunlight. How would we feel? The life would be much more dark, sad and depressing, but if we lost the sunlight completely, the human race would not exist anymore. Maybe a few persons would have survived, but they would have hard time adapting. We should ask ourselves why we are doing something like that to sea organisms and how we would feel if somebody did that to us? Are we not aware that if ecosystem diversity of sea is gone away, so are we?

POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE IMPACT There is no doubt that human civilization has had a negative impact on biodiversity, particularly since the industrial revolution. Overfishing and hunting, the destruction of habitats through agriculture and urban sprawl, the use of pesticides and herbicides and the release of other toxic compounds into the environment have all taken their toll, particularly on vertebrates. But it's not all bad news. Many animal and plant species have adapted to the new stresses, food sources, predators and threats in urban and suburban environments, where they thrive in close proximity to humans. Their success provides researchers with valuable—and sometimes unexpected—insights into evolutionary and selective processes. Humans use the influence of light on several kinds of organisms to great advantage. For example, for centuries fishermen have deployed lanterns to attract fish to their nets, while 86

modern day natural resource managers set out lights to attract larval fish to coral reefs to boost fish stocks and thus enhance biodiversity. LIGHT POLLUTION IN THE SEA Light pollution of the sea has only become a really significant issue over the last 50–80 years. It has been defined as the ‘‘degradation of the photic habitat by artificial light”. In other words, light pollution occurs when organisms are exposed to light in the wrong place, at the wrong time or at the wrong intensity. In the sea, the behavior, reproduction and survival of marine invertebrates, amphibians, fish and birds have been shown to be influenced by artificial lights. These effects arise from changes in orientation, disorientation, or misorientation and attraction or repulsion from altered light environments. In animals exhibiting compulsive stimulus behavior, the strength and number of artificial lights may override any feedback control mechanisms. This is exemplified by sea turtles hatchlings that rely on visual cues to orient themselves seaward, which consequently renders them vulnerable to light pollution. In one anecdotal report, 500 green sea turtle hatchlings crawled to their deaths in an unattended bonfire on a beach of Ascension Island. On a Turkish beach, light pollution arising from a paper mill, a tourist resort and a coastal village led to less than 40% of loggerhead turtle hatchlings reaching the surf. Other ecological effects of light pollution include disruption of predator–prey relationships. For example, in the illuminated areas in harbors, seals can easily catch the juvenile salmons as they migrated downstream. Predation falls off when the lights are turned off in zooplankton, vertical migrations in the water column with the day–night cycle help to reduce predation by fish and other marine organisms, when light is available. Artificial light disturbs this activity. Community changes arising from light pollution may have different effects for ecosystem functions. Even remote areas can still be exposed to sky glow.

Environmental pollution and biodiversity: Light pollution and sea turtles in the Caribbean 87

We examine the impact of pollution on biodiversity by studying the effect of coastal light pollution on the sea turtle population in the Caribbean. To this end we assemble a panel data set of sea turtle nesting activity and satellite-derived measures of nighttime light. Controlling for the surveyor effort, the local economic infrastructure and spatial spillovers, we find that nighttime light significantly reduces the number of sea turtle nests. According to data on replacement costs for sea turtles raised in captivity, our result suggests that the increase in lighting over the last two decades has resulted in the loss of close to 1800 sea turtles in the Caribbean, worth up to $288 million. MY OPINION: I personally think that we are not aware enough of what it is happening in the world. When I started this project I had no idea what I would find out. We hear about environment only when the catastrophe strikes. We are unaware that it is almost too late for us and that we should have done something before. From now on I think I will care much more for the environment and rethink more where to put trash and do things that can help and improve our environment. If only we could change some bad habits that have negative impact for the environment, like stop smoking or putting away trash responsibly and more organized, the world would be a better and a safer place. SOURCES:       

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecosystem_diversity https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/141-environmental-conditionsaffecting-the-sea https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1852758/ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/45827459_Light_pollution_in_the_sea https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0095069616000097 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_ecosystem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_ecosystem

OCEAN ACIDIFICATION Kaja Možina Artač

Ocean acidification is sometimes called “climate change’s equally evil twin,” and for good reason: it's a significant and harmful consequence of excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that we don't see or feel because its effects are happening underwater. At least one-quarter of the carbon dioxide (CO2) released by burning coal, oil and gas doesn't stay in the air, but instead dissolves into the ocean. Since the beginning of the industrial era, the ocean has absorbed some 525 billion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, presently around 22 million tons per day. At first, scientists thought that this might be a good thing because it leaves less carbon dioxide in the air to warm the planet. But in the past decade, they’ve realized that this slowed warming has come at the cost of changing the ocean’s chemistry. When carbon dioxide dissolves in seawater, the water becomes more acidic and the ocean’s pH drops. Even though the ocean is immense, enough carbon dioxide can have a major impact. In the past 200 years alone, ocean water has become 30 percent more acidic which is faster than any known change in ocean chemistry in the last 50 million years. Scientists formerly didn’t worry about this process because they always assumed that rivers carried enough dissolved chemicals from rocks to the ocean to keep the ocean’s pH stable. But so much carbon dioxide is dissolving into the ocean so quickly that this natural buffering hasn’t been able to keep up, resulting in relatively rapidly dropping pH in surface waters. As those surface layers gradually mix into deep water, the entire ocean is affected. Such a relatively quick change in ocean chemistry doesn’t give marine life, which evolved over millions of years in an ocean with a generally stable pH, much time to adapt. In fact, the shells of some animals are already dissolving in the more acidic seawater, and that’s just one way that acidification may affect ocean life. Overall, it's expected to have dramatic and mostly negative impacts on ocean ecosystems—although some species are finding ways to adapt to the changing conditions.

OCEAN ACIDIFICATION REASONS

However, while the chemistry is predictable, the details of the biological impacts are not. Although scientists have been tracking ocean pH for more than 30 years, biological studies really only started in 2003, when the rapid shift caught their attention and the term "ocean acidification" was first coined. What we do know is that things are going to look different, and we can't predict in any detail how they will look. Some organisms will survive or even thrive under the more acidic conditions while others will struggle to adapt, and may even go extinct. Beyond lost biodiversity, acidification will affect fisheries and aquaculture, threatening food security for millions of people, as well as tourism and other sea-related economies.

A MORE ACIDIC OCEAN

ACIDIFICATION CHEMISTRY At its core, the issue of ocean acidification is simple chemistry. There are two important things to remember about what happens when carbon dioxide dissolves in seawater. First, the pH of seawater water gets lower as it becomes more acidic. Second, this process binds up carbonate ions and makes them less abundant—ions that corals, oysters, mussels, and many other shelled organisms need to build shells and skeletons.

IMPACT ON OCEAN LIFE The pH of the ocean fluctuates within limits as a result of natural processes, and ocean organisms are well-adapted to survive the changes that they normally experience. Some marine species may be able to adapt to more extreme changes—but many will suffer, and there will likely be extinctions. We can't know this for sure, but during the last great acidification event 55 million years ago, there were massive extinctions in some species. A more acidic ocean won’t destroy all marine life in the sea, but the rise in seawater acidity of 30 percent that we have already seen is already affecting some ocean organisms.

FOR EXAMPLE: CORAL REEFS Acidification may limit coral growth by corroding pre-existing coral skeletons while simultaneously slowing the growth of new ones, and the weaker reefs that result will be more vulnerable to erosion. This erosion will come not only from storm waves, but also from animals that drill into or eat coral. By the middle of the century, it’s possible that even otherwise healthy coral reefs will be eroding more quickly than they can rebuild. Acidification may also impact corals before they even begin constructing their homes.

CORAL REEFS

Acidification may also be dangerous for other sea animals and plants, for example: Oysters, Mussels, Urchin, Starfish, Plants and Algae.

STARFISH

URCHIN

MY OPINION: The way I see it, ocean acidification is caused by human pollution, as its also one of the less well known problems associated with global warming. I don’t see a quick solution to stop ocean acidification, until we bring our carbon emissions under control. As I said before, there’s no quick solution to end this problem, but we can still do some of preventative strategies which can reduce the effect of ocean acidification. For example:

By eating less red meat, you are contributing less to farming emissions Save electricity and water Educate about ocean acidification

I think more people should know and educate about ocean acidification. When I started reading all the articles about it, I was shocked about what is actually happening in this world that we’re living in and that so many people still probably don’t know about it. We all worry about what we can’t afford, the car we’re driving, what the girl that you don’t like is wearing today and so many other stuff that are important to us now, but nobody worries about our planet and the safety of swimming in the ocean, drinking water and so on… These are actually the important stuff we should think about and try and save these problems because if we don’t start doing it nobody will. Sadly, the government holds the power to make large policy and educational changes to reduce carbon emissions and prevent ocean acidification. So we should talk about it, send letters, join protests or other stuff to show the government that we care for our environment! VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7h08ok3hFSs

SOURCES: https://greentumble.com/how-to-prevent-ocean-acidification/ https://www.quora.com/How-can-ocean-acidification-be-prevented http://www.delo.si/novice/okolje/zakisanje-bo-prizadelo-vse-zivljenje-v-morju.html http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-acidification https://www.nrdc.org/stories/what-you-need-know-about-ocean-acidification

WHALING (Whale hunt) Brina Gomboc

1. ABOUT WHALING Whaling is the practice of hunting whales for their meat, oil and various body parts. The one who hunts whales is called a whaler. Whalers would hunt and kill many of the large whales and many industries would use the whales body parts to make a variety of goods such as transmission oil, candle wax, cooking margarine, jewelry which was made from whale bone, toys for example chess pieces, work and hunting tools that are made from the bone and ivory, and whale meat. Whale meat is now considered a delicacy in some countries.

Picture 1 – Whale (sperm) oil, laces and candle wax

Picture 2 – Whale meat

Whaling has been done at least since 3000 BC. Many communities on the coast have done whaling for food for a long time. They have also killed stranded whales. Industrialization started in the 17th century and also affected whaling. Special ships were built for whaling, and whales were hunted until they were almost extinct. As technology improved and demand for the seemingly huge resources remained high, far more whales were killed than were born. In the late 1930s more than 50,000 whales were killed each year. By the middle of the 20th century, there were not enough whales and they were at risk of becoming extinct. In 1986, the International Whaling Commissioning (IWC) reduced a ban on commercial whaling so that whales might recover. Pro-whaling countries, such as Iceland, Japan, and Norway, wish to lift the ban on certain whale stocks for hunting. Antiwhaling countries and environmental groups oppose lifting the ban. Picture 3 – Killed whales on a ship

IWC recognizes three different types of whaling: 

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Aboriginal subsistence whaling to support the needs of indigenous communities. This is regulated by the IWC which sets catch limits every six years. Commercial whaling. The only commercial whaling conducted at present is by a small number of countries exercising an objection or reservation to the moratorium. Special permit (or scientific) whaling

2. THE HISTORY OF HUNTING Whales have a thick layer of fat under their skin called blubber. The Eskimos depended for many years on the whales. They used every part of the whale. One whale could feed the whole Eskimo community, so whales were very important to them. Blubber wasn't only used by Eskimos. Soon it became a product everybody wanted. This was because before electricity was invented, blubber was used as oil for lamps. They also used whale blubber to oil machines and make expensive makeup. Because of this, people hunted and killed whales to make money. The hunters were following the whales’ path in the ocean and killed them with no mercy. It was a dangerous job. They used harpoons. They had a switch blade on the end that would stay in the whale's skin. Once the harpoon was in the whale, the whale would start swimming as fast as it could. The whale might swim with no stop for several days. Eventually, the tired and hurt whale would stop. The whalers would then kill the whale with one last harpoon. After some time, they started using bigger ships and began using a harpoon that had a grenade inside.

Picture 4 - Early whaling harpoons

Picture 5 – Hunting whales in history

3. WHALING NOW AND IN THE FUTURE Despite the 1986 IWC ban on commercial whaling, some countries refuse to end their whaling operations and that are, as I mentioned before Iceland, Japan and Norway. Almost immediately after the whaling ban came into effect, Japan launched its scientific whaling program, widely recognized as a cover for its ongoing commercial whaling operation. The whaling fleet departs twice a year. Each year they have been killing up to 935 minke whales and 50 fin whales each year in the Southern Ocean Sanctuary before the International Court of Justice ruled that this was illegal. Norway respected the ban until 1993, after that they resumed hunting minke whales. Norway sets its own quota for the number of whales its whalers are permitted to kill for commercial reasons. This number has gone up, from being allowed to kill 671 minke whales in 2002 to more than 1,000 today. Now Norway is hunting more breeding females, which can bring the survival of the minke whales in danger. Picture 6 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Hunting whale season in Norway

Like Japan, Iceland organized a 'scientific' whaling program. In 2006, Iceland resumed commercial whaling, targeting minke and fin whales. In 2010 alone, Icelandic whalers killed 148 endangered fin whales and 60 minke whales.

Picture 7,8 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fin and Minke whale â&#x20AC;&#x201C; most hunted whales

I think that the issue about whaling isn't settled. As long as whaling nations are allowed to hunt whales, they will continue. And as long as the countries will use the system and hunt whales even though it's illegal, I think the problem won't go away. But there will always be the anti-whalers who vow to continue to fight to make sure that whales will never again be hunted and killed for man's financial gain. Personally I don't agree with whaling, I think there is no need to hunt whales. Their meat could be replaced with beef (Whale meat supposedly tastes like beef), and also it isn't that important to us. But if someone or a group caught a whale, they could at least use all of its body parts and not just some and throw everything else away. I agree that whaling should be 100% illegal, because there are already a small number of whales in the oceans. SOURCES       

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaling http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20151203-why-do-some-countries-still-huntwhales https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaling http://www.ifaw.org/united-states/our-work/whales/which-countries-are-stillwhaling https://iwc.int/whaling https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/conservation/issues/whaling1.ht m http://www.whalefacts.org/whale-hunting/

PICTURES      

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Picture 1 : https://www.rafaelosonaauction.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/544199_7-4291_101-Whale-Oil_Soap_Laces-_7392-2-1140x736.jpg Picture 2: https://fortunedotcom.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/gettyimages484484988.jpg Picture 3: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/9Yt2wxJ0cSw/VXFX9tFFlsI/AAAAAAAACI8/N1ziC5StE3M/s640/03_29160254_231205 _2360057a.jpg Picture 4: https://mathotter.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/early-whalingharpoons.jpg Picture 5: https://omicron.aeon.co/images/6469aa6b-fea6-4a05-8bf4b5e9f520156e/idea_sized-walvisvangst_bij_de_kust_van_spitsbergen__dutch_whalers_near_spitsbergen_abraham_storck_1690.jpg Picture 6: https://www.maritimeexecutive.com/media/images/article/Photos/Animals/Cropped/norwegian%20whali ng%20credit%20greenpeace%2016x9.jpg Picture 7: https://media1.britannica.com/eb-media/58/73258-004-B2943E63.jpg Picture 8: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7024QKdLrXE/S7gAngvDt_I/AAAAAAAAJ_k/sgwBeDVhKg/s1600/minke.jpg 98

OVERFISHING Hanna Laura Koželj

What is overfishing? Overfishing occurs when more fish are caught than the population can replace through natural reproduction. Faced with the collapse of large-fish populations, commercial fleets are going deeper in the ocean and further down the food chain for viable catches. This so-called "fishing down" is triggering a chain reaction that is upsetting the ancient and delicate balance of the sea's biologic system. With oceans taking up over 70% of the Earth, sea creatures and the overall health of marine life is essential for sustaining life elsewhere on the planet, but overfishing is having drastic effects on the future of both ocean and land dwellers. More than 30% of the world's fisheries have been pushed beyond their biological limits therefore in need of strict management plans to restore them. A study of catch data published in 2006 in the journal Science predicted that if fishing rates continue with this pace, all the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fisheries will have collapsed by the year 2048. Destructive fishing methods include the use of explosives to kill or stun fish, which destroys corals. This method, called blast or dynamite fishing, shatters coral colonies and kills the coral tissues on adjacent colonies.

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Effects: Removal of essential predators Targeted fishing of top predators (such as billfish, sharks and tuna) disrupts marine communities, causing increased abundance of smaller marine animals at the bottom of the food chain. This in turn has impacts on the rest of the marine ecosystem, such as the increased growth of algae and threats to coral reef health. Overfishing is also closely tied to bycatch, another serious marine threat that causes the needless loss of billions of fish, along with marine turtles and cetaceans. 

Decreased food security Coastal communities around the world depend on fish as their primary source of protein. Overfishing threatens their long-term food security, particularly in developing countries.

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Economic loss Fishing is integral to economies around the world. Overfishing threatens coastal nations down to the local level, devastating communities whose chief source of labor and revenue hinges on healthy, plentiful stocks of fish.

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Growth of algae

Solutions: Catching's control The use of techniques or management rules to prevent the unintentional killing and disposal of fish, crustaceans and other oceanic life not part of the target catch or landed 

Be informed Read up a bit on the issues of overfishing, have a look at some articles on this site, see if you can find some information regarding your local situation. Keep in mind that while this is a global problem every local situation is different.

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Monitoring and Enforcement A monitoring system to make sure fishermen do not land more than they are allowed to, do not fish in closed areas and cheat as less as possible. Strong monetary enforcement is needed to make it uneconomic to cheat.

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Protection of pristine and important habitats The key parts in ecosystems need full protection from destructive fisheries; e.g. the spawning and nursing grounds of fish, delicate sea floor, unique unexplored habitats, and corals.

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Educating retailers and consumers

Overfishing is a big threat to humanity as it is to our oceans. I believe we could repare some of the damage overfishing has done over the years even though the majority is irreversible. More people should educate themselves about this particular problem, we should adopt stricter measures to make fisheries more sustainable.

Sources: https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing https://en.reset.org/files/2012/10/10/ocean-threats_infographic.jpg https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/oceans/critical-issues-overfishing/ https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing

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DESALINATION Neža Jonozovič

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Water covers some 70% of the Earth's surface. Approximately 97.2% of it is saline, just 2.8% fresh. Uses of water include agricultural, industrial, household, recreational and environmental activities. Fresh water is a renewable resource, yet the world's supply of groundwater is steadily decreasing, with depletion occurring most prominently in Asia, South America and North America, although it is still unclear how much natural renewal balances this usage, and whether ecosystems are threatened. Water scarcity is the lack of sufficient available fresh water resources to meet water demand. It is manifested by partial or no satisfaction of expressed demand, economic competition for water quantity or quality, disputes between users, irreversible depletion of groundwater, and negative impacts on the environment. Two-thirds of the global population (4.0 billion people) live under conditions of severe water scarcity at least 1 month of the year. Half a billion people in the world face severe water scarcity all year round. The increasing world population, improving living standards, changing consumption patterns, and expansion of irrigated agriculture are the main driving forces for the rising global demand for water. Climate change, such as altered weather-patterns (including droughts or floods), deforestation, increased pollution, and wasteful use of water can cause insufficient supply. Sources where water may be obtained include:       

Ground sources such as groundwater, springs, hyporheic zones and aquifers Precipitation which includes rain, hail, snow, fog, etc. Surface water such as rivers, streams, glaciers Biological sources such as plants. Desalinated seawater Water supply network Atmospheric water generator.

Definition of desalination: the removal of salt or other chemicals from something, such as seawater or soil. Desalination has been known to history for millennia as both a concept, and later practice, though in a limited form. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle observed that “salt water, when it turns into vapour, becomes sweet and the vapour does not form salt water again when it condenses. There are numerous other examples of experimentation in desalination throughout Antiquity and the Middle Ages, but desalination was never feasible on a large scale until the modern era. Before the Industrial Revolution, desalination was primarily of concern to oceangoing ships, which otherwise needed to keep on board supplies of fresh water. Significant research into improved desalination methods occurred in the United States after World War II. Desalination of water is a process that extracts mineral components from saline water. Saline water (more commonly known as salt water) is water that contains a significant concentration of dissolved salts (mainly NaCl). Seawater is also salt water.

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Desalination can be achieved by means of evaporation, freezing, reverse osmosis, ion exchange, and electrodialysis. The most common desalination processes are distillation and reverse osmosis. Distillation is the oldest and most commonly used method of desalination. Distillation is a phase separation method whereby saline water is heated to produce water vapor, which is then condensed to produce freshwater.

Fig 1: Plant layout for low temperature thermal desalination plant

Fig 2: Plant Alfa Laval Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) equipment that converts seawater to high purity water for use in power plants

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In the reverse osmosis process, water from a pressurized saline solution is separated from the dissolved salts by flowing through a water-permeable membrane.

Fig 3: Reverse osmosis desalination plant diagram

Fig 4: Reverse osmosis desalination plant in Barcelona, Spain

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Saline water is desalinated to produce water suitable for human consumption or irrigation. Most of the modern interest in desalination is focused on cost-effective provision of fresh water for human use. Due to its energy consumption, desalinating sea water is generally more costly than fresh water from rivers or groundwater, water recycling and water conservation. Desalinated water is in some countries healthier than water from rivers and ground water, and there is less salt and limescale in it. Water desalination processes have contributed to a better standard of living in a number of countries during the second half of the 20th century, following an increase in water demand for drinking purposes as well as industrial and agricultural uses.

Agricultural use of water - center pivot irrigation system with drop sprinklers Irrigation can cause soil salinization. Salinization occurs when water-soluble salts accumulate in the soil to a level that impacts on agricultural production, environmental health, and economics. In the early stages, salinity affects the metabolism of soil organisms and reduces soil productivity, but in advanced stages it destroys all vegetation and other organisms living in the soil, consequently transforming fertile and productive land into barren and decertified lands.

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Despite the many benefits the technology of water desalination has to offer, concerns rose over potential negative impacts on the environment. Key issues are: ď&#x201A;ˇ

ď&#x201A;ˇ ď&#x201A;ˇ

the concentrate and chemical discharges to the environment (desalination processes produce large quantities of brine, possibly at above ambient temperature, and contain residues of pretreatment and cleaning chemicals, their reaction byproducts and heavy metals due to corrosion), the emissions of air pollutants and the energy demand of the processes (the majority of current and planned cogeneration desalination plants use either fossil fuels or nuclear power as their source of energy).

Fig 5: The Shevchenko BN350, a nuclear-heated desalination unit

To protect and preserve the environment, most countries turned to assess the environment impacts produced by desalination plants. Based on the above presentation, we can conclude that desalination of salt water remains necessary in certain areas and in certain cases (for example, for the production of drinking water, for irrigation of agricultural crops, etc.). Unfortunately it is often associated with environmental pollution and high costs, therefore it is often more rational to manage water resources in a sustainable way and to adjust the development policies to the available natural resources. Availability and quality of water in Slovenia are at a satisfying level, therefore desalination and its associated problems are for our country of marginal importance. 108

References: http://www.dictionary.com/browse/desalination https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desalination http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0011916407006005 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0011916405006041 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_water https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_resources#Water_stress https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_scarcity

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MODERN DAY PIRACY Tim Potokar

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Piracy was taught as a thing of the past for nearly 200 years. It made international trade by ships flourish and made everything much cheaper and globally accessible. Now more than 90% of the world trade travels by sea. Clothes, spices, food, fuelâ&#x20AC;Ś virtually everything we need or use comes to us by ships.

The world has five main piracy hotspots: The South China sea, The Gulf of Aiden, The Gulf of Guinea, Coast of Somalia and The Strait of Mallaca. Because of the threat getting bigger and bigger each year marine insurance has 10x in price in the last decade and consequently making consumer products increase in price. Because the rate of ships, taken by the pirates kept increasing over the years, many countries decided to send their naval forces to dangerous areas. Seaborn piracy against transport vessels remains a significant issue with estimated worldwide loses of around 16 billion dollars per year. Modern pirates favor small boats and taking advantage of the small number of crew members on modern cargo vessels. They also use large vessels to supply the smaller attack vessels.

Major shipping routes take cargo ships through narrow bodies of water such as the Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Malacca making them vulnerable to be overtaken and boarded by small motorboats. As usage increases, many of these ships have to lower cruising speeds to allow for navigation and traffic control, making them prime targets for piracy. Rather than cargo, modern pirates have targeted the personal belongings of the crew and the contents of the ship's safe, which potentially contains large amounts of cash needed for payroll and port fees. In other cases, the pirates force the crew off the ship and then sail it to a port to be repainted and given a new identity through false papers purchased from corrupt or complicit officials.

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Modern definitions of piracy include the following acts: boarding without permission, extortion, hostage taking, kidnapping of people for ransom, murder, cargo theft, robbery and seizure of items or the ship, sabotage resulting in the ship subsequently sinking, shipwrecking done intentionally to a ship. Ships protect themselves using shortwave radars, hiring armed security guards and boat stopping systems (hot water cannons, electricity, slippery foamâ&#x20AC;Ś) Piracy off the coast of Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the second phase of the Somali Civil War, around 2000, when foreign ships exploited the absence of an effective national coast guard by invading the fishing grounds and also dumping illegal waste that would further diminish the local catch. Fishing communities responded by forming armed groups to deter the invaders by hijacking commercial vessels. But this grew into a lucrative trade, with large ransom payments, and financial gain (piracy) was clearly the main motive. That made Somalia one of the first countries that had such a massive piracy increase in the early 2000s. The Somali government has been active in policing the area, though some believe that it wants to collaborate with the pirates as a bulwark against Islamist insurgents. Most of the Somalian pirates are young. An official list issued in 2010 by the Somali government of 40 apprehended pirate suspects noted that 80% were born in Somalia's southern conflict zones.

Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea affects a number of countries in West Africa as well as the wider international community. By 2011 it had become an issue of global concern. Pirates in the Gulf of Guinea are often part of heavily armed criminal enterprises, which employ violent methods to steal oil cargo. In 2012it was reported that the number of vessels attacks by West African pirates had reached a world high with 966 people attacked. According to the Control Risks Group, pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea had by mid-November 2013 maintained a steady level of around 100 attempted hijackings in the year, a close second behind Southeast Asia.

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The piracy increased and became a major problem in early 1980's. Since then, the number of recent pirates' attacks has risen slowly month by month, year by year. Between 1993 and 2003 the number of attacks tripled, and the first half of 2004, there were 200 cases of pirates' attacks reported worldwide. Difficulties with arresting modern pirates are similar as with “their ancestors”. The police do not have an authority and cannot do much at the open sea. Many countries even do not have a water police or military. Also, modern pirates use many old tricks and often hide behind flags of the state they choose to or just belong to, so it is not easy to recognize them. The authorities are not always against the pirates. Modern day pirates have a lot to do with globalization and structure of our modern world. As we can see from the statistics most of them appear in third world countries where they don’t get a real opportunity in making an honest living. Most pirates appeared after losing their land and houses in wars or after all their natural resources were taken by illegal fisherman from big corporations. They didn’t have any other options so they stopped them by taking their ships. Many of their governments are not interested in stopping pirates in their country as they massively spurs their damaged economy. Sources: •

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy#1990s%E2%80%932010s

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_in_the_Gulf_of_Guinea#/media/File:Gulf_of_Guinea_(E nglish).jpg

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_off_the_coast_of_Somalia

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_in_the_Strait_of_Malacca

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ships_attacked_by_Somali_pirates

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https://people.howstuffworks.com/pirate5.htm

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http://www.criminaljusticeusa.com/blog/2009/10-shocking-facts-about-modern-daypirates/

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_in_the_21st_century

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http://gcaptain.com/imb-worldwide-piracy-up-slightly-in-2017/

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https://www.oddee.com/item_100053.aspx

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https://mic.com/articles/72317/5-things-you-never-knew-about-modern-daypirates#.nkC2SMt2z

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https://www.google.si/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ve d=0ahUKEwjItLrroMjYAhXlIMAKHfobDJQQjRwIBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.google.com%2 Fa%2Fuconn.edu%2Fjsd14003%2Fguns&psig=AOvVaw0esUMMLUEqbrS_8wrbBOg&ust=1515497107997654

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http://www.ebru.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/maxresdefault.jpg

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MARICULTURE Valentin Marolt

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Mariculture is a specialized branch of aquaculture that involves the cultivation of marine organisms for food and other products in the open ocean, an enclosed section of the ocean, or in tanks, ponds or raceways, filled with sea water. Aquaculture however means farming fish, crustaceans, molluscs, aquatic plants, algae, and other aquatic organisms. It involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions. Mariculture refers to aquaculture practiced in marine environments and in underwater habitats.

In Slovenia, mariculture includes breeding of all seawater organisms, plants and animals in sea or costal land. Currently there are 2 fish farms and 26 clam farms. In Slovenian territorial waters, the fish farms and necessary equipment are in the bay of Saint Jernej, near Debeli Rtič. The cage for fish breeding is a floating platform, under which are nets, ingrained to the bottom of the sea. The cages are exclusively in Sečovlje, Piran bay. They mostly breed sea bass. Clam farms are areas for aquaculture of mussels, on which the mussels are held on. The equipment necessary is nets and buoys. Concession for economical use of water is also necessary for the growth of sea organisms.

Methods to cultivate or farm are: 

Algae – the majority of algae that are intentionally cultivated fall into the category of microalgae. Microalgae, commonly known as seaweed, also have many industrial uses, but due to their size and the specific requirements of the environment in which they need to grow, they aren't the best for cultivation, but with the advent of newer 115

seaweed cultivators this may change. The most important factors for algae cultivation are carbon dioxide, light energy and water. This is called autotrophic growth. Certain types of algae however can grow without light. Those consume sugars such as glucose. This is known as heterotrophic growth. The temperature should usually be between 15˚C and 35˚C. In a typical algal-cultivation system, light only penetrates the top 7,5-10 cm of the water, through this depends on the algae density. As the algae grow and multiply, the culture becomes so dense that it blocks light from reaching deeper into the water. To use deeper ponds, growers agitate the water, circulating the algae so that it does not remain on the surface. Agitation also helps prevent over-exposure to the sun. Nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium serve as fertilizers for the algae, and are generally necessary for growth.

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Shellfish – Similar to algae cultivation, shellfish can be farmed in multiple ways, such as on ropes, in bags or cages or directly on the intertidal substrate. Shellfish mariculture does not require feed or fertilizer inputs, nor insecticides or antibiotics, making shellfish mariculture a self-supporting system. Shellfish can also be used in multi-species cultivation techniques, where shellfish can utilize waste generated by higher trophic level organisms.

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Artificial reefs – in Western Australia, a sea ranch was set up, to raise abalone. The abalone feed on seaweed that has grown naturally on the habitats. Enrichment of the bay also resulted in growing numbers of pink snapper, wrasse, Samson fish among other species.

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Open ocean – use of cages, nets or long-line arrays that are moored, towed or float freely. The largest deep water open ocean farm in the world is raising cobia 12 km off the northern coast of Panama in highly exposed sites. 

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Enhanced stocking – also known as sea ranching is a Japanese principle based on operant conditioning (strength of a behavior that is modified by reward or punishment). The fishermen raise hatchlings in a closely knitted net in a harbor, sounding an underwater horn before each feeding. When the fish are old enough they are freed from the net to mature in the open sea. During spawning season most of the fish return to their birthplace. The fishermen sound the horn and then net those fish that respond.

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Seawater ponds – fish are raised in ponds which receive water from the sea. This has the benefit that the nutrition like microorganisms, present in the seawater can be used. This is a great advantage over traditional fish farms for which the farmers buy feed. Other advantages are that water purification plants may be planted in the ponds to eliminate the buildup of nitrogen, from fecal and other contamination. Also, the ponds can be left unprotected from natural predators, providing another kind of filtering.

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Environmental effects Mariculture has rapidly expanded over the last two decades due to new technology, improvements in formulated feeds, greater biological understanding of farmed species, increased water quality within closed farm systems, greater demand for seafood products, site expansion and government interest. Consequently, mariculture has been subject to some controversy regarding its social and environmental impacts. Commonly identified environmental impacts from marine farms are:  Wastes from cage cultures  Farm escapees  Genetic pollution and disease and parasite transfer  Habitat modification As with most farming practices, the degree of environmental impact depends on the size of the farm, the cultured species, stock density, type of feed, hydrography (branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers) of the site, and husbandry (dayto-day care, selective breeding and the raising of livestock) methods. 1. Wastes from cage cultures: in cage culture, several different methods are used for feeding farmed fish – from simple hand feeding to sophisticated computer-controlled systems with automated food dispenses coupled with sensors that detect consumption rates. In coastal farms, overfeeding primarily leads to increased disposition of detritus on the seafloor, while in hatcheries and land-based farms, excess food goes to waste and can potentially impact the surrounding catchment and local coastal environment. 2. Farm escapees: the impact of escapees from aquaculture operations depends on whether or not there are wild conspecifics or close relatives in the receiving environment, and whether or not the escapee is reproductively capable. Escapees can adversely impact local ecosystems through hybridization and loss of genetic diversity in native, stocks, increase negative interactions within an ecosystem, disease transmission and habitat changes. 3. Genetic pollution, disease, and parasite transfer: farmed stocks are often selectively bred to increase disease and parasite resistance, as well as improving growth rates and quality of products. Non-indigenous species which are farmed may have resistance to, or carry, diseases which could be spread through wild populations if they escape into those wild populations. Such new diseases would be devastating for those wild populations because they would have no immunity to them. 4. Habitat modification: most mariculture causes minimal destruction to habitats. The destruction of mangrove forests from the farming of shrimps is of concern. Mangrove forests provide rich matrices which support a great deal of biodiversity – predominately juvenile fish and crustaceans. Furthermore, they improve water quality by processing material and filtering sediments. 118

In my opinion mariculture as well as aquaculture is a quite important way of getting food to eat without affecting the population of certain species too much. There might be certain problems with our ways of getting food, but I don't think that an effective way of getting food without problems even exists. And even the above listed problems are well taken care of. And the systems are still changing and evolving. Experts of the International Association of Universities are studying global internationalization trends, analyzing the advantages of internationalization and exploring the most common elements of internationalization strategies. Demands for seafood have also grown greatly. The harvesting of wild seafood is usually known as fishing. Seafood is often also distinguished from meat, although it is still animal and is excluded in a strict vegetarian diet. As mentioned before most of the seafood harvest is consumed by humans, but a significant proportion is used as fish food to farm other fish or rear farm animals. Some seafood is also used as food for other plants as fertilizer, which is also really important. In these ways, seafood is indirectly used to produce further food for human consumption. Products, such as fish oil and spirulina tablets are also extracted from seafood. Fish oil is usually consumed in capsules and it can prevent heart attacks and strokes, while spirulina represents a biomass of cyanobacteria and is used as a feed supplement in the aquaculture, aquarium and poultry industries. The harvesting, processing, and consuming of seafoods are ancient practices with archaeological evidence. The ancient river Nile was full of fish. Fresh and dried fish were a staple food for most of the population. The Egyptians had implements and methods for fishing and these are illustrated in tomb scenes, drawings, and papyrus documents. Aquaculture is more overall more "popular" than wild capture as seen in this graph:

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There are different ways of farming or harvesting sea creatures for food and other uses. It may get better in the future but the farmers are doing a great job at it at this point. There are some risks (for example infection) farmers need to take but I feel like those risks are going to get smaller and smaller with modern technology still evolving. Mariculture is doing a great job by providing us lots of food without to much effort and I hope it will not disappear. Sources:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seafood  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariculture  https://www.um.si/en/quality/Pages/Internationalization-as-a-tool-for-qualitydevelopment.aspx  http://www.mkgp.gov.si/delovna_podrocja/ribistvo/akvakultura/marikultura/

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CLIMATE CHANGES AND OCEANS Anja Vrtačič

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An ocean is a large area of salt water between continents. Oceans are critical for survival of all people across the planet – absorbs around a third of the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by humans and reduces the impact of climate change. Our rainwater, drinking water, weather, climate, coastlines, much of our food, and even the oxygen in the air we breathe, are all ultimately provided and regulated by the sea. They cover 72% of our planet; we have Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean and Southern Ocean. The Pacific Ocean is the largest on our planet. It fills the area between the western coastline of the Americas, the eastern coastlines of Asia and Australia, and is capped to the North and South by the Arctic and Antarctic regions. It also holds the deepest point on the earth’s sea floor. The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest ocean on Earth. It is bounded by the Americas to its west and by the western shores of Europe and Africa to its east. It includes the Mediterranean, Caribbean and Baltic Seas, and the Gulf of Mexico. The Indian Ocean covers a 73,556,000 km² area between the eastern coast of Africa, the shores of the Middle East and India to its north, and is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by Southeast Asia and Australia/Oceania. The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the five Oceans, and falls mostly within the Arctic Circle. It is surrounded by the Eurasian and North American continents, and includes Hudson Bay and the North and Barents Seas. Throughout the year, it's mostly frozen and the ice is usually hundreds of feet thick. The Southern Ocean is larger than the Arctic Ocean. It surrounds the circumference of the continent of Antarctica, and touches each of the other oceans except for the Arctic Ocean.

Picture 3: The oceans of the world

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There are five major effects on how climatic changes affect oceans: 1. A Warmer Ocean The cause is that ocean has absorbed 80 percent of the heat added to the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s system by climate change. This has a big effect on the seafloor. Heating the oceans causes coral bleaching a stress response caused by high water temperatures that can lead to coral death. It can force many species to migrate so they can maintain the temperature conditions they need for survival. Alteration to water temperature can directly impact development, age of sexual maturity, timing of spawning, growth, and survival of most fish and cephalopods.

Picture 4: Coral bleaching- before and after 2. Melting of the Poles The cause is raising greenhouse gases causing increased atmospheric warming cause polar ice to melt. Diminished sea ice results in the loss of vital habitat for seals, walruses, polar bears, penguin, orcas, minke whales and other mega fauna in the Arctic and Antarctic. Also sea ice is a critical habitat for Antarctic krill, which are the food source for many seabirds and mammals in the Southern Ocean. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s as well important because the production of algae in polar marine environments depends on the presence of sea ice. Algae are the foundation of most of the Arctic food web and support numerous important species. 3. Rising Sea Levels The cause is warmer water, melting ice and glaciers all of that raises sea levels. Global sea levels may rise by as much as 69cm during the next 100 years due to melting of glaciers and polar ice, and thermal expansion of warmer water. Rising water levels will have serious impacts on marine ecosystems. As seawater reaches farther inland, it can cause destructive erosion, wetland flooding, aquifer and agricultural soil contamination, and lost habitat for fish, birds, and plants.

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4. Changes to the Oceanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Major Current Systems The cause is change in ocean temperatures and wind patterns that will result in overall climate change will affect and alter oceanic currents. It can affect many animalsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; migratory patterns of species that depend on ocean currents for reproduction and nutrients. 5. Ocean Acidification The cause is burning of fossil fuels that is increasing greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere, is also altering the chemical composition of seawater, and making it more acidic. Acidification directly harms the many ocean plants and animals that build shells of calcium carbonateâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;including many tropical reef building corals, coldwater corals, mollusks and other scallops, crustaceans such as lobsters and crabs, and some microscopic plankton that make up the foundation of the food web throughout most of the ocean. 6. Changes in storm patterns Global climate change is likely to drive changes in storm patterns. Tropical storms will probably be more intense, the frequency of these may increase. The number of all tropical storms globally may decrease or change little. Large storms can actually be beneficial to coral reefs. Hurricanes can mitigate coral bleaching by causing shortterm reductions in local sea temperatures, thus reducing thermal stress But tropical storms can also cause extensive damage to coral reef ecosystems by causing direct damage to the reef structure and can cause increases in sedimentation and runoff from land.

Picture 5: Effects on how climatic changes affect oceans 124

I think we can do a better job with keeping our planet safe and not affect biodiversity as much as we do now. If you won't do anything about in a short it will destroy our planet. I understand that climatic changes enormously affect oceans, but I also believe there is so much we can do in other (better) ways, that won't affect Earth as much. I think that's important that people know about what's happening in the world and how much things that we do in our everyday life affect biodiversity. We should really raise awareness about this problem because it affects all people.

Resources: https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/40/ https://sciencetrends.com/7-continents-map-printable-continents-5-oceans/ http://www.whatarethe7continents.com/the-worlds-five-great-oceans/ https://www.conservation.org/publications/Documents/CI_Five-Effects-of-Climate-Changeon-the-Ocean.pdf http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/blue_planet/problems/climate_change/ https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/oceans https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/coralreef-climate.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_global_warming_on_oceans#Climate_change https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_acidification http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-photos/ice-melt-poles http://www.reefresilience.org/coral-reefs/stressors/climate-and-ocean-change/ http://www.reefresilience.org/coral-reefs/stressors/climate-and-ocean-change/changes-instorm-patterns/

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DECADE OF OCEAN SCIENCE (2021-2030) Petra Grbić

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The UN Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has on 12/05/2017 announced to be leading the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (20212030) campaign to mobilize the scientific community, policy-makers, business and civil society around a program of joint research and technological innovation for better management of ocean and coastal zone resources and reducing maritime risks. UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay welcomed the announcement and called on all stakeholders to join the scientific cooperation effort of the Organization. “The ocean is a new frontier. It covers 71% of the globe and we have explored less than 5%. The Decade will ensure greater coordination of research. UNESCO’s IOC is proud to be at the forefront of this effort,” she said. Nearly 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity to meet their needs. However, science has not yet managed to fully evaluate the cumulative effects of human activities on the ocean, including the impact of pollution, warming and acidification, which threaten this environment, which is vital for our survival. Oceans – critical for survival of all people across the planet – absorbs around a third of the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by humans and reduces the impact of climate change. Surveying the ocean requires costly ships and equipment, satellite imaging, underwater robots and remotely controlled vehicles that need significant investment. It also involves thousands of scientists collecting and analyzing the data, either in laboratories or in marine environments. One of the priorities of the Decade will be to strengthen and diversify financial sources, particularly for Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries. By providing natural, yet innovative solutions for the major challenges facing the planet from climate change to poverty eradication—the ocean is essential for ensuring our social, economic and environmental balance. This Decade will provide a framework for international coordination and partnership to reinforce research capacities in marine sciences and the transfer of technology. The Decade of Ocean Science will help accelerate progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 14 (link is external) for the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean, seas and marine resources. This announcement affirms the UN Member States’ support for the IOC-UNESCO initiative expressed during the UN Ocean Conference (New York, 5-9 June) and by the Ministerial Declaration on Oceans and Human Health (Lisbon, 8 September,).

The Decade will act to fill major gaps in our knowledge of the ocean and ability to sustainable manages its resources: -there is no internationally-agreed methodology for estimating the economic value of services the ocean provides to humankind; -science cannot yet meaningfully evaluate the cumulative impacts of climate change, marine pollution and other anthropogenic stresses on the health of the ocean ecosystem; 127

-for 99% of habitable marine areas, we lack the basic biodiversity knowledge we require for effective management; -only 5% of the ocean floor has been mapped and only 1% of this mapped area has been gridded at high resolution; -103 million square miles of the deep sea exist in perpetual darkness and up to a million marine species could still be unknown to science; -only 3 humans have explored the deepest known point of the ocean.

Through wide consultations with all relevant stakeholders, the Decadeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s preparatory process will propose specific objectives and deliverables to be achieved by 2030. In calling for the Decade at the UN General Assembly and other international fora, the IOC has proposed some preliminary objectives: -enhancing sustainable use of ocean and marine resources including a focus on: making an inventory of ocean resources and ecosystem services; understanding and quantifying biogeographical zones and the potential role of marine protected areas; -expanding use of knowledge about the ocean conditions including data management, data gathering, modeling, forecasting ocean food productivity and evaluating its capacity to meet growing demands; -supporting the development of the ocean economy including analyses of economic and social benefits from the sustainable use of marine resources and science-based management; -sustainable management of coastal ecosystems including ecosystem resilience and marine spatial planning to minimize impacts of sea-level rise, extreme weather events, flooding and erosion, improvements of baselines on environmental conditions and public perceptions; -increasing scientific knowledge about the impacts of cumulative interacting stressors such as warming, acidification and habitat destruction; -achieving integrated observations and data sharing including the use of satellites, fixed and moving observing platforms, all feeding into common data management and the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS).

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Picture 1: goals of the Decade of Ocean Science campaign

Picture 2: coast of the ocean

My opinion: The idea of Decade of Ocean Science is fascinating because the scientific solutions that will help us understand the changes in the ocean by decreasing pollution of Earth's biggest ecosystem could save our needs. By that campaign the people will be able to upgrade their knowledge about the ocean ecosystems and the percentage of discovered/surveyed ocean floor could rise. Sources: https://en.unesco.org/ocean-decade http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2017/12/un-designates-2021-2030decade-ocean-science/ https://en.unesco.org/news/united-nations-announces-decade-ocean-science-2021-2030

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