World Ocean’s Day - June 8th, 2024

Written By Denise Braun Ryan

“If we don’t act now, by 2050 there could be more plastic than fish in the oceans.” 

- Ellen McArthur Foundation 


When it comes to awareness-focused holidays like World Oceans Day, it’s much more than simply a celebration of the beauty, livelihood, food, fun, and life support that all of the oceans provide for us and other organisms that we share this Earth with. It’s a chance for us to take a closer look at what potential solutions there are to support the health of the oceans globally – something that unites all of us. 

For years now, alarms have been sounding regarding the many negative impacts that we have on the ocean. Beautiful documentaries about sea life (Blue Planet & Our Planet for example), which urge us to find ways to protect them, have been released and popularized in online media. There have been the heart-wrenching images of sea life being impacted by waste we generate, such as getting entangled in plastics or even dying from eating it. Ocean-bound waste (especially plastic waste in the ocean) has been one area of impact that has garnered significant attention in recent years. For many people, myself included, these statements, images, and other forms of environmental media are shocking, but also challenging and stressful to figure out what can be done to adequately address them. 

This World Oceans Day, the action theme is “Catalyzing Action for Our Ocean & Climate,” with a focus on solutions and changes that we can make at all levels, whether that be locally, regionally, nationally, or globally.  

At All About Waste, we focus most on how waste relates to various different issues, and what potential solutions there are. Here is a brief background on three different waste related issues that are affecting our oceans: 

  • Marine Debris: This can be used to describe almost all solid waste that ends up in the oceans. These reach the ocean through runoff (which washes materials to the ocean from a variety of sources) and from specific sources like factories that directly access and pollute bodies of water that lead to the ocean. Over 80% of pollution in the ocean originates on land from things like littering, poor waste management practices, storm water discharge, and extreme weather conditions (i.e. hurricane, tsunami, etc.).

  • Garbage Patches: The ocean has 5 gyres, systems of ocean currents, which result in giant patches where marine debris builds up. Waste built up here can vary from large items to microplastics that are smaller than the tip of your finger. To understand the scale of the current problem, the Great Pacific Garbage patch (one of 5 patches) is estimated to cover an area twice the size of the State of Texas. These are where marine debris become concentrated, however debris is something that affects all areas of the ocean. 

  • Chemical Wastes: Solid waste garners a lot of attention, but there are also chemical wastes that end up in the oceans that are largely the result of various chemicals we use on land. For example, PFAS are one class of chemicals that have garnered significant attention recently due to their incredible resistance to breaking down in the environment (“forever” chemicals as they are referred to), leading to them accumulating in the environment. These types of chemicals reach our oceans through our wastewater, from chemical factories, from spills/accidents, through runoff, and more. They are oftentimes invisible, and have widespread use, only contributing to the challenge of preventing them from ending up in the oceans. 

There are two key areas of focus when it comes to helping to resolve the global ocean waste crisis; upstream and downstream solutions. 

  • Upstream solutions are those that would target waste before it ends up in the ocean. This could include examples such as waste prevention through reusables, using safer, non-toxic products, saying no to disposable plastic materials, and other ways of “turning off the tap” (reducing the amount of waste materials that end up in the ocean).

  • Downstream solutions are those that target waste that is already in the ocean, activities like ocean cleanups, trash collectors at river mouths, beach cleanups, etc. 

With a combination of upstream and downstream solutions, we can tackle this problem from both ends. There are a number of organizations already working on each of these, and it’s critical to support the work they are doing. Here are some examples of organizations trying to make a difference:

The most important solutions for individuals are upstream solutions, largely because these are decisions and changes that we can all make in our daily lives. Preventing more waste from ending up in the ocean is important because the last thing we want is a current problem getting even worse. For individuals, here are some actions that you can take:

  • Avoid single-use plastics

  • Use reusables both at home, and while out and about

  • Avoid products coated with PFAS such as non-stick cookware, microwavable popcorn bags, etc.   

  • Explore installing a microplastic filter on washing machines

  • Properly managing waste by sorting it into bins, and not littering

The important thing to understand is that beyond individual actions that we can all try and take, corporate actions are incredibly important. Some of the largest, most polluting companies in the world have tried to push the responsibility of the climate crisis onto individuals, when corporate activities are primarily to blame for the majority of global greenhouse gas emissions. This places the greatest potential for positive impact and change in the hands of corporations, and the individuals that work for them. 

For individuals working in sustainability, we have an important opportunity to create ripples of influence. It’s up to all of us, and not only people currently involved with sustainability, to move corporations in the right direction by giving them actionable solutions and continually trying to hold them accountable. 

For more informative videos on ocean waste, check out the links below!

Denise Braun Ryan
Next

Demystifying Waste: Sector Based Solutions #1