**12. Rising ocean levels**

210 Fossil Fuel and the Environment

Some decades ago, the decline in marine life was attributed to overfishing. International agreements were put into place to limit fishing in the oceans. Particularly well known are the bans on whaling, which were adhered to by most countries. In spite of these voluntary limits on fishing, marine life rather than rebounding, has continued it's steady decline. With the restrictions on fishing and whaling, plankton at the bottom of the food chain should actually have increased. The question arises as to why there has not been a corresponding

Ocean plankton are at the bottom of the food chain, and are the ultimate source of food for most marine life. It is estimate that phytoplankton is responsible for about half of Earth's photosynthesis, a process that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and converts it

Paradoxically, the plankton densities over the world have continued their steady decline. Clearly, there is some major factor besides global warming and overfishing which are causing the alarming decline in marine life. The increase in CO2 has clearly not been

Nine years of NASA satellite data published in the journal Nature show that the growth rate and abundance of phytoplankton around the world decreases in warm ocean years and increases in cooler ocean years. This has been used to support that global warming is the cause of the decline of the plankton. However, this explanation is insufficient, and the variation of plankton could have some other cause besides annual temperature cycles. Contrary to their explanation, global warming is clearly not the main factor leading to the

The evidence is clear that it is not global warming, but some other underlying reason behind the declining marine life. A possible cause, and that explanation offered here, is the

We now look at the effect of the garbage, sewage, and industrial wastes being dumped into the oceans in much of the world. The dumping of such waste into oceans was legal until the early 1970's when it became regulated and restricted. However, dumping still occurs illegally everywhere. The peak of sewage dumping was 18 million tons in 1980, a number

Rivers, canals, and harbors are dredged to remove silt and sand buildup or to establish new waterways. About 10% of all dredged material is polluted with heavy metals such as cadmium,

Today it is acknowledged that accumulation of waste in the ocean is detrimental to marine health. Ocean dumping can destroy entire habitats and ecosystems when excess sediment builds up and toxins are released. Although ocean dumping in critical habitats and at critical

One of the best explanations for the declining marine life could be this increasing contamination of the oceans, caused by disposal of these wastes into the sea. It is known that

mercury, and chromium, and pesticides which ultimately find their way into the sea.

into organic carbon and oxygen that feeds nearly every ocean ecosystem.

sufficient to visibly benefit the CO2 dependent marine plankton.

**11.2 Contaminants and pollutants in the sea** 

pollutants and toxins being discharged into the oceans.

that has decreased to 12 million tons in the 1990s.

times is regulated, toxins are still spread by ocean currents.

**11.1 Overfishing** 

decline of plankton.

increase in the plankton in the oceans.

A major concern associated with global warming, the melting of polar ice, and rising ocean levels, is flooding of low lying areas of the world. It is feared that within decades, ocean levels may rise over inches or feet, inundating low lying areas, especially river deltas such as Bangladesh.

Fig. 11. Rising sea levels causing a shift in the equilibrium of the land river and sea in a river delta. The land level rises as sea levels rise.

It has been seen that river deltas (such as the Ganges delta of Bangladesh) are dynamic systems, where the land levels are the equilibrium point of the opposing forces of silt deposition and erosion (S. Khan, 1991) . This equilibrium concept of land level is also applicable to other deltas, such as for the Mississippi (in Louisiana), the Nile (in Egypt). It has been seen that for the last few decades, coastal land is being added at the rate of several feet every year. Considering that global warming rates have been mostly constant over decades, and is expected to be constant for the next few decades, it is likely that the trend of coastal land addition will continue at its present rates. It is unlikely that the coastal land addition will reverse over the next few decades causing coastal land loss or inundation. A

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rise of sea level will shift the land-river-sea equilibrium, resulting in faster deposition of silt in and around the rivers. This will cause a rise of the land elevations of the river delta, that will at least match the rise of sea levels. This implies that the coastal land addition of river deltas will continue at their present rates over the next few years. Modern concerns of coastal land inundation is therefore not applicable to river deltas, as a rise of sea will cause land levels to continue to rise, and coastal land will continue to be added at their present rates.
