It’s time to take a deep look at the world’s oceans

[Guest guest]

It’s time to take a deep look at the world’s oceans

 

We humans are air-breathing landlubbers, and that shapes the way we

see and treat the world. We don’t think much about what’s underwater

or underground. So we’ve been dumping garbage into the oceans and

taking what we want from them for years without considering the

consequences. We’ve never had to look at any of it – until now.

 

We’re starting to see what lies below the surface and in those places

far away from land, and it’s not always a pretty picture. We see

massive islands of plastic and other debris swirling in gyres around

the world. We see 9,000-year-old glass sponge reefs off the coast of

B.C. that, until recently, were torn apart by trawl nets dragged

across the ocean floor. We see the effects of climate change on Arctic

sea ice and on the animals that live under the sea.

 

We’ll be able to see even more, thanks to a recent initiative by

Google, along with National Geographic, the BBC, and scientists and

other partners from around the world. Google is adding the world’s

oceans to its extensive Earth mapping. In a phone conversation with

David Suzuki Foundation staff, John Hanke, director of Google Earth

and Maps, admitted, " We had really overlooked two thirds of the

planet. " Partly because of prodding from oceanographer Sylvia Earle,

the company has embarked on a massive project as part of Google Earth

5.0 to map the oceans using sonar imaging, high-resolution and 3-D

photography, video, and a variety of other techniques and content.

 

Although the emerging picture is sometimes bleak, there’s a positive

side. " If we can just see enough soon enough to pull back and give

these areas a chance to recover, that’s my greatest hope, " Dr. Earle

told us.

 

Mr. Hanke and Dr. Earle, who is explorer in residence at National

Geographic and the founder of the Deep Search Foundation, said the

project will allow us to learn more about human impacts on the Earth’s

oceans. Dr. Earle noted that we have explored only about five per cent

of the ocean’s depths and protected less than one per cent, yet the

oceans cover more than 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface. The more we

do explore the more fascinating things we find: strange and wonderful

creatures, intricate corals, and ancient glass-sponge reefs right off

our own Pacific coast.

 

" Some of these treasures are being destroyed before we even know

what’s there, " Dr. Earle said, adding that often as soon as people

find out about an ocean resource, they exploit it. Part of the idea

behind Ocean in Google Earth is to show people what we have and what

we stand to lose if we don’t smarten up. " People will be aware of not

only what’s there but what’s been lost, " Dr. Earle said. " People don’t

seem to widely appreciate how important it is to protect the systems

that give us life. "

 

And the oceans do give us life. Half of the world’s oxygen comes from

the ocean. In the process of photosynthesis, phytoplankton release

oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide that would otherwise contribute to

global warming. And when phytoplankton die, they sink to the bottom of

the ocean and are covered by other material, storing the carbon

dioxide inside them. The phytoplankton are also an important food

source for ocean animals ranging from small fish to giant whales,

which in turn feed other animals up the food chain, including humans.

 

That’s just one example of how important our oceans are and of how

everything in nature – on land and sea and in the sky – is

interconnected.

 

We can only hope this new endeavour will lead to more concern for the

state of the oceans and of the need to protect them. The glass sponge

reefs, for example, are being considered for formal protection, and

public support could make the difference. As Dr. Earle noted, " You

can’t care if you don’t know, and this a new way of knowing. "

 

Part of what makes it exciting is that it’s not just a tool for

scientists and academics. " It’s going to be a lot of fun for adults

and kids to learn about the oceans, " Mr. Hanke said, noting that the

free program, which includes multiple layers of content and

information, will continue to expand as more data from scientists,

explorers, and others is added.

 

We can no longer afford to be blind to the state of our oceans. Let’s

hope this will open our eyes before there’s nothing left to see but

destruction.

 

 

Science Matters has been running weekly since 1999. To read past

columns, please visit www.davidsuzuki.org/science_matters/.

 

Take David Suzuki's Nature Challenge and learn more at www.davidsuzuki.org.

 

 

 

So, men are scattered and smeared over the desert grass,

And the generals have accomplished nothing.

 

-Nefarious War

Li Po (Circa 750)