Safeguarding Ocean Environment

On June 8 of every year we celebrate the “World Ocean Day”. This special celebration was created in 1992, at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to focus on our personal connection to the sea and on our awareness of the fact that the oceans occupy 70% of the earth’s surface and constitute over 90% of the volume of the biosphere. This year’s focus is on polar- ecosystem and other effects of climate change. Rising carbon dioxide emission are making our ocean more acidic, scientists report. They inform us that the Southern Ocean around Antarctica is loaded with carbon dioxide it can barley absorbed any more. They also say that more of the gas rise onto the earth’s atmosphere and warm-up the planet. This has brought great disaster to marine life. Another area of focus is on marine genetic resource that has great potential value. In exploring them, we must consider the environmental and biological impact. This marine genetic resource is the new area of great interest to international communities. Over 2000 scientists from 80 countries are now researching the world’s oceans and conducting census of marine life . I appreciate the results of their explorations. I make good use of the new knowledge of the oceans from their findings, and the under-water photographs of marine life that they take in my computer artwork to support safeguarding the environment. For friends who are interested in making use of this wealth of information, digital images and photographs, you can go on-line at the website of the UN Atlas of Oceans that currently contains more than 4000 entries and maintains by a group of experts and United Nations volunteers. Since fish and other beautiful marine creatures are the subject of my paintings, I am concern when reading in the World Ocean Newsletter of new white syndrome coral disease causing by the warming of ocean temperatures in the Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, and the declining numbers of sharks due to over-fishing and lack of people’s understanding about the connection between keeping the ocean environment favorable to life- replenishing, conservation, fishing and shark fining, The people of China and of other East and South-east Asian countries, in particular, must be made aware of these linkages. We must urge the people around the world via communication media to stop supporting the cruel method of shark fishing and shark-fin food industry by for example, not eating the food produced from shark fins. The future of the oceans depends on all our combined small and big efforts to keep it healthy for all life on this earth.

Filed under Environment, United Nations, World Affairs |