Consequences of Marine Pollution from Ships

Six Types of Marine Pollution Sources

• 1) Crude Oil & its Products• 2) Noxious Liquid Substances ( Chemicals)• 3) Dangerous Goods in Packaged Form• 4) Sewage• 5) Garbage including Plastics• 6) Various Gases from Engine Exhausts

Oil Pollution

• Caused mainly by crude & bunker oil that is carried by wind & tide to contaminate beaches.

• Effect on wildlife :• BIRDS• Contaminates bird feathers & thus • makes them too heavy to float.• reduces their ability to fly.• reduces insulating affect of feathers causing

hypothermiaIf oil is imbibed then the bird will be poisoned.

• MAMMALS ( Seals , Sea Lions, Dolphins & Whales)• Seals pup fur may be contaminated & thus suffer

from hypothermia.• Seal pups may drown due to excess weight caused

by their fur being contaminated.• Contamination of the environment by oil makes

feeding difficult resulting in starvation.• Turtle eggs damaged due to beach contamination.

• FISH• Fish eggs, larvae & young fish damaged

preventing replenishment of stocks.• Fish flesh tainted & thus made inedible.• Fish breeding grounds such as coral reefs &

sea grass areas damaged. • The whole economy of an area that relies on

fishing could be ruined for many years.

• Although crude oil is a ‘natural’ product (being the remains of ancient marine organisms), it can take many years for it to break-down naturally & thus there may be a pollution problem in existence for a long time.

Holiday Beaches

• Contamination of a local beach by crude oil can completely destroy the economy of a holiday resort.

Oil Products

• Oil products such as gasoline & aviation fuel tend to evaporate quickly & do not therefore persist for as long as crude oil.

• However, they are highly toxic to marine life if they are swallowed during feeding.

Noxious Liquid Substances

• Effect depends upon the nature of the chemical involved but many chemicals are designated as marine pollutants such as

• Phosphates for example

• Bioaccumulation is a particular problem whereby a chemical substance can build-up inside an organism, eventually reaching toxic levels.

Packaged Substances

• Marine pollutants may be carried in small packages that may be identified using the IMDG Code.

• Volume 2 of the IMDG Code contains a Dangerous Goods List that highlights the properties of substances that are considered to be dangerous.

Sewage

• Untreated sewage contains a lot of nasties including bacteria, viruses & intestinal worms that can cause health problems to persons coming into contact with contaminated sea water.

• In Europe, seawater at holiday resorts is tested periodically & the results published.

• Sewage discharge from ships is regulated.

Garbage

• The waste produced by the everyday operations of the vessel. This waste may be washed – up onto coastlines & beaches & make accessing these areas difficult.

• Categorised as :• Food Waste- normally easily dealt-with by the ocean

environment.• Solid Waste- will sink to the seabed.• Discharge of garbage from ships is now strictly

regulated.

Garbage Pollution

Air Pollution

• Exhaust gases from marine engines contain sulphurous gases, carbon dioxide & solid particles that can cause respiratory diseases in humans.

• The gases produced are also linked with acid rain that can:

• defoliate trees.• dissolves stonework on buildings. • turn lake & pond water acidic thus contaminating

freshwater fish stocks.

• Emissions are controlled, depending upon the power of the engine concerned.

• The emissions from incinerators must meet strict criteria.

Acid Rain

MARPOL Convention (IMO)

• Seven Annexes deal with:• I Oil• 11 Noxious Liquids In Bulk• 111 Dangerous Goods in Packaged Form• 1V Sewage• V Garbage• V1 Air • Pollution