Let's heighten awareness about marine pollution

SOUTH Africa is uniquely surrounded by three magnificent ocean spaces - the Atlantic, Indian, and Southern Oceans offering a resource-rich and biologically diverse environment.

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Our oceans represent a significant asset for current and future generations. Beyond the well-known direct socio-economic benefits of the ocean, they offer less obvious, yet equally vital benefits through the provisioning of ecosystem services like climate regulation, carbon storage, and waste absorption. Furthermore, our oceans and coastal areas support a thriving tourism industry, as countless citizens and international visitors flock to our shores for recreational activities such as swimming, diving, and whale-watching.

One of the most pressing concerns we face is the impact of pollution on our marine and estuarine environments. Chronic pollution, stemming from domestic and industrial wastewater, stormwater runoff, and solid waste, is relentlessly impacting both our estuaries and the ocean. Our estuaries, as the crucial interfaces between land and sea, are particularly vulnerable to the chemical and solid wastes that flow into them from upstream, ultimately reaching our precious ocean. The illegal and irresponsible discharge of effluent and chemicals from industries into our streams and rivers is a direct pipeline of contamination to our marine ecosystems.

A major pollutant of particular concern and one that we see unfortunately far too often on our beaches here in KZN, is plastic pollution. It washes from our river systems onto our beaches, severely impacting our coastal ecosystem services. Furthermore, marine pollution is greatly exacerbated by activities, such as, ships illegally dumping waste directly into the ocean and tragic incidents where cargo is lost at sea.