anoxia

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The eventuality of the Earth’s oceans going into anoxia
As a high school student, I must admit I had no prior knowledge of the oxygen depletion of the Earth’s oceans. I had read about climate change and the greenhouse effect but was not aware of the way it was related to oxygen levels in the water. According to professor of geophysics Daniel Rothman, a mass extinction of marine species is likely to occur if we overload our oceans with an amount of 310 gigatons of carbon (Rothman). This is due in 2100, he also predicts, bearing in mind that human activities are on the rise. It is a fact that the planet has endured a noteworthy climate change and the water temperature has risen dramatically because of the industrial activities of the last century. A high water temperature causes a drop in oxygen levels and makes it difficult for marine organisms to make use of the oxygen left. The Baltic Sea also happens to suffer from a lack of oxygen which leads to the death of animals and plants. (Castensen). In addition, Dr. Schmidtko’s study has come to the conclusion that the ocean’s oxygen content has decreased by more than two percent over the last 50 years (Schmidtko)
On the other side of the coin, environmental protection has become a priority for today’s people. People have become more sensitive and aware. More and more countries develop strategies to fight climate change. The countries of the Baltic Sea have joined a plan to reverse the phenomenon.

New environmental policies are put in action every year. The issues of climate change, nutrient pollution and protection of vulnerable marine life should be addressed according to scientists and Breitburg confirmed that the problem can be solved (Breiburg). As a conclusion, studies may prevent those predictions from becoming a reality, after all.
Works cited
Breitburg D. et al. “Declining oxygen in the global ocean and coastal waters.”, Science, 2018
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180104153511.htm. Accessed 30 May 2018
Carstensen J., Andersen J., Gustafsson B., and Conley D. “Deoxygenation of the Baltic Sea during the last century.” PNAS, 2014
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140331153616.htm. Accessed 30 May 2018
Rothman D. “Thresholds of catastrophe in the Earth system.” Science Advances, 2017
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170920182116.htm. Accessed 30 May 2018
Schmidtko S., Stramma L., Visbeck M. “Decline in global oceanic oxygen content during the past five decades.” Nature, 2017; 542 (7641)
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170215131546.htm. Accessed 30 May 2018