{"id":10970,"title":"Why is the Ocean so important?","description":"Why is the Ocean so important?The ocean is responsible for almost all life on Earth, and it spans more than 70% of the planet\u2019s surface. But it\u2019s drowning in plastic, and becoming more volatile due to rising global temperatures caused by climate change. Here\u2019s why the ocean is so important","content":"

The ocean is responsible for almost all life on Earth, and it spans more than 70% of the planet\u2019s surface. But it\u2019s drowning in plastic, and becoming more volatile due to rising global temperatures caused by climate change. Here\u2019s why the ocean is so important.<\/strong><\/p>

It produces oxygen<\/strong><\/p>

The ocean produces over 70% of the oxygen we breathe. It\u2019s estimated that one type of phytoplankton provides the oxygen for\u00a0one in every five breaths we take.<\/strong><\/p>

Most of it comes from\u00a0phytoplankton\u00a0\u2013 tiny ocean plants that live near the surface of the ocean, and drift with the tide. They create oxygen as a by-product of photosynthesis, which then ends up in our atmosphere.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>

It absorbs CO2<\/strong><\/p>

The ocean absorbs over 30% of manmade carbon emissions. Between 1994 and 2007, it\u2019s believed to have prevented a whopping 34 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide from entering the Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/strong><\/p>

The carbon dioxide either dissolves on the surface of the water, or it sinks down and builds up at the bottom of the sea.<\/strong><\/p>

While this stops a huge amount of carbon polluting our air, it comes at a huge cost to our sea life, increasing the rate of\u00a0ocean acidification.<\/strong><\/p>

What is ocean acidification?<\/strong><\/p>

Ocean acidification\u00a0is the disruption of the chemical balance of the ocean, which happens when large amounts of carbon dioxide enter the water and cause a spike in acidity levels. This is happening faster than it has in the last 65 million years.<\/strong><\/p>

Ocean acidification is a symptom of the wider problem of climate change, and it\u2019s a huge threat to the biodiversity of our seas and the future of our coral reefs.<\/strong><\/p>

Marine life can\u2019t adapt to the rapidly changing chemical imbalance of the oceans, and the shells of some animals are already dissolving as a result of high acidity levels in seawater. Some could face total extinction, as the oceans they\u2019ve endured for millennia become completely uninhabitable.<\/strong><\/p>

It regulates the earth\u2019s climate<\/strong><\/p>

The ocean is responsible for regulating global climate, temperature, and weather patterns. It has the power to affect rainfall, flooding and droughts.<\/strong><\/p>

Decades of increasing carbon emissions has made our climate unpredictable, and all that residual heat and energy is building up in our oceans \u2013 causing temperatures to rise, and making it incredibly volatile.<\/strong><\/p>

If the ocean\u2019s temperature continues to rise,\u00a0the WWF<\/a>\u00a0predicts that we could see more extreme weather events, changing currents, rising sea levels and temperatures, and the melting of ice sheets.<\/strong><\/p>

It\u2019s the largest ecosystem on Earth<\/strong><\/p>

The ocean is the planet\u2019s life force, housing the Earth\u2019s largest ecosystem and home to countless species of marine wildlife \u2013 exactly how many is unknown, because 95% of the ocean still remains unexplored.<\/strong><\/p>

But as plastic pollution builds up in our oceans and over fishing devastates species\u2019 biodiversity, this vast ecosystem is at risk of extinction.<\/strong><\/p>","urlTitle":"why-is-the-ocean-so-important","url":"\/blog\/why-is-the-ocean-so-important\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/why-is-the-ocean-so-important\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/happi-inc.co\/blog\/why-is-the-ocean-so-important\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1618138619,"updatedAt":1618138725,"publishedAt":1618138725,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":137838,"name":"Happi Inc"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/8yvd3rbmvilfahe6vhalz1b8tng5tjr7kteeqfixnz8xfr9p.png","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/8yvd3rbmvilfahe6vhalz1b8tng5tjr7kteeqfixnz8xfr9p.png.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/8yvd3rbmvilfahe6vhalz1b8tng5tjr7kteeqfixnz8xfr9p.png.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"","metaDescription":"","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":10965,"title":"We don't need a handful of people trying to save the planet perfectly...","url":"\/blog\/we-dont-need-a-handful-of-people-trying-to-save-the-planet-perfectly\/","urlTitle":"we-dont-need-a-handful-of-people-trying-to-save-the-planet-perfectly","division":137838,"description":"We need millions of people doing it imperfectly. .","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/lm2bgethlypjtwtcnonptnujotbhbqthksuuzk6gdk6lbjqf.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/lm2bgethlypjtwtcnonptnujotbhbqthksuuzk6gdk6lbjqf.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":11728,"title":"Circular Fashion","url":"\/blog\/circular-fashion\/","urlTitle":"circular-fashion","division":137838,"description":"Every year 100 billion new items of clothing are produced while a truck full of clothing is burned, or buried in a landfill every second. Slowing fast fashion down a bit won't fix it. But when we take the waste material at the end, and make new products from it at the start, it changes everything","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/o9xg87cberdj7ygcetqerv6mdpwyrjxfu3eg6ium7kenwnjj.png.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/o9xg87cberdj7ygcetqerv6mdpwyrjxfu3eg6ium7kenwnjj.png.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":10964,"title":"Why Organic is best for little ones","url":"\/blog\/why-organic-is-best-for-little-ones\/","urlTitle":"why-organic-is-best-for-little-ones","division":137838,"description":"Your baby is the most precious little human in your life. Naturally, we want to do everything we can to ensure they have the best in life. You may have already switched to organic food to guarantee they are healthy on the inside so why not ensure what touches them on the outside is organic too?Orga","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/y13vlvbsxw5iejuudtaztbp5cd5cqdxjrdj6x0zmmjmphndw.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/y13vlvbsxw5iejuudtaztbp5cd5cqdxjrdj6x0zmmjmphndw.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}