By Doug Alderson, Outreach & Advocacy Director
The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development will run from 2021 to 2030. Many efforts will focus on better appreciating, understanding and protecting our oceans. So, how does this relate to the Apalachicola Basin? The impacts of our basin stretch far beyond the actual river and bay since the Apalachicola River provides 35% of the freshwater flow and nutrients to the eastern Gulf of Mexico and as such supports fisheries valued at over $5.8 billion to west Florida. That is significant! The Apalachicola Basin is an important component of the bigger picture relating to our oceans. As the great naturalist John Muir said, “When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe.”
Here are some other oceanic facts from the United Nations to appreciate:
• Oceans serve as the world’s largest source of protein, with more than 3 billion people depending on the oceans as their primary source of protein
• Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods.
• Oceans absorb about 30% of carbon dioxide produced by humans, buffering the impacts of global warming.
• Ocean organisms discovered at extreme depths are used to speed up the detection of COVID-19
For more information, log onto https://oceandecade.org/.
Click here to learn about five current threats to our oceans and how you can help.