Andrew Howard

Prof. Stalbird

English 1201

March 23, 2020

Literature Review

Marine Pollution has been a critical problem for decades, only getting worse as time goes

on. Waste in the ocean consists of a lot of everyday items, such as beverage cans, plastic bags,

and straws. No matter the size of these things, every item adds to the problem. The pollution is

not only affecting the animals health, but also humans’ health. Because of the size of the

problem, it will not disappear overnight, and will need a lot of people working to prevent ocean

pollution. The question the following literature review will revolve around is: What is the best

way or ways to prevent ocean pollution?

Although ocean pollution has been a problem for decades, it was not always something

everyone knew about. In the late to mid-1900s, many countries dumped their nuclear and

radioactive waste into the ocean. This was one of the earliest pieces of evidence of ocean

pollution. Since then, we have realized how much of the ocean we are destroying, and taking

putting things in the ocean more seriously. John Vidal in “The plastic polluters won 2019 – and

we're running out of time to stop them” claims that by 2030, plastic production will have

increased by 40%. People are starting to realize that we could be running out of time and want to

start taking this seriously and want to help.

From my five sources, there are a few similarities that I have found. The major similarity

is they all share different ways we can help the problem. Three of the five provide solutions that
are either being worked on currently, or things we can do to help. Another similarity that is

shown through multiple sources is that plastic is the leading cause. Four out of the five sources

mention plastic, and they all make it clear that it is a major part of the problem. Plastic such an

abundant source that it is very commonly ending up in our oceans. Oceana’s first solution is to

use plastic-free alternatives. Nrdc’s first solution is to stop using disposable plastics. Both of

these sources agree that getting rid of plastic items in your daily life and replacing them, will

severely help. One of the final similarities that is present in my sources is that there are many

health problems that are produced from the pollution.

There are also some differences between the sources I chose. The main difference is that

one of the sources that I chose gave a lot more information about the history of marine pollution

as the other sources do not. Wikipedia also provides a chart that shows the waste produced from

1946-1993 by country. The chart claims that the Atlantic Ocean took in the most amount of

waste. Wikipedia also gives examples of all three types of major waste that fell into the ocean,

and the type of packaging.

There are many different types of solutions which answer my question. One of the main

and more obvious answers is to reduce your use of plastic. We use so much plastic in our

everyday lives, yet it is so easy to stop. There are many alternative solutions to our plastic tools,

which would heavily prevent a lot of pollution if everyone switched over. If we use reusable

water bottles, a lot of plastic would be cut from the ocean. Another big solution and answer to

the question is to help clean up our oceans and environment, as well as recycling. This would

take a lot of waste that was not meant to end in the ocean, and put it where it belongs. If we all

helped pick up trash from our shores, the tides would not be able to bring them into our oceans
and add to the problem. Both of these are minor, which still makes me think I need to do more

researching.
Engler, Sarah. “10 Ways to Reduce Plastic Pollution.” ​NRDC​, 9 Mar. 2020,

www.nrdc.org/stories/10-ways-reduce-plastic-pollution.

“Ocean Disposal of Radioactive Waste.” ​Wikipedia​, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Feb. 2020,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_disposal_of_radioactive_waste#History.

Vidal, John. “The Plastic Polluters Won 2019 – and We're Running out of Time to Stop

Them.” ​The Guardian​, Guardian News and Media, 2 Jan. 2020,

www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/02/year-plastic-pollution-clean-beaches-seas

“What You Can Do to Protect Our Marine Environment.” ​What You Can Do to Protect Our

Marine Environment | Ministry for the Environment​,

www.mfe.govt.nz/marine/we-all-have-role-play/what-you-can-do.

“10 Ways You Can Help Save the Oceans.” ​Oceana​,

oceana.org/living-blue/10-ways-you-can-help-save-oceans.