Making Waves at 14: Nathan’s Call to Protect the Ocean
- Nathan Bauer
- May 21
- 4 min read
Did you know over 33 billion pounds of plastic waste enters the ocean every single year? That’s over 16 million tons!
Could you imagine if you had to live with that much trash in your home? Sadly that’s what ocean animals have to live with. The ocean is one of the most important things to humans and home to many different types of animals, but sadly, we aren’t taking very good care of it. If we continue to put waste into the ocean and keep on harming it, we won’t have a healthy ocean to help us in the future. The ocean gives us food, imports from other countries, and oxygen. Without your help, we could make ourselves and the ocean sick.
The first big thing to know is why the ocean is so important to us humans.
The ocean gives us food. We get seafood like fish, shrimp, crab, and lobster. But seafood isn’t the only thing we get from the ocean. We also get clothes, cars, machinery, technology, and medicines. Without the ocean, we wouldn’t have many things that we use everyday. The ocean is the reason we can breathe here on Earth, it produces over half the oxygen we breathe everyday. But you might ask yourself, why should I care, when I don’t live anywhere near the ocean? Well, the ocean provides support for the global water cycle, allowing crops to grow, even far from the ocean, like vegetables and rice. The ocean even supplies us with medicine. Some compounds in the ocean have been found that are being tested to limit, prevent, and cure diseases like cancer.
Another question is, how is our human waste affecting aquatic creatures and their homes?
Some sea turtles mistake plastic bags and other large pieces of plastic for food and try to eat it, which can hurt them. When seabirds are looking for food, it is very easy for them to mistake floating plastic and small plastic fragments for food, which they eat and can choke on. Shellfish filter pollutants in their body, but when they try to do this with large pieces of plastic, it harms their internal systems and can potentially lead to them losing their ability to filter pollutants. There are many more animals and environments that are suffering from our plastic input into the ocean. Another big problem in the ocean is overfishing. 20% of global fisheries are overfished and 30% are fished too much, which can lead to unsafe habitats for the animals. Overfishing can lead to disturbances in the food chain and could destroy some marine habitats which are home to many ocean animals. Ocean acidification is when H20 (water), and C02 (carbon dioxide), mix together and become H2C03 (ocean acid). When animals with shells live in an ocean the ocean acid slowly dissolves their shells, leaving them unprotected and vulnerable to predators. The Great Pacific garbage patch is a patch of garbage in the pacific ocean that is over twice the size of Texas and could take more than 20 years to clean up. But it isn’t the only one, there are five others but this is the largest one. All of these examples are animals and places that are currently being harmed by pollution in the ocean, and if we don’t do anything about it, it will continue and get worse.
But what can all of us do to help?
You can reduce your carbon footprint by using less water when showering, recycling, and cleaning up any trash by a body of water. Instead of driving a car for short distances, you could walk, or ride a bike. In your everyday life, you could choose not to use plastic straws, instead, use reusable metal straws, or no straws at all. Using reusable bags and water bottles can also help reduce unwanted waste in the ocean. If reusing is unavoidable, try using products with minimal or completely biodegradable packaging. To support organizations, donate to ocean conservation organizations and volunteer for local ocean conservation projects. Be sure to spread the word about ocean safety, so we can all do our part to save the oceans. If all of us make an effort to help save the oceans, we can make a difference together and save the oceans for our tomorrow.
The ocean is in danger and we need your help.
If we don’t save it, it will be hard for us to get food, oxygen, and imports from other countries. This crucial resource is being damaged by human pollution, and to stop it, we all have to contribute to help. Ocean animals like fish, turtles, penguins, seals, and their harms are all being hurt. We can save them by reducing our carbon footprint, using reusable products, and minimizing plastic waste. Every person’s help is needed and even a small step is important. Join the Band of Steel in our journey to save the ocean.
If you have any questions or would like to continue the conversation, email us at bandofsteel@mystemacademy.com
Sources
Nathan Bauer, 14 Years old
(Posted with permission of parent: Elizabeth Bauer)
Supporting images provided by Saving the Seas
A message from the STS Team:
Hi Nathan! Thank you so much for contributing your voice to Saving the Seas! Your article was thoughtful, inspiring, and a powerful reminder that young people like you are already making a big impact. We're honored to share your words and proud to have you as part of our ocean-loving community.
Keep making waves, your passion truly matters!
With gratitude,
The Saving the Seas Team
Want to contribute to our STS Magazine? Email us your article contribution to info@savingtheseas.org
Keep making waves of change, Nathan!🌊