Oceans

Contents

Introduction 3

What are the different types of water? 4

How was the ocean made? 6

pH levels 7

How much salt water is there? 8

How can we generate power from the oceans? 9

Are our oceans sustainable? 10

What might happen to our oceans in the future? 11

What can we, as a community, help? 11

What is my plan for action? 12

What have I learned? 13

Conclusion 14

Glossary 16

References 18

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IntroductionThe ocean is a very important part of our Earth. It covers 72% of the Earth’s surface. Because of this, it is important that we look after it properly to preserve it for our future generations.

This project looks at the different types of water that we have and how they are formed and fed. In particular, this project focuses on the Earth’s oceans and:

how the oceans were made; pH levels and what they mean; how much salt water there really is; if we can generate power from the oceans; if our oceans are sustainable; what might happen to our oceans in the future; what we can do as a community to help the oceans; and what my plan for action is.

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What are the different types of water?There are nine different types of water. They are:

1. ocean water;2. lake water;3. river water; 4. swamp water;5. treated water;6. untreated water;7. rain water;8. waste water; and9. grey water.

Ocean waterOceans are huge bodies of salt water that cover 71% of the Earth. Did you know that we have only explored 3% of the oceans vast underwater land.

Lake waterLakes are large bodies of water. Lakes are fed by rivers, rain and run off from the hills.

River waterRiver water is a source of water we heavily rely on for drinking water. Unfortunately we can only drink this water once it has been treated. This is due to bacteria in the water such as giardia, salmonella, hepatitis A, cryptosporidium, E coli, copper, legionella, norovirus, shigella and campylobacter. These are all common in NZ.

River water is Wellington’s main source of water and is treated in a water treatment plant in Te Marua, Upper Hutt.

Swamp waterSwamps are areas of low-lying marsh.

Treated waterTreated water is water that has been cleaned by a water treatment plant. This water can come from rain, rivers or catchment areas.

Untreated waterUntreated water is from rain, rivers, lakes or catchment areas that has not yet been treated.

Rain waterRain is water that has evaporated from water sources like the ocean. When it reaches the upper atmosphere it condenses into water droplets that join together to form clouds. When the clouds become too saturated with water it falls as rain.

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Waste waterWaster water is used water that comes from our toilets.

Grey waterGrey water is used water from your showers, basins, baths etc.

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How was the ocean made?Four billion years ago our home, the earth, was just a burning ball of molten rock with absolutely no life forms or oxygen. When it was in this stage there was not even a trace of water on earth. Comets and asteroid’s brought with them tiny molecules of water and gasses.

Some of these gasses are:

1. methane (CH3);2. ammonia (NH3);3. water vapour (H2O);4. carbon dioxide (CO2)

The water vapour the comets brought eventually became heavy enough that it rained down on the land, but only after the temperature of the earth had cooled to below 100 degrees celsius.

The water from the rain collected in the lower areas of the earth once the earth had hardened and started to create the oceans we have today.

As it rained, the water ran over rocks and mixed with minerals. One of these was salt, and this is the reason the ocean today is salty.

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pH levels pH levels measure the acidity or alkaline in things. The pH scale is from 0-14, with 7 being neutral. Lower numbers are considered acidic and higher numbers are basic or alkaline.

PH measurements are important for medicine, biology, chemistry, agriculture, forestry, food science, environmental science, oceanography, civil engineering, chemical engineering, water treatment and water purification.

Some examples of PH levels are in the following table:

Battery acid 0Lemon juice 2Black coffee 5Blood 7Pure water 7Sea water 8Baking soda 9

Research shows that the level of PH in our oceans is rapidly changing. In particular there has been being a recent drop of surface PH.

Since the beginning of industrial factories (1800’s) fossil fuel powered machines have been pumping out billions of tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other green house gasses into the earth’s atmosphere.

Unfortunately over time these chemicals have been absorbed into the sea. While bad for the ocean this is beneficial to us because it is slowing down the climate changes.

When CO2 dissolves into the ocean it becomes carbonic acid. This causes higher acidity levels, mainly near the surface. Over the last 300 million years, the PH level has dropped 0.1 PH units and is on an average of 8.2, representing a 25% increase over the past 200 years.

This means that it is harder for planktonic organisms that need calcium carbonate to form their shells. This would effect the ecosystem because some bigger organisms rely on these for food and without food that organism would die then so would the organism that eats that would also die causing a catastrophic drop in marine life. With fewer of these photosynthetic organisms that live on the surface of the water less carbon will be converted to oxygen and the green house gasses would continue to grow.

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How much salt water is there?Salt water covers approximately 72% of the Earth’s surface. This salt water is divided into several main oceans and smaller seas.

The ocean contains 97% of the Earth's water, and oceanographers have stated that only 5% of the oceans have been explored.

The total volume of salt water in our oceans is approximately 1.3 billion cubic kilometres with an average depth of 3,682m.

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How can we generate power from the oceans?There are 3 ways we can generate power from the ocean:

1. wave power;2. tidal power; and3. ocean thermal energy conversion (O.T.E.C)

Wave powerWe capture the up and down or back and forth movement of the waves. This movement causes friction, likewise to the energy that drives a piston or spins a turbine. There are three basic systems - float systems, that drive hydraulic pumps; channel systems, that funnel the waves into reservoirs; and column systems, that use the waves to compress air within a container. Some places already use this method to power lighthouses or warning buoys.

Tidal powerIn order to use tidal power you need to trap water at high tide and then catch its energy as it rushes out at low tide. Tides are driven entirely by the gravitational pull of the moon. This of source of power is an off energy resource while thermal energy is quite constant. Another difference between tidal and thermal power is that tidal (or wave) power usually relies on mechanical devices. Typically a barrage (or dam) is used to transform the energy in the ocean into electricity. This is done by forcing water through turbines, which activates the generator.

Ocean thermal energy conversionWe can generate energy using thermal power. This is where you use the differences in temperature between the deep water (which has a colder temperature) and the surface water (which has a warmer temperature) and draw out the energy from the flow of heat between the 2. A station in Hawaii is experimenting with this and hopes to one day produce this on a large scale around the world and sell it at a similar price to the energy we have today.

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Are our oceans sustainable?Scientists predict that at the rate were going, entire islands will be submerged because of rising oceans and global warming during our lifetime.

We are over fishing our oceans and there are too many boats chasing too many fish. We are hauling up fish faster than the fish can reproduce and already whole populations are on the brink of extinction. Can you believe that over 3,000,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises are caught in nets every year! Turtles sharks and other unwanted fish are caught in nets and then just thrown overboard dead or already dying. This is called bycatch. This bycatch can account for as much as 90% of a fishers haul and 89% don’t make it back alive. We could be destroying a new species of fish before we’ve even described and recorded. People are taking unfair amounts of fish and putting species of fish in danger and at risk of extinction

There is a rubbish island as big as Afghanistan just floating in the ocean. This is because the natural currents push the rubbish that is in the ocean to this pile of floating rubbish where it just stays forever or until some one picks it up or until it biodegrades.

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What might happen to our oceans in the future?Methane gas has been found under methane hydrate beneath the ocean floor and if global warming continues to get worse, this methane hydrate will unfreeze and release methane gas, which will only make ocean warming worse.

An increase in the temperature of the water will have horrible affects on the ocean. One of the more obvious effects will be on the coral. The delicate coral reefs around the world will all lose their colour and die. This is because they have a certain temperature they thrive between and this is very small that is between 26 and 27 degrees celsius. The reason a coral starts to bleach is due to a loss of 60-90% of their “zooxanthellae”. They lose their “zooxanthellae” due to negative factors such as a rise in the temperature of the ocean. If the bleaching continues for a long period of time, the coral will die.

Although yet to be unconfirmed, there is a theory that algal blooms may grow bigger, and become more toxic. These algal blooms have big effects on not just the marine eco system, by killing sea animals and fish, but on us humans to. Some of the algal blooms need oxygen to thrive, there for lowering the level of the oxygen around us and in the water. It is important that we notify the harmful effects and put a stop to them before it’s to late.

How can we, as a community, help?If our whole community gets involved, we could arrange working bees to pick up rubbish, we could all stop littering and we could give speeches to other communities to get them involved as well.

These are some other ideas to help:

1. we could start a community recycling programme;

2. we could start a community car-pooling system, this helps because CO2 (comes from factories and car exhausts) sinks into the ocean and pollutes it;

3. clean up rubbish along the river;

4. collect aluminium cans and collect the recycling money then donate that money to the charity this helps because not as many cans will end up in the ocean, as they do not biodegrade; and

5. create posters about picking up rubbish with classmates and post them around the school.

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What is my plan for action?My plan for action is to pick up any rubbish I see and to raise community awareness by sticking up posters about how we can look after the oceans.

I will pick up any rubbish I see because it could end up in the oceans.

When I am older and have my own car I will leave my car at home at least once a week so that not as much CO2 gets released into the atmosphere and absorbed into the oceans.

Here are some other things YOU could do to help:

1. use less plastic - if you use less plastic there is less chance of it ending up in the sea;

2. reduce your energy usage - use less fossil fuel by car-pooling and inflate your car tyres regularly;

3. keep your beach clean - please don’t flush your cotton buds down the toilet as they too will eventually end up in the sea and are one of the main sources of litter on our beaches. You could also help by joining in on a beach clean up or even organize one yourself;

4. watch what your washing down the drain - use biodegradable washing powders and chemical-free gardening or household products;

5. be an ocean friendly pet owner - never ever flush kitty litter down the drain and avoid buying wild caught saltwater fish for your pets to eat;

6. be a responsible traveller – avoid buying coral jewellery, tortoiseshell hair accessory’s, and shark or other endangered marine species products; and

7. join Greenpeace!! - Greenpeace loves volunteers. You could help out and give your part back to the ocean by taking part in a Greenpeace activities or donating money to Greenpeace so they can continue to look after the planet and its oceans.

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What have I learned?I have learned lots about the ocean and found this project really interesting.

I have learned lots about PH levels and the PH scale. I didn’t even know what “PH” was before.

I have learned about the different ways of generating power from the ocean.

I also learnt about things we could do to help protect and look after our oceans. I think that the ocean is very important to preserve so that future generations can enjoy it, continue using it for a source of food, and learn from it.

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ConclusionIn summary the oceans are a very important part of our earth and without them we would die.

PH levels are becoming more acidic because we are polluting the ocean. This is bad because if they continue to drop it will be harder for planktonic organisms to grow therefore disrupting the marine ecosystem.

The earth is 72% water and covers most of the earth and is a huge part of our ecosystem. The ocean was formed when asteroids crashed into the earth carrying water vapour. The water vapour eventually became heavy enough to become rain that rained down to make the oceans.

We can use three methods to generate power from the ocean. The first is wave power. For this you capture the up and down or back and forth movement of the waves. This causes friction that then creates power.

The next method is tidal power. In order to use tidal power you need to trap water at high tide and then catch its energy as it rushes out at low tide. This is done by forcing the water through turbines as it rushes down at low tide this activates the generator.

The next is thermal power. This is where you use the differences in temperature between the deep water (which has a colder temperature) and the surface water (which has a warmer temperature) and draw out the energy from the flow of heat between the 2. A station in Hawaii is experimenting with this and hopes to one day produce this on a large scale around the world and sell it at a similar price to the energy we have today.

Methane gas could be released into the ocean in the future. This would result in a rise in the temperature of the ocean. This would have an impact on the coral reefs because they can’t handle warmer temperatures.

Coral reefs release zooxanthellae into the water when they are under stress contributing to the levels of acidity in the water. The reason they release this zooxanthellae is because of the rising temperature of the ocean.

In the future, algal blooms may grow bigger, and become more toxic. Scientists believe this is also related to climate change and changes in the temperature of the oceans. These algal blooms have big effects on not just the marine eco system, by killing sea animals and fish, but on us humans to. Some of the algal blooms need oxygen to thrive, therefore lowering the level of the oxygen around us and in the water.

If our whole community gets involved we can protect the oceans. We can do this by picking up lots if rubbish so it won't go in the ocean. We could start a community car-pooling system, this helps because CO2 (comes from factories and car exhausts)

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sinks into the ocean and pollutes it. We can clean up rubbish along the Hutt River so that it won’t end up in the ocean.

We can watch what we wash down the drain. We can use biodegradable washing powders and chemical free gardening or household products so that the ocean doesn’t get filled with chemicals.

We could collect aluminium cans and donate the recycling money to Greenpeace. This would help in two ways; it would stop so many cans ending up in the ocean and it would help Greenpeace to continue running.

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GlossaryAlgal blooms - a rapid growth of microscopic algae or cyanobacteria in water, often resulting in a coloured scum on the surface.

Campylobacter - a bacterium which may cause abortion in animals and food poisoning in humans.

Copper - a red-brown metal, the chemical element of atomic number 29.

Cryptosporidium - a parasitic coccidian protozoan found in the intestinal tract of many vertebrates, where it sometimes causes disease.

E coli - a bacterium commonly found in the intestines of humans and other animals, some strains of which can cause severe food poisoning.

Environmental science - ecology: the branch of biology concerned with the relations between organisms and their environment.

Fossil fuel - a natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.

Giardia - a suspected cause of diarrhea in humans.

Gravitational pull - Gravitation, or gravity, is a natural phenomenon by which all physical bodies attract each other. It is most commonly experienced as the agent that gives weight to objects with mass and causes them to fall to the ground when dropped.

Salmonella - a bacterium that occurs mainly in the gut, especially a serotype causing food poisoning.

Hepatitis A - a form of viral hepatitis transmitted in food, causing fever and jaundice.

Legionella - the bacterium which causes legionnaires' disease, flourishing in air conditioning and central heating systems.

Methane hydrate - Methane clathrate, also called methane hydrate, hydromethane, methane ice, fire ice, natural gas hydrate, or gas hydrate, is a solid clathrate compound in which a large amount of methane is trapped within a crystal structure of water, forming a solid similar to ice.

Norovirus - any of various single-stranded RNA viruses comprising the Norwalk virus.

Oceanography - the branch of science that deals with the physical and biological properties and phenomena of the sea.

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pH scale - pH: (from potential of Hydrogen) the logarithm of the reciprocal of hydrogen-ion concentration in gram atoms per litre; provides a measure on a scale from 0 to 14 of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution (where 7 is neutral and greater than 7 is more basic and less than 7 is more acidic).

Planktonic - of or relating to plankton.

Shigella - a bacterium that is an intestinal pathogen of humans and other primates, some kinds of which cause dysentery.

Upper atmosphere - Near space is the region of Earth's atmosphere that lies between 65,000 and 325,000–350,000 feet above sea level, encompassing the stratosphere, mesosphere, and the lower thermosphere. This is above where airliners fly but below orbiting satellites.

Zooxanthellae - a yellowish-brown symbiotic dinoflagellate present in large numbers in the cytoplasm of many marine invertebrates.

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References How did the Oceans Form, http://people.chem.duke.edu/~jds/cruise_chem/oceans/ocean1.html, 10 April 2014

Albert Norström, Why do Oceans Matter? 10 June 2011, http://sdupdate.org/component/content/article/2-interview/101-why-do-oceans-matter, 8 April 2014

Fraser Cain, What Precent of Earth is Water? 31 May 2010, http://www.universetoday.com/65588/what-percent-of-earth-is-water/, 3 April 2014

National Geographic Society, Ocean Acidification, http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/critical-issues-ocean-acidification/ 1 April 2014 National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Department of Energy, http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/tech/ocean-energy6 April

Greenpeace, Fit for the Futurehttp://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/oceans/fit-for-the-future/ 11 April 2014

Wikipedia,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_global_warming_on_oceans 11 April 2014

Greenpeace, Things you can do,http://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/en/campaigns/oceans/things-you-can-do/11 April 2014

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