GREAT BARRIER RELIEF:
HOW DELPHIS ECO ARE SAVING THE OCEANS Delphis Eco’s CEO, Mark Jankovich, explains why environmentally-friendly cleaning products are the way forward to saving our oceans.
THE PROBLEM: We clean our homes, our desks, our cars, schools, and restaurants, and then we wash the cleaning chemicals away, flush them away, and pour them away. Except there is no such place as ‘away’.
Away becomes somewhere, it is the water supply, the soil, the atmosphere. Everything we use ends up somewhere. If we’re choosing our consumer products mindfully, products and packaging can be broken down, repurposed, recycled or will biodegrade after use. If we choose carelessly, these products pollute water systems, trap wildlife, end up in landfills and food chains, produce harmful gases, and cause general havoc.
It’s too easy for out of sight to remain out of mind, but the incredible wealth of nature – particularly that which lies hidden in the ocean – lives under daily threat, suffering the impact of humans.
Waste that ends up in the ocean is one of the major threats facing sea life. Reducing our own plastic use can lessen this damage. Thankfully, environmental issues are gaining momentum; it’s invigorating to see so many people engaging with urgent issues.
14 | CASE STUDY
Take the recent campaign to ban microbeads from cosmetics and cleaning products as an example; public pressure led the UK government to announce a ban, which takes effect next year. Or the introduction of a plastic bag charge last October, which saw an immediate drop in their use; from seven billion one year, to one billion the next. Six billion plastic bags out of circulation is a roaring success, and should inspire further efforts from everyone, proving that habits aren’t always hard to break, and daily action is powerful.
WHAT’S GOING
ON DOWN THERE? Coral reefs provide ecosystems that support the regeneration of fish populations. Reefs are where eggs are often laid and hatch, starting their life in the protective and nourishing enclaves of the coral. However, coral is a living organism, which under the stress of pollution and inhospitable temperatures caused by climate change, can struggle to cope. This process is called coral bleaching, and results in the loss of algae and fish that live symbiotically with the coral. Once bleaching begins, deterioration can continue even if the cause of the stress is reversed. Climate
change is causing crucial shifts in sea temperature, which also confuses the instincts of fish to breed. This doesn’t just disrupt the fish populations we eat, but also the fish they eat, and thus the whole food chain.
This damage might not seem such an immediate threat for those of us who get our food from supermarkets that seamlessly replenish; however, local communities who depend on fish day- to-day are hit directly by the effects. The Marine Stewardship Council reports that more than one billion people worldwide depend on fish. Many of those are in developing countries. Reducing the harmful impact on marine life then becomes a political and social justice concern too.
Even though they make up less than 1% of undersea ecosystems, coral reefs are home to 25% of marine species. Preventing further damage to coral reefs helps to protect the many species that depend on them, and that list of species includes humans.
Coral reefs also offer a rich source of pharmaceutical compounds used to develop ground-breaking medicines. Once we lose these ecosystems, we lose untold potential for scientific discovery and medical
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