Sustainability Issue as the Topic

Sustainability is a term used in geography to define the methods practiced all over the world to protect the environment and save it for future generations. It is commonly seen in coastal areas worldwide in plastic bags, backing bands, fishing gears, plastic water bottles, and other commodities made of plastic. Marine debris is considered a wicked problem in all over the world because it affects the environment of a region and the economy of a country. It breaks the chain of the environment’s ecosystem and creates harm to the people living on earth. The issue of marine debris is raising concern globally as it is increasing every day due to an increase in human activities. The government of respective countries worldwide are trying to solve the issue of marine debris and reduce the pollution in the water bodies. The issue of marine debris is raising concern globally as it is increasing every day due to an increase in human activities. The government of respective countries worldwide are trying to solve the issue of marine debris and reduce the pollution in the water bodies. The iceberg model is a concept under which the issue is studied through factors such as events, patterns of behaviour, structure, and mental models. The problem of marine debris is effectively analysed by using the iceberg model and its elements.

Sustainability is a term used in geography to define the methods practiced all over the world to protect the environment and save it for future generations. The topic of the case study is marine debris. It is considered a sustainability issue because it is responsible for providing harm to the environmental conditions all over the world (DAdamo et al., 2021). It refers to the waste products near the marine area, such as the sea, oceans, and other water bodies. Moreover, marine debris is considered a solid waste worldwide that highly affects the water bodies and aquatic animals negatively. It is considered a sustainability issue worldwide and is degrading environmental conditions. It comprises plastic waste produced by human beings on earth every day. It is a sustainability issue even in the United Nations because it creates toxic substance in the marine water that affects the marine life cycle and creates water pollution (Gacutan et al., 2022). It is commonly seen in coastal areas worldwide in plastic bags, backing bands, fishing gears, plastic water bottles, and other commodities made of plastic. Moreover, it is considered a sustainability issue because plastic is a substance available in the environment and cannot be decomposed. As plastic cannot be composed in environmental conditions, it remains on the surface for a longer period, harmful to humans and animals on the planet. Marine debris as a sustainability issue is important because it is the responsibility of the people on this planet to avoid depletion of the natural resources in the environment. Various ways and methods are present to control the problem of marine debris worldwide for saving the environmental conditions on earth. It is important because marine debris is responsible for damaging marine life and acts as a barrier to conducting the business activities of maritime industries (Hu et al., 2022). Moreover, it is responsible for degrading the quality of water worldwide, which directly affects human beings’ health in society. So it is extremely important to control marine debris on the planet and follow the policies and sustainable goals that the United Nations frame in the world. The UN sustainable development goal includes providing clean and healthy water to all the people on earth with adequate equipment (Leal et al., 2022).

Marine Debris is a Wicked Problem

Marine debris is considered a wicked problem in all over the world because it affects the environment of a region and the economy of a country. It breaks the chain of the environment’s ecosystem and creates harm to the people living on earth. It is frequently seen that aquatic animals get hurt and die if not saved due to the retired fishing nets in the water bodies (Wagner, 2022). The plastic waste in the water bodies wraps around the animals and cuts their bodies, creating harmful conditions for them. This characteristic of the wicked problem of marine debris is cold as wildlife entanglement. Another characteristic is ghost fishing, which negatively impacts marine animals and kills them. Ghost fishing is a situation in which the fishing gear is out of control by the human being, and it kills the marine animals by wrapping them around (Lee et al., 2015). Another characteristic of the wicked problem of marine debris is the problem of ingestion among marine animals (Kelly et al., 2022). This problem occurs when an aquatic animal swallows the waist made up of plastic, blocks its stomach, and causes death. Sometimes, marine animals’ material consists of sharp substances that cut their throat and kill them. Moreover the habitat of the water bodies is also affected due to the marine debris problem. When an accidental boat or a ship is submerged in the water body, it destroys the marine habitat in which aquatic animals live. Marine debris is also a wicked problem by analysing the characteristic of transporting non-native species of aquatic animals in the water bodies (Mihai et al., 2021). In the transportation of non-native species in the water bodies, the tiny organisms are attached to the marine debris and can transport from one place to another. Due to this condition, those tiny organisms affect the marine life cycle because they are transported to areas where they are not suitable. In this way, marine debris is considered a wicked problem because it affects and harms human health and the health of marine animals all over the world (Lee et al., 2015). Moreover, marine debris also acts as a barrier in the navigation process of ships and boats in the water bodies such as oceans. Due to the large quantity of marine debris in the world’s coastal areas, navigation becomes difficult for the fisherman and other people. Marine debris creates confusion during the navigation of the coastal areas in the world that slows down the activities of business houses and governments (Lee et al., 2015).

Role of Government

The issue of marine debris is raising concern globally as it is increasing every day due to an increase in human activities. The government of respective countries worldwide are trying to solve the issue of marine debris and reduce the pollution in the water bodies. The government cannot solve the issue because of the lack of advanced technology and other resources (Meginnis, Domanski & Toledo, 2022). The governments of the respective countries are facing difficulties removing plastic waste as it is in a very large quantity and requires highly skilled labour. Moreover, the government of developing and underdeveloped countries cannot afford the technology used to remove the marine debris from the water bodies. To remove marine debris from the water bodies, the government cannot implement strategies that create awareness among the country’s people to reduce the use of plastic products (Durgadoo et al., 2021). As the technology used for removing the marine debris is very expensive, the government cannot spend a large number of funds on the research and development in this sector. There is a lack of funds with the government that acts as a barrier to reducing the marine debris from the water bodies worldwide. The lack of funds is observed in developing and underdeveloped countries such as African nation (Kikaki et al., 2022).

The iceberg model is a concept under which the issue is studied through factors such as events, patterns of behaviour, structure, and mental models. The problem of marine debris is effectively analysed by using the iceberg model and its elements. The top part of the iceberg model contains the factor of events usually observed on the surface of the water bodies (Kikaki et al., 2022). In the issue of marine debris, the element of events in the iceberg model consists of plastic waste seen by human beings on the surface of water floating and creating water pollution. The next element in the iceberg model is patterns of behaviour observed during the issue of marine debris in the water bodies (Kikaki et al., 2022). Patterns of behaviour help understand the reason behind marine debris and the changes in the water bodies due to this issue. The iceberg model is used here to analyse that the activities conducted by industries and human beings are the major cause behind the marine debris. Moreover, the changes due to this issue include water pollution, barriers to the marine life cycle’s smooth functioning, and the killing of aquatic animals (Orlando, Avio & Bonanno, 2022). The next element of the iceberg model structure demonstrates the activities that have influenced the issue of marine debris in the water bodies. It also explains the relationship among the factors that influence this issue (Kikaki et al., 2022). The factors include an increase in the production of goods and services globally and an increase in the usage and demand of plastic-made products among the people in the world. The structures element of the iceberg model helps to understand the relationship between the increase in the usage of plastic made products and marine debris created from them in water bodies worldwide. Lastly, the element of the iceberg model is the mental model that represents some significant values, beliefs, and assumptions involved in the issue of marine debris (Boulay, Verones & Vazquez, 2021). The values and beliefs on the issue of marine debris are the responsibility of these citizens of a country to avoid using plastic-made products and cleaning coastal areas to protect the water bodies. Moreover, the assumptions are made for the issue of marine debris that if this problem is not solved on a priority basis, it will create depletion in the natural resources in a large quantity (Eisfeld, Pierantonio & Simmonds, 2022). Another value involved is the humanity among the people of the world responsible for saving marine animals’ lives from marine debris present in the water bodies.

Marine Debris and the Iceberg Model

Conclusion

It is extremely important to control marine debris on the planet and follow the policies and sustainable goals that the United Nations frame in the world. The UN sustainable development goal includes providing clean and healthy water to all the people on earth with adequate equipment. Due to the large quantity of marine debris in the world’s coastal areas, navigation becomes difficult for the fisherman and other people. Marine debris creates confusion during the navigation of the coastal areas in the world that slows down the activities of business houses and governments. As the technology used for removing the marine debris is very expensive, the government cannot spend a large number of funds on the research and development in this sector. There is a lack of funds with the government that acts as a barrier to reducing the marine debris from the water bodies worldwide. The lack of funds is observed in developing and underdeveloped countries such as African nation.

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