A thick, brown, bubbly foam dubbed “sea snot” has covered
the shores of the Sea of Marmara, alarming Istanbul residents and threatening
marine life.
اضافة اعلان
The naturally occurring mucilage was first documented in
Turkey in 2007, when it was also seen in parts of the Aegean Sea near
Greece.
But this outbreak is the largest on record, blamed by
experts on a combination of pollution and global warming, which speeds up the
growth of algae responsible for the slimy sludge.
“Of course it affects our work,” fisherman Mahsum Daga, 42,
said as the viscous substances lapped rows of surrounding boats.
“You know what it does to shellfish? When they open up, it
prevents them from closing up again because it gets in the way. All the sea
snails here are dead.”
Istanbul University biology professor Muharrem Balci said
when the algae grow out of control in springtime, as they have done this year,
they block out the sun and cause oxygen depletion for fish and marine life.
The “sea snot” results from a sort of nutrient overload for
the algae, which feast on warm weather and water pollution that has grown
progressively worse in the past 40 years, Balci said.
“This mucilage is now covering the sea surface like a tent
canvas,” Balci told AFP.
“After a while, this cover collapses to the bottom and
covers the (sea floor’s) ecosystem.”
This could poison the sea’s mussels and creatures such as
crabs.
“It will smell like a rotten egg unless this process is
halted,” he said.
Action plan
Cevahir Efe Akcelik, an environment engineer and secretary
general of the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects, said the
foam could cover the sea all summer unless urgent measures are taken.
“Studies show the mucilage is not only on the surface now
but also goes 25 to 30 metres (80-100 feet) deep,” he told AFP.
The Sea of Marmara, which stretches along Istanbul’s
southern coast from the Bosphorus to the Aegean Sea, is densely populated and home to numerous industrial
sites.
Balci said it also absorbs some of the waste that flows into
the neighboring Black Sea from the polluted Danube River that cuts across
eastern Europe.
“This is an extra burden for the Sea of Marmara,” said
Balci, calling for a collective action plan for all of the sea’s coastal
cities.
Workers are trying to remove the sludge with nets, but their
efforts have so far proven largely ineffective.
Balci said a lasting solution requires proper marine
supervision, as well as biological and chemical disposal systems for the sea’s
cities and industrial zones.
Ali Oztunc, a lawmaker for the main opposition CHP party,
urged the government to impose tough penalties on waste disposal facilities
that fail to follow the rules.
“The Sea of Marmara is an inland sea but, unfortunately, it
is becoming an inland desert because of the wrong environmental policies,” he
told AFP.
On Tuesday, President Recept Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling
coalition shot down a CHP proposal to set up a parliamentary committee to
investigate the “sea snot”.
Oztunc also called on Erdogan’s government to finally
approve the 2015 Paris Agreement, which aims to limit temperature rises by
cutting carbon emissions.
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