reflection of threats to sea turtles(150words)

student 1:

Sea turtles and pollution at nesting sites

Pollution plays a big part in sea turtle threats on and off shore. Larger plastics like bottles, bags, masks, straws and nets can congregate close to shore. Sometimes making it hard for them to make it to shore to nest if they make it at all. They can become entangled and drown, or eat something and choke/drown. Plastic on shore for nesting is also a problem as ‘micro-plastic’ pollution affects hatchlings. Pollution in general which creates a warmer climate can create warmer sand which in turn only produces female hatchlings altering the cycle of reproduction for further generations.

Solutions to pollution threats

There are quite a few solutions for pollution on and off shore for sea turtles. The first and most major way we can make an impact is to participate and fund beach clean ups for large plastics. If we can remove major large plastics from our oceans, it will be easier for turtles to get to shore, breed, nest, breathe, eat etc. Unfortunately, the issue of microplastics in the sand and on the beach is a problem but, the best we can do until more research is done is nip the problem at the source by keeping big plastic out of our oceans. We should also further research and efforts into reusable energy to heal our environment and prevent those greenhouse gasses from being trapped and warming the sand.

Critical considerations for solutions

There are hundreds if not thousands of beach cleanup organizations, it will be hard to clean up our beaches if we do not have a clear path, leader, organization and method to do it. We will make little progress with hundreds of thousands of organizations working independently. We also must take into fact the every growing human population, unless plastic use decreases, it will be nearly impossible to keep up with plastic waste. We must also be careful about having too overwhelming of a presence on beaches and not dive in too deep too fast, the beach is the space for marine life and we can overwhelm it just as easily as plastic can and does if we are there at the wrong time, in the wrong numbers, or simply not working around wildlife properly.

student 2:

Sea Turtles and Plastic Pollution

Plastic pollution is a huge threat to marine life, primarily sea turtles being a significant species affected by it. At a global level, 80% of ocean plastics come from land-based sources, that only leaves room for 20% coming from marine sources. Plastic can travel a long way and because it hardly ever breaks down it washes up and ends up in our oceans threatening marine life. Sea turtles mistake thin plastic bags as food - Leatherbacks or Loggerheads specifically cannot tell apart a thin plastic bag from a floating jellyfish - as this a main part of their diet). Some plastics are so small however, that if ingested by turtles due to their sharpness they can rupture internal organs or the bags can cause intestinal blockage resulting in the turtles starvation until death.

Solutions: Minimize Plastic Usage/Pollution

The amount of estimated plastic pollution that has leaked into our oceans is at an astonishing 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic - that is 8 million tons of plastic every year. First, our only solution to begin with is to care, if society does not care about how their unsustainable ways of life do not affect what is around them (their environment, oceans, entire planet speaking) then it would be difficult to follow through with any further steps necessary to diminish our carbon footprint/impact we have on our planet. We can say no to plastic straws, buy less from companies/stores that package their products with plastic, recycle properly and support/fund organizations that execute ocean clean ups or even volunteer at such organizations.

Critical Considerations for Solutions: Government Leaders

Together, we can encourage government leaders to step up and establish a global legally binding agreement to prevent plastics from leaking into our oceans. We can step up to vote for leaders who support in climate change / and take further measures into taking the proper actions necessary in order to diminish our plastic usage which then would prevent our plastic pollution. Due to its very devastating impacts on life in our oceans, every country should take its part in solving this very global issue together. We need to set more strict goals for pollution reduction, come up with action plans, raise more awareness as well as encouraging people to stop buying from companies who still support packaging with plastic - by doing so they would lose profit and find alternative and more sustainable methods to continue selling their products. Maybe we can even begin to charge more for products that get packaged with plastic - so people are more encouraged to buy elsewhere just as some grocery stores began to charge for paper bags.

student 3:

Loss of Turtle Nesting Habitats

Protected Nesting Sites:

A leading factor in Sea Turtle endangerment is their lack of successful introduction of new batches of turtles. When turtles lay eggs on the beach, the beach they use may be unfit for baby turtles to make their way back to the water to begin their lives. Baby turtles might get snagged on some pollution, or their path to the water might become blocked by some man-made object. Additionally, any toxic chemicals or oil that may have spilled on the beach will poison the turtles, causing death. One way we can do this is by designating strips of the beach as government-protected land. Off-limits to outsiders, and maintained by the government.

Critical Considerations:

Of course, when dealing with the government, setting aside land that will be off-limits to the public, and will have to be guarded by the government is a logistical nightmare. Congress will have to agree on a budget that might have to allot extra funds to a department like the USDA to sustain the new protection protocols. Additionally, the turtles might not even utilize the protected land, which would defeat the purpose, so they might need to be lured in with food. There might also be public backlash, which might hurt the chances of receiving funding to sustain the project.

student 4:

1. A threat that I chose that harmed sea turtles was unintentional catching whether it's with fishing gear or not. A lot of fishermen out there go fishing for fish, crabs, and all sorts of marine animals. With this they sometimes use special gear to hopefully increase their chances of catching these animals. I know for crab some people use a specific crab cage leave it in the ocean for half an hour or so and reel it back up to see if they caught any fish. I know that these special gears used for fishing can sometimes cause issues by catching the wrong animal. In this case sea turtles.

2. I think a minor solution would be to ban some fishing gear, or to inform fishermen on where they can and cannot fish. If there is an area where endangered sea turtles like to stay, maybe inform the fishermen that they are not allowed to fish there. If they do they would be harming sea turtles habitats and potentially kill them. I'm confident all fishermen are nice people and they just enjoy the activity of fishing. I don't think they are trying to harm or kill animals on purpose. So I feel like if they were more informed it would help.

3. I feel like my solution would be somewhat difficult because you would have to inform all fishermen about this issue. So if one fisherman isn't informed then we are reducing the amount of animals being harmed but not as much as we wanted to, like if every fishermen was informed. I feel like this has to be a law/rule within fishermen's. I know that in some areas depending on where you fish they don't allow specific things or allow you to catch more then a couple of the same fish. So I feel like this should be similar. I also feel like it will be difficult to manage as well.