Health

The condition of the marine environment is a important factor in human health, especially to those living in coastal communities and persons who engage in recreational activities offered by the sea. Human communities are at risk from the health implications of degraded ecosystems threatened by human activities. Pollution directly affects organisms and indirectly affects human health and resources. Sewage, nutrients, and chemicals affects the health of our marine and coastal environment and puts us at risk.

Waterborne diseases such as cholera are on the rise in coastal countries, and may be related to declining water quality, climate, and eutrophication-driven algal blooms. Algal blooms  have caused neurological damage and death in humans through consumption of exposed seafood. Toxins present in red tide species may be accumulated in marine organisms and cause a number of different types of toxic effects to humans.

The incidence of diseases of marine organisms and emergence of new pathogens is increasing which can cause harm to human health. Cholera impacts human well-being directly by increasing human morbidity and mortality rates, but it also has severe economic impacts in coastal countries. For instance, tuna coming from countries having incidences of cholera are required to be quarantined; this restriction affects many of the major tuna producing and exporting countries.

Human health effects are also caused by pollution of nearshore waters, through consumption of fish or other marine products that contain heavy metals, PCBs, POPs, and other toxins that have bioaccumulated in the food chain. Chronic exposure to heavy metals and other bioaccumulating pollutants may not cause death in large numbers of people, but their cumulative effect can lead to reproductive failure and significantly decreased well-being. UNEP and the Water Supply and Sanitation Council estimate the global economic costs related to pollution of coastal waters is $16 billion annually (www.wsscc.org), much of which is due to human health impacts. Coastal waters in both industrial and developing countries are frequently contaminated
with sewage.

Marine litter is any solid material that is disposed of in the coastal and marine environment. This includes: packaging for items used in the household, construction wastes (bricks, tiles, etc), and hazardous wastes (medications, chemicals, etc.), to name a few.

Wastewater is any water that has been adversely affected in quality by anthropogenic influence and comprises liquid waste discharged by domestic residences, commercial properties, industry, and/or agriculture.

Many disease agents enter the marine environment through solid waste and sewage and wastewater discharge. These disease agents enter the human body when people eat tainted seafood or swallow contaminated seawater. Some agents, however, can enter through broken skin.