Scientists Reveal First-Ever Global Map of Total Human Effect on Oceans
More than 40 percent of the world's oceans are heavily affected by human activities, and few if any areas remain untouched, according to the first global-scale study of human influence on marine ecosystems.
By overlaying maps of 17 different activities such as fishing, climate change and pollution, the researchers have produced a composite map of the toll that humans have exacted on the seas.
The study reports that the most heavily affected waters in the world include the Caribbean Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea and several regions in the western Pacific. The least affected areas are largely near the poles.
Human influence on the ocean varies dramatically across various ecosystems. The most heavily affected areas include coral reefs, rocky reefs and seamounts. The least impacted ecosystems are soft-bottom areas and open-ocean surface waters.