The heart cries what the eye does not see. the nightmare of the Sea of Marmara, mucilage, or “sea snot”, reappeared off the side of Maltepe, Istanbul on Tuesday, with experts and activists echoing warnings that the environmental catastrophe could affect the region again this summer with the current rate of pollution and global warming.
The disturbing news came two days after scientists conducted underwater studies off Princes’ Islands in the sea of Marmora found this last year’s breakout greatly affected marine life, including corals and sponges.
The mucilage problemthat plagued the surface of the Marmara, reached a level that theon could qualify as catastrophic last year. The natural phenomenon, put in cause on the increase in organic pollutants and rise in sea temperatures, have strongly affected tourism and fishing.
The Turkish authorities had announced the action plan in 22 points of the Sea of Marmara to make face at the push. After an intense sea clean-up campaignTurkish authorities said the sea had been cleared of mucilage.
No presence of the mucilage was found in the underwater images taken in Maltepe, as aerial footage captured layers of mucilage on the surface of the sea.
In short distance on the side of Maltepe, researchers from the Faculty of Istanbul University of Aquatic Science conducted an underwater study on the effects of mucilage, and their findings painted a grim picture.
Emphasizing wealth of the area in terms of sponges, in particular of a point to the south of Büyükada, partner professor Nur Eda Topçu said: “It was a place where you can see all the colors on a color scale in a small area. Now everything looks brown. The number of sponges also greatly diminished,” she said.
Supported by the Council for Scientific and Technological Research of Turkey (TÜBITAK), the research that is carried out in nine dive resorts around the islands, is one of 37 projects supported by the body in the framework of of son mucilage research special call. It aims to find out What survived after the phenomenon of mucilage, how Many are out where and where are they.
Topçu told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the region has a seabed that could be described as a “coral garden” or a “forest in terms of thickness, and it is home to certain species only found in the Mediterranean. From 2015, a breaking point occurred for creatures living under the seabed and mass deaths have occurred in sponges and corals as waterfront construction in the region increased, she explained.
“In particular the red gorgonian (soft coral) is a species that has declined in number since the 1970s due to fishing. It later became very rare due to other causesespecially seaside activities. Now, it is almost non-existent in cause mucilage,” Topçu said, pointing out that red gorgonians are doomed to be erased from the region since it is a long-lived, slow-growing species with moo ability multiply.
“All is not lost, there is still life. If we give a chance in Marmara, I think there might be a fast recovery”, said Topçu, noting that if a large outbreak of mucilage occurs again, it may mean that death of all the remaining creatures of the seabed.
Associate professor Bülent Topaloğlu said he detected 20 species of sponge in the sea of Marmora in previous studies, but their numbers probably dropped after the mucilage flare.
“It’s as if a massacre had taken place on the seabed. This is what underwater pictures show. It will be possible for us to come up with more concrete results after analyses,” he said.
Mucilage clogs pores of living creatures through nutrient filtering in water, that is death for sponges, explained Topaloğlu.
thick layers of the mucilages were also seen at the Dardanelles a week earlier despite the strong currents of the strait. Document the incident on son fishing boat, Evren Kızoğlu, president of Çanakkale City Council and mukhtar of the city of Cevatpaşa district, had told Ihlas News Agency (IHA) that what was seen as a blur underwater of a couple of a few days ago had thickened and hit the surface.
“The Sea of Marmara belongs entirely to us and is surrounded by our country. We were told that we were facing the danger of its destruction. Our ministry has taken steps and Marmara Union of The municipalities held meetings. He is clear that the inspections need to be strengthened, i.e. advanced biological treatment facilities should be actively used and the waters should not be willing of by discharge on the high seas even if they have been treated,” Kızoğlu said.
The delicate situation in the sea of Marmora also alarmed the public, with residents of the port city of Gemlik in Bursa province launches navy protection campaign led by the local municipality last week against plans for set up a landfill on the high seas system by a chemical plant.
After a statement on On February 14, the Municipality of Gemlik urged residents to sign a petition to protect the eponymous gulf, which is dotted with olive groves and seaside resorts along with serving as an important industrial and commercial center. Mayor Mehmet Uğur Sertaslan said the regiononce known for sea sponge farming, has reached a point where even the health effects of swim there are under discussion.
“The mucilage, which occurred last year after the weather warmed up, served as an indicator of how the Sea of Marmara has been damaged by pollutants. Now this dump on the high seas system foreseen for our neighborhood seeks to attract in 5,500 cubic meters (1.45 million gallons) of water per hour – seven times higher that all uses of Gemlik in one day – for cooling, then discharge the hot water to the sea. Of course, we know only different amounts of chemicals, including chlorine, will end up in the sea,” he said.
“This system will increase the temperature of the gulf of Gemlik of 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter and 2 degrees (Celsius) in Summer. Temperatures in the sea of Marmara rose by 2.5 degrees Celsius in the last 30 years. The increase in sea water temperatures and use of chemicals will affect region from the gulf of Gemlik to Kapıdağ Peninsula in Balikesir. The Sea of Marmara has no more defense against new polluting effects”, the mayor addedcalling on citizens to support the petition.
The heart cries what the eye does not see. the nightmare of the Sea of Marmara, mucilage, or “sea snot”, reappeared off the side of Maltepe, Istanbul on Tuesday, with experts and activists echoing warnings that the environmental catastrophe could affect the region again this summer with the current rate of pollution and global warming.
The disturbing news came two days after scientists conducted underwater studies off Princes’ Islands in the sea of Marmora found this last year’s breakout greatly affected marine life, including corals and sponges.
The mucilage problemthat plagued the surface of the Marmara, reached a level that theon could qualify as catastrophic last year. The natural phenomenon, put in cause on the increase in organic pollutants and rise in sea temperatures, have strongly affected tourism and fishing.
The Turkish authorities had announced the action plan in 22 points of the Sea of Marmara to make face at the push. After an intense sea clean-up campaignTurkish authorities said the sea had been cleared of mucilage.
No presence of the mucilage was found in the underwater images taken in Maltepe, as aerial footage captured layers of mucilage on the surface of the sea.
In short distance on the side of Maltepe, researchers from the Faculty of Istanbul University of Aquatic Science conducted an underwater study on the effects of mucilage, and their findings painted a grim picture.
Emphasizing wealth of the area in terms of sponges, in particular of a point to the south of Büyükada, partner professor Nur Eda Topçu said: “It was a place where you can see all the colors on a color scale in a small area. Now everything looks brown. The number of sponges also greatly diminished,” she said.
Supported by the Council for Scientific and Technological Research of Turkey (TÜBITAK), the research that is carried out in nine dive resorts around the islands, is one of 37 projects supported by the body in the framework of of son mucilage research special call. It aims to find out What survived after the phenomenon of mucilage, how Many are out where and where are they.
Topçu told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the region has a seabed that could be described as a “coral garden” or a “forest in terms of thickness, and it is home to certain species only found in the Mediterranean. From 2015, a breaking point occurred for creatures living under the seabed and mass deaths have occurred in sponges and corals as waterfront construction in the region increased, she explained.
“In particular the red gorgonian (soft coral) is a species that has declined in number since the 1970s due to fishing. It later became very rare due to other causesespecially seaside activities. Now, it is almost non-existent in cause mucilage,” Topçu said, pointing out that red gorgonians are doomed to be erased from the region since it is a long-lived, slow-growing species with moo ability multiply.
“All is not lost, there is still life. If we give a chance in Marmara, I think there might be a fast recovery”, said Topçu, noting that if a large outbreak of mucilage occurs again, it may mean that death of all the remaining creatures of the seabed.
Associate professor Bülent Topaloğlu said he detected 20 species of sponge in the sea of Marmora in previous studies, but their numbers probably dropped after the mucilage flare.
“It’s as if a massacre had taken place on the seabed. This is what underwater pictures show. It will be possible for us to come up with more concrete results after analyses,” he said.
Mucilage clogs pores of living creatures through nutrient filtering in water, that is death for sponges, explained Topaloğlu.
thick layers of the mucilages were also seen at the Dardanelles a week earlier despite the strong currents of the strait. Document the incident on son fishing boat, Evren Kızoğlu, president of Çanakkale City Council and mukhtar of the city of Cevatpaşa district, had told Ihlas News Agency (IHA) that what was seen as a blur underwater of a couple of a few days ago had thickened and hit the surface.
“The Sea of Marmara belongs entirely to us and is surrounded by our country. We were told that we were facing the danger of its destruction. Our ministry has taken steps and Marmara Union of The municipalities held meetings. He is clear that the inspections need to be strengthened, i.e. advanced biological treatment facilities should be actively used and the waters should not be willing of by discharge on the high seas even if they have been treated,” Kızoğlu said.
The delicate situation in the sea of Marmora also alarmed the public, with residents of the port city of Gemlik in Bursa province launches navy protection campaign led by the local municipality last week against plans for set up a landfill on the high seas system by a chemical plant.
After a statement on On February 14, the Municipality of Gemlik urged residents to sign a petition to protect the eponymous gulf, which is dotted with olive groves and seaside resorts along with serving as an important industrial and commercial center. Mayor Mehmet Uğur Sertaslan said the regiononce known for sea sponge farming, has reached a point where even the health effects of swim there are under discussion.
“The mucilage, which occurred last year after the weather warmed up, served as an indicator of how the Sea of Marmara has been damaged by pollutants. Now this dump on the high seas system foreseen for our neighborhood seeks to attract in 5,500 cubic meters (1.45 million gallons) of water per hour – seven times higher that all uses of Gemlik in one day – for cooling, then discharge the hot water to the sea. Of course, we know only different amounts of chemicals, including chlorine, will end up in the sea,” he said.
“This system will increase the temperature of the gulf of Gemlik of 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter and 2 degrees (Celsius) in Summer. Temperatures in the sea of Marmara rose by 2.5 degrees Celsius in the last 30 years. The increase in sea water temperatures and use of chemicals will affect region from the gulf of Gemlik to Kapıdağ Peninsula in Balikesir. The Sea of Marmara has no more defense against new polluting effects”, the mayor addedcalling on citizens to support the petition.