The Ocean We Pretend Doesn’t Exist

— by vishal Sambyal

The world’s oceans, covering over 70% of Earth, are often ignored in policy and public consciousness. Here’s why overlooking them is a dangerous illusion.

Introduction: A Sea of Silence

We speak often of forests as Earth’s lungs, of cities as engines of progress, and of skies as fragile ceilings holding climate change at bay. Yet, the vast blue realm that makes up more than two-thirds of our planet is treated like a backdrop—there, but seldom acknowledged. The ocean we pretend doesn’t exist is not a metaphor. It is a reality, one that scientists warn is pushing humanity toward ecological reckoning.

Context & Background: The Invisible Majority

The ocean covers 71% of Earth’s surface, houses 80% of all life, and absorbs a quarter of carbon emissions. It regulates weather, produces oxygen, and provides food for billions. Yet, in most political and cultural conversations, it remains a ghost. Unlike deforestation or smog-filled skies, ocean degradation is largely hidden beneath the surface.

Plastic waste drifts out of sight, overfishing depletes species in silence, and deep-sea mining—an emerging threat—remains a technical discussion confined to conference rooms. Even climate talks often frame oceans as secondary, despite their central role in absorbing excess heat and maintaining planetary balance.

Main Developments: The Unseen Crisis

Recent scientific assessments paint a stark picture:

  • Warming seas are accelerating coral bleaching, with the Great Barrier Reef experiencing mass events four times in the past decade.
  • Overfishing has pushed one-third of global fish stocks to collapse or near collapse, threatening food security for millions.
  • Deep-sea mining projects are preparing to scrape untouched ecosystems for rare metals, risking irreversible damage.
  • Rising sea levels, driven by melting ice sheets, threaten to displace coastal populations—yet the link between oceans and climate migration is underreported.

Despite these alarming shifts, funding for ocean conservation remains a fraction of terrestrial efforts. In 2024, only 8% of climate financing went toward marine ecosystems, according to global policy trackers.

Expert Insight & Public Reaction

“Oceans are the Earth’s circulatory system. To ignore them is to ignore our own survival,” says Dr. Sylvia Earle, famed oceanographer and former chief scientist of NOAA. She emphasizes that while people grasp the importance of forests and air, the “blue heart of the planet” is often overlooked.

Public awareness, however, is shifting slowly. Coastal communities and island nations, from Fiji to the Maldives, have long sounded alarms. Activists argue that ignoring oceans is an act of privilege—possible only for those not yet facing saltwater flooding their homes or vanishing fish stocks in their markets.

Social media campaigns like #SaveOurSeas and documentaries such as Seaspiracy have nudged conversations forward, but the disconnect between awareness and action remains wide.

Impact & Implications: What Happens Next?

If current trends persist, scientists project that by 2050:

  • Coral reefs could decline by 90%, collapsing marine food chains.
  • Coastal megacities from New York to Mumbai could face routine flooding.
  • The Arctic Ocean may be ice-free during summer, destabilizing weather worldwide.

On the other hand, action is still possible. Expanding marine protected areas, regulating deep-sea mining, reducing plastic waste, and funding blue carbon projects—such as mangrove and seagrass restoration—could buy humanity critical time.

But to succeed, the ocean must stop being invisible. Policy, media, and education need to position it not as an afterthought, but as the central stage of planetary survival.

Conclusion: Seeing the Unseen

The ocean we pretend doesn’t exist is, in truth, the system that makes our existence possible. Its silence is deceptive; its decline, catastrophic. Treating the seas as a limitless dump or an infinite buffet is a delusion we can no longer afford.

To face the future, humanity must look not only to the skies or the forests, but also into the depths—where the fate of our planet is already being written in currents, reefs, and tides. The ocean has always been there, carrying us. The question now is whether we will finally carry it in return.

Disclaimer :This article is for informational purposes only. It does not substitute professional environmental or scientific advice.