- A Followup to Earth Day Blues -

Covering more than two thirds of our home planet’s surface

Its oceans were once thought to be a truly inexhaustible resource

Many of us believing that earth’s seas were too vast to be damaged

But very tragically and sadly we’ve now been proven wrong of course

From icy frigid northern hemispheric seas

To warm tropical southern hemispheric isles

Two thirds of our world’s fisheries have been exploited

Which should make us all take notice and ponder awhile

We have removed far too large a number of food fish

And destroyed too many types of marine habitat and life

And very sadly today toxic chemicals overfishing and misuse

Are now placing all of our oceans in far too much peril and strife

Billions of fish around the world are now wasted as unwanted

Called ‘bycatch’ these fish are tossed overboard already dead or dying

And many innocent marine species such as sea turtles mammals and sea birds

Are killed in massive mile long fishing nets which should make us all begin crying

Ever increasing mercury levels in our oceans’ remaining edible fish

Caused mainly by discharges from coal-fueled paper and power plants

Are now causing ever increasing extremely serious health consequences

For pregnant women unborn children and aquatic animals in many lands

Our oceans’ coastlines are also being carved up clear around the globe

To make room for more subdivisions luxury hotels roads and fish farms

Allowing our once revered waterways to become toxic dumping grounds

And allowing ever increasing oceanic ‘Dead Zones’ to expand and harm

And the fairly recent explosion of ‘on land fish farming’

To compensate for our growing appetite for ‘fresher seafood’

Is now polluting our coastal rivers and estuaries extremely fast

Which should again make us take notice and sadden our mood

And ever increasing toxic runoff in coastal rivers and bays

From crop farm pesticides factory discharges and city streets

Is creating more and more of these devastating ‘Dead Zones’

Leaving earth’s aquatic creatures with far less room to retreat

Tons of fertilizers pesticides and other toxic chemicals and silt

Are now poisoning and smothering far too many marine creatures

In many places around the globe the ocean floor is now completely bare

Because bottom trawling has clear felled its once splendid coral features

We are now sadly almost reaching a very tragic point of no return

In which our vast consumption and misuse could pluck our oceans bare

And I truly believe it’s now time for every earth resident to finally decide

If our planet’s once rich oceans are still important to us - or do we even care?

“When times get rough,
And friends just can't be found,
Will we build a bridge across earth’s troubled waters,
Or will we just callously let them drown?”

þ2006, Ed Kostro