“Ocean tides are changing hence the need to generate a new wave of excitement to­wards cherishing and protecting our ocean and blue planet.”

“As individuals and institu­tions, communities, Metropol­itan, Municipal and District Assemblies and a nation, we are called upon to unite in effec­tively managing and sustaining our ocean to achieve a bluer and better lifestyle.”

The Minister of Environ­ment Science Technology and Innovation, Dr Kwaku Afri­yie, in a statement issued and copied to the Ghanaian Times to commemorate the World Ocean Day reiterated the need for members of the public to reflect on the valuable signifi­cance of the ocean and observe the day as a catalyst to under­score humanity’s connectivity to the ocean, illustrate its cross sector potential and chart a path to a cleaner, healthier and sus­tainable ocean front now and in the future.

This year’s event is being marked on the theme “Planet Ocean: Tides are changing.”

According to the statement, government could not effective­ly develop and implement ocean management plans without the collaboration of the public because such collaborations helped foster a sense of shared responsibility for the ocean’s long-term sustainability.

It stated that the public is a critical force in fostering environmental stewardship and protecting the marine environ­ment.

World Ocean Day is a global campaign, marked annually in June that helps to highlight the importance of the shared ocean and urges people everywhere to unite and take action to protect it for the future.

The ocean covers more than 70 per cent of the earth’s surface.

It produces at least half of the planet’s oxygen and absorbs around 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide produced by humans.

The sea is home to most of the world’s biodiversity and three billion people globally rely on this for their livelihoods, according to the United Nations (UN).

The UN says around 200 mil­lion people are employed either directly or indirectly in related industries.

Various researches have prov­en that carbon emissions from human activities are causing ocean warming, acidification and oxygen loss with coastal waters deteriorating due to pollution, causing harmful algae blooms.

Also, 90 per cent of big fish populations have depleted and half of all coral reefs destroyed.