JOIN USKarnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), in association with NSS and the State Youth Empowerment and Sports Department, will be organising a study on the coastal stretch and shores in Udupi district by organising a Jatha.
Prior to the Jatha, the programme would be introduced to various stake holders of the society including, students, advocates, parents, teachers, journalists, various eco club members, Red Cross members, government employees and panchayat members who would be shown the demonstrations and documentaries on climate change and units impact on the ocean. The programmes will be organised on February 16 and 17 at Town Hall and Government Women College respectively.
According to a press release, oceans cover 71% of the planet's surface, proving a home to 3,00,000 known species and about one million unknown species of plants and animals. These vast bodies of water also help absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and regulate the earth's temperature. The ocean plays a vital role in the survival of the planet, but the damaging effects of a warming planet are causing changes that put the health of our oceans and countless species at risk. The heating of the atmosphere has directly impacted the ocean, which has absorbed an estimated 90% of the planet's greenhouse gas-related heating, the sea surface temperature has been rising approximately 0.13 degrees Fahrenheit every decade, with temperatures being higher over the past three decades. It might sound small, but these changes are affecting everything from the presence of microbes to the migration and breeding patterns of marine animals.
The increasing temperatures of oceans are just one of the threats placing marine life in danger. The major cause of the rising sea levels is global warming, a phenomenon that has started to occur very rapidly with the fast development of the industrial age.
The jatha and study is an attempt to create awareness, the release added.