¶ … Oceans on Human Life: Recent economic, political, and environmental developments

One of the oldest forms of transport is sailing: long before airplanes or cars were invented, people turned to the sea as method of moving goods and people from one place to another. But oceans still play a critical role in the modern economy. In fact, an estimated one of every 6 jobs in the U.S. is in some way tied to the oceans and "over 1/3rd of the annual U.S. Gross National Product originates in coastal areas -- approximately $700 billion… U.S. maritime transport carries 95% of the nation's foreign trade" ("Oceans impact the economy" 2015). The importance of ocean-related shipping has increased rather than decreased in recent years, due to the rise in global trade. Although cheaper and more convenient airplane-related travel has retracted the importance of human-driven transport by sea, ocean-related trade has increased.

The creation of open ship registries, "allowed the shipping companies to combine the relatively low capital costs in the industrial countries with the low labour costs for seafarers from developing countries" and to "compensate for sharply rising labour costs, especially in the industrial nations" as well as avoid equally costly regulations (Bucker et al. 2014: 8.1). The dominance of a handful of the top registries has been one noteworthy development. "The ten top open and international registries accounted for about 55 per cent of the global merchant fleet in 2008. In 1950 this figure was only 5 per cent" (Bucker et al. 2014: 8.1). The dominant nations include Japan (16.0), Greece (15.3), Germany (9.5), China...

2014: 8.1).
Ships have become larger, faster, and more specialized than ever before, which has also driven the rise of sea-driven commerce (Bucker et al. 2014: 8.2). One of the most important products transported by sea is crude oil. The price and availability of crude oil affects the global economy in a critical fashion. Crude oil accounts for nearly a quarter of all goods transported by sea, but its transport obviously has a major effect not simply upon the market itself but also upon the daily lives of consumers dependent upon transportation via car and also goods that are shipped via trucks and other land vehicles powered by oil (Bucker et al. 2014: 8.2).

In ancient times, ports were a vital driver of civilization. Most of the world's dominant early civilizations were dependent upon nearby bodies of water, including ancient Greece. Even today, cities and hubs of commerce congregate near coastal areas. An estimated "4% of U.S. counties that are adjacent to the coast produce 45% of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP)" and "tourism and recreation account for 70% of the ocean economy's total employment and 34% of its GDP. Offshore Mineral Extraction accounts for another 37% of the ocean economy's GDP" ("How important," 2015). The U.S. proximity to oceans is a critical component of its continued…