AOC engages in educational outreach and implements cooperative programs with private sector, governmental, and environmental organizations toward their goal of preserving the health of the world's oceans. For every pound of shrimp that American consumers buy, an average of three to four pounds of other sea life is killed and discarded overboard. The Earth and its resources are dependent upon healthy oceans. Many of us assume that these resources will always be there. However, there are increasing threats to coastal water quality and fish habitat.
Fish stocks continue to collapse.
Beaches are contaminated and closed. And we, the users of these resources, fail to recognize the increasing frequency of these events. Many of our nations beach waters are unsafe for swimming. In 1998 states and localities that test coastal water quality closed beaches over 7,000 times due to the presence of bacteria and viruses from stormwater pollution, polluted runoff from our streets, overburdened sewage treatment facilities, and malfunctioning septic systems. Currently, only nine states comprehensively test their beach waters and notify the public when this sort of contamination occurs.