Sea of Crete Sea of Crete The Sea of Crete (, "Kritiko Pelagos") or Cretan Sea, is a sea, part of the Aegean Sea, located in its Southern extremity. The sea stretches to the North of the island of Crete, East of the islands of Kythera and Antikythera, South of the Cyclades, and West of the Dodecanese islands of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kassos. The bounding sea to the West is the Ionian Sea. To the Northwest is the Myrtoan Sea, a subdivision of the Mediterranean Sea that lies between the Cyclades and Peloponnese. To the East-SE is the rest of the Mediterranean Sea,
Mediterranean Sea is estimated that approximately 220,000 merchant vessels of more than 100 tonnes cross the Mediterranean Sea each year—about one third of the world's total merchant shipping. These ships often carry hazardous cargo, which if lost would result in severe damage to the marine environment. The discharge of chemical tank washings and oily wastes also represent a significant source of marine pollution. The Mediterranean Sea constitutes 0.7% of the global water surface and yet receives 17% of global marine oil pollution. It is estimated that every year between and of crude oil are deliberately released into the sea from shipping activities.