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Whatever Slows Your Boat
Bush admin proposes scaling back speed-limit zone meant to protect right whales |
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26 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 6:33 AM on 26 Aug 2008 On the same day that President Bush moved toward creation of marine sanctuaries in the Pacific, his administration proposed cutting by 10 nautical miles a speed-limit zone in the Atlantic meant to protect critically endangered right whales. The proposal would cut the area covered by the speed zones to 20 nautical miles offshore from the original 30; ship coll ... |
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| Topics: endangered species, news, oceans, United States, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Send in the Marines!
President Bush exploring creation of massive marine sanctuaries in Pacific |
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26 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 4:56 AM on 26 Aug 2008 On Monday, President Bush took the first step toward protecting three unique marine areas in the Pacific Ocean that are under U.S. jurisdiction, including waters around the Mariana Islands, Rose Atoll in American Samoa, and other coral reefs and atolls in the central Pacific. If all of the proposed areas are eventually protected, it would add 891,000 square miles of m ... |
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| Topics: George Bush, news, oceans, politics, United States (all these topics) |
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Go With the Low
Greens and Navy reach compromise over low-frequency sonar |
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13 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 3:16 PM on 13 Aug 2008 The U.S. Navy and environmental groups have reached a compromise in a long-running dispute over the Navy's use of low-frequency sonar, which greens say can befuddle whales and sometimes cause them to beach and die. The Navy on Tuesday agreed to restrict use of low-frequency active sonar in areas known to be whale breeding grounds or key habitat. "We don't have to choose between nation ... |
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| Topics: Department of Defense, litigation, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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Over the Humpback
Some big whales no longer in trouble |
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12 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:40 AM on 12 Aug 2008 There's bad news and good news from the world of marine megafauna. The bad: Almost a quarter of the 80 types of whales, dolphins, and porpoises are in trouble, with nine listed as "endangered" or "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Entanglement in fishing gear poses the main threat. The good: Thanks to a global hunting moratorium, humpback, commo ... |
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| Topics: endangered species, lists, news, oceans, progress, whaling, World Conservation Union (all these topics) |
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Monument What He Said
Cleanup funding inadequate for Bush-designated marine monument |
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11 Aug 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:42 AM on 11 Aug 2008 Remember when President Bush designated the world's largest protected marine area in Hawaii in 2006? Environmentalists cheered, fish clapped their fins, and Bush aides crossed "burnish green reputation" off the presidential to-do list -- but the aftermath has been underwhelming. Tons of debris drift into the 140,000-square-mile Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monumen ... |
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| Topics: George Bush, habitat protection, Hawaii, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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Blast From the Mast
Groups sue Navy over underwater explosions |
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30 Jul 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 1:29 PM on 30 Jul 2008 Environmental groups are up in arms about training exercises conducted by the U.S. Navy -- not sonar this time, but underwater explosives. The Wild Fish Conservancy and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility have filed a federal lawsuit against the Navy, saying its practice of training divers to explode dummy mines in Washington State's Puget Sound poses an unacceptable hazard to salmon, o ... |
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| Topics: Department of Defense, litigation, National Marine Fisheries Service, news, oceans, Washington, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Color Me Badd
Coral reefs not doing so well |
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08 Jul 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:24 AM on 08 Jul 2008 We're in the midst of the International Year of the Reef, but there's little to celebrate: Nearly half of coral reefs in U.S. waters are in "poor" or "fair" condition, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported at this week's 11th International Coral Reef Symposium. Human activity messes with reefs in all sorts of ways, from ocean acidification (spurred by carbon-dioxide emissions) ... |
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| Topics: endangered species, habitat loss, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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A Whale, and It's About to Set Sail
California license plates will go without Wyland whale tail |
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25 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 1:26 PM on 25 Jun 2008 Some 126,000 California license plates sport a whale tail designed by artist Robert Wyland, but the famed marine muralist is now withdrawing his permission for the state to use the art. A few months ago, Wyland asked the California Coastal Commission to donate 20 percent of profits from the plate to his ocean-conservation group. The commission, which directs the $15 o ... |
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| Topics: art, California, cars, green living, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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Getting a Rise Out of You
Oceans warming faster than thought, says research |
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18 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 3:39 PM on 18 Jun 2008 The world's oceans have warmed 50 percent faster over the last four decades than what was previously thought, according to a new study published in Nature. The new research helps to explain recent sea-level rise that climate models weren't accounting for; melting ice gets all the press, but since heat expands, hotter water also contributes to rising seas. The research gives ''significant ... |
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| Topics: climate, climate change impacts, climate science, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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Club Medusae
Jellyfish are everywhere, and that's not a good thing |
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18 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 11:33 AM on 18 Jun 2008 Photo: Neil Harmon The natural cycle of Mediterranean jellyfish populations is to swell every 12 years, plateau for four to six years, then subside. But massive groups of gelatinous jellies have been showing up for the past eight years, and they show no sign of flagging. In fact, jellies are proliferating worldwide, and that makes scientists nervous. "Jellyfish are an excellent bellwether fo ... |
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| Topics: biodiversity, fishing, news, oceans, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Putting Lipstick on a Rig
Backing up McCain, Bush calls for ending offshore drilling moratorium |
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18 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 6:36 AM on 18 Jun 2008 President Bush has joined John McCain in calling for an end to the offshore drilling moratorium that's been in effect for most U.S. waters since the early 1980s. Bush's reversal on the offshore-drilling issue follows on the heels of McCain's big energy speech in Houston on Tuesday, where he advocated offshore drilling as a way to lower energy prices. Industry analysts ... |
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| Topics: gas prices, George Bush, John McCain, news, oceans, oil, oil and gas drilling, politics, United States (all these topics) |
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Hitting the Squids
Deep-sea squid and octopi full of human-made chemicals |
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13 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 12:10 PM on 13 Jun 2008 Human-made chemicals have snuck on down into the ocean depths, showing up in the tissues of deep-sea cephalopods, says new research. In a study to be published in the journal Marine Pollution Bulletin, researchers found various persistent organic pollutants -- including PCBs and DDT -- in nine species of octopi, squid, cuttlefish, and nautiluses. "The fact that we detected a variety o ... |
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| Topics: news, oceans, scientific research, toxics (all these topics) |
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What Would You Do If We Sang 'Out of Tuna'?
E.U. ending bluefin tuna season early amid overfishing concerns |
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13 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 7:25 AM on 13 Jun 2008 The European Union is ending its bluefin tuna fishing season early this year due to concerns that fishers are already nearing their quotas for the popular, lucrative fish. Bluefin tuna are prized for their succulence in sushi, and demand remains strong. Market prices for bluefin in Japan have nearly tripled since last year. However, next week, commercial b ... |
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| Topics: European Union, fishing, news, oceans, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Our Jaws Are Dropping
Some shark populations in Mediterranean have collapsed, study finds |
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12 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 5:39 AM on 12 Jun 2008 Populations of five shark species in the Mediterranean Sea have declined by an average of 97 percent in the last 200 years, principally due to fishing, according to a new study to be published in the journal Conservation Biology. Researchers combed historical records and collected other data to piece together the long-term population trend of the blue shark, thresher shark, ... |
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| Topics: endangered species, fishing, news, oceans, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Reef, or Madness
Ocean acidification to weaken coral reefs, make islands more vulnerable to storms |
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02 Jun 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 6:51 AM on 02 Jun 2008 Acidification of the ocean could make low-lying island nations like the Maldives and Kiribati more vulnerable to storms since it can significantly weaken coral reefs, according to a new report. When the oceans absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, carbonic acid forms, which makes it more difficult for sea critters like coral and starfish to form shells and sk ... |
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| Topics: climate, climate change impacts, news, oceans, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Bikini Toll
Beaches strewn with a lot of trash, says report |
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16 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 12:04 PM on 16 Apr 2008 Six million pounds of trash were picked up in a one-day global beach cleanup last September, according to a new report from the Ocean Conservancy. In one day, beachcombers covering 33,000 miles of shoreline in 76 countries found an average 182 pounds of trash per mile. That was comprised of 7.2 million items of garbage -- food wrappers, bottles, fishing lines, plastic bags, and more. A full one-third of ... |
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| Topics: habitat protection, news, oceans, waste, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Navy Crock-It
Sonar will kill some marine life but safeguards are adequate, says Navy |
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04 Apr 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 2:47 PM on 04 Apr 2008 Navy training exercises could expose 94,370 marine mammals to behavior-altering sonar frequencies each year, potentially injuring or killing as many as 30, according to an environmental impact statement released Friday by the Navy. But in its 1,796-page report, the Navy sticks with current safeguards for protecting marine animals, not adopting stricter standards imposed by a fe ... |
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| Topics: Department of Defense, news, oceans, politics, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Can't We All Just Get Along?
Activist says he was shot in confrontation with whalers |
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07 Mar 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:10 AM on 07 Mar 2008 The captain of the radical anti-whaling Sea Shepherd Conservation Society says he was shot in a clash with Japanese whalers on Friday. Paul Watson says he found a bullet in his Kevlar vest; Japan's fisheries agency disputed the accusation, saying those onboard the whaling ship retaliated with non-lethal flash grenades after activists threw stink bombs of eye-stinging butyric aci ... |
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| Topics: grassroots activism, Japan, news, oceans, whaling, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Climos Def
New company wants to seed ocean with iron to sequester carbon |
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05 Mar 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 12:24 PM on 05 Mar 2008 Weeks after ocean-seeding company Planktos bit the iron dust, a startup called Climos is plowing ahead with a similar business plan: seed the ocean with iron dust to stimulate the growth of CO2-gobbling plankton, then sell offsets for the sequestered carbon. Climos has announced $3.5 million in venture capital and is backed by reputable investors: Tesla Chair (née Pay-Pal cofounder) Elon Mu ... |
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| Topics: business, carbon offsets, carbon sequestration, climate, climate change mitigation, geoengineering, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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Whaling and Gnashing of Teeth
Norway says whale consumption is good for the planet |
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04 Mar 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 4:53 PM on 04 Mar 2008 Eating whale meat is better for the planet than eating beef, pork, or chicken, according to a comparative carbon-emissions calculation by Norwegian lobbying group the High North Alliance. Says the alliance's Rune Froevik, in what may be a bit of an exaggeration, "Basically it turns out that the best thing you can do for the planet is to eat whale meat compared to other types ... |
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| Topics: Australia, climate, food, grassroots activism, greenhouse-gas emissions, Greenpeace, Japan, news, Norway, oceans, whaling (all these topics) |
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Unfortunate Sonar
Appeals court rules against Navy in sonar case |
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03 Mar 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 7:39 AM on 03 Mar 2008 A federal appeals court on Friday upheld many restrictions on the Navy's use of mid-frequency sonar off the coast of Southern California, reinforcing a lower court ruling from last month. President Bush had tried to exempt the Navy from the relevant environmental laws in January, but the appeals court agreed with an earlier ruling that questioned the constitutionality of Bush's attempted exemption, ... |
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| Topics: litigation, news, oceans, United States, wildlife (all these topics) |
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Threatened to the Gills
World fisheries still in danger of imminent collapse, says U.N. |
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25 Feb 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 10:07 AM on 25 Feb 2008 When last we checked in on the world's commercial fish stocks, they were in danger of collapsing within decades. And, sorry to say, they still are, according to a United Nations Environment Program report ominously titled "In Dead Water." Factor in climate change, overfishing, and pollution "and you see you're potentially putting a death nail in the coffin of w ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, climate, climate change impacts, fishing, food, news, oceans, water pollution (all these topics) |
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The Male of the Species Is More Female Than the Female
California sewage makes for femme fish, says study |
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22 Feb 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 3:18 PM on 22 Feb 2008 Chemicals in southern California wastewater are sneaking past sewage-treatment plants and into the ocean, where they can seriously wack out fishy hormone levels, according to preliminary research. Flame retardants, PCBs, residue from long-banned pesticide DDT, and other chemicals from pills and beauty products have all showed up in the water, via human pee. ... |
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| Topics: California, news, oceans, toxics (all these topics) |
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Assail the Seven Seas
Nearly all of world's oceans tainted by human activity, says study |
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15 Feb 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 2:52 PM on 15 Feb 2008 Human activity has tainted all but 3.7 percent of the world's oceans, and 41 percent of the world's waters have been heavily impacted, says a new study in Science. A graphic map illustrates in all-too-clear terms that the briny deep has taken a terrible toll from 17 human threats, including climate change, overfishing, fertilizer runoff, coastal development, and shipping pol ... |
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| Topics: climate, climate change impacts, habitat loss, news, oceans, scientific research (all these topics) |
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Strike While the Iron Is ... Whoops, Too Late
Plan to combat warming by seeding ocean with iron runs out of funds |
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14 Feb 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 3:26 PM on 14 Feb 2008 Planktos, the company that proposed fending off global warming by seeding the ocean with iron dust, has failed to get enough funding to go forward with planned tests. Under the Planktos business plan, iron fertilization would encourage phytoplankton blooms, which would suck up extra CO2, allowing the company to sell carbon offsets. But it was not to ... |
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| Topics: business, carbon offsets, climate, climate change mitigation, geoengineering, news, oceans (all these topics) |
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