11-7-09
Environment
Katie
- 4 hours ago - friendsoftheirishenvironment.net
10-22-09
Environment
Cal
- 1 hour ago - latimesblogs.latimes.com
10-10-09
Environment
Cal
- 1 day ago - latimes.com
10-5-09
Environment
Claudia
- 6 hours ago - oceansentry.org
The unique wildlife of the Galapagos Islands is being threatened by climate change, and scientists are seeking a way to protect its vulnerable species.
Scientists are now trying to see how global warming is affecting the spectacular yet fragile biodiversity of the islands.
According to scientists, sudden and frequently changing sea temperatures and the death of coral reefs near the islands reveal the impact global warming is having on local sea life.
Gabriel Lopez, executive director of the Galapagos-based Charles Darwin Foundation, said the islands have a particularly fragile ecosystem. He thinks that global warming "will have very strong impacts on sea lions, due to the lack of food available to them , on penguins, and on marine iguanas."
Another issue affecting the archipelago ecosystem is over-fishing and a growing tourism...
Read full article here http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1763660/galapagos_islands_affected_by_global_
10-5-09
Environment
Claudia
- 34 minutes ago - underwatertimes.com
10-3-09
Victory!!! More Than 23,000 Square Miles of Rare Corals Protected.
Oceana 2009-09-18 Charleston, S.C. -- The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council approved a plan late last night to protect more than 23,000 square miles of known deep sea coral from North Carolina to Florida from destructive fishing gear. Five years in the making, yesterday’s vote will restrict the footprint of bottom trawls – one of the most nonselective fishing gears currently in use, capable of destroying thousand-year-old coral reefs and moving 18-ton rocks – and help to restore the long-term productivity of commercially valuable fish that take refuge in these rare corals.
“This landmark decision is a win for the oceans and those in the southeast who rely on it for their livelihoods,” said Dave Allison, senior campaign director at Oceana. “The crushing of these ancient coral reefs would be a serious loss to the ocean ecosystem and could threaten the survival of golden crab and wreckfish fishermen that catch other species on these deep reefs.”
These protections resulted from collaboration and negotiation among fishing, scientific and environmental representatives that worked tirelessly with the Council to reach an agreement. The Council’s decision will now be sent to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for its stamp of approval and implementation. Oceana anticipates the new regulation will take effect by the end of 2009.
"The history of fishing has too frequently been blind to expansion into deep waters as nearshore areas become exhausted,” said Margot Stiles, marine scientist at Oceana. “The Council showed exceptional leadership by protecting the reefs NOAA has called ‘America’s largest deep sea coral ecosystem’ before they are harmed, while allowing room for fishing to continue."
Deep sea corals off the southeast coast include hundreds of pinnacles up to 500 feet tall. These corals provide homes for a variety of marine species, including sponges with unusual chemistry currently in testing to develop drugs for the treatment of cancer, heart disease and for other medical needs.
The Case of the Oculina Banks:
The Oculina banks – hundreds of square miles of similarly vulnerable deep sea coral habitat off the East coast of Florida – suffered virtually irreversible destruction from bottom trawl and dredge fishing gear, only decades after being discovered and despite eventual protection by the Council. This is one of the clearest examples of vital ocean ecosystems being destroyed for short-term fisheries profits before their long-term value was fully understood.
About the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:
The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, headquartered in Charleston, S.C., is one of eight regional Fishery Management Councils in the United States established under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Council prepares fishery management plans designed to manage fishery resources within the federal 200-mile limit off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and east Florida to Key West. These waters are also known as the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
This post was modified from its original form on 03 Oct, 12:43
9-30-09
Animals
Maria
- 8 hours ago - honoluluadvertiser.com
9-29-09
Animals
Maria
- 11 hours ago - ecoworldly.com
9-23-09
Environment
Cal
- 1 hour ago - english.people.com.cn
9-22-009
Environment
Daphna
- 12 hours ago - action.wilderness.org
9-21-0936
Environment
Dee
- 12 hours ago - sciencedaily.com
9-19-09
Science & Tech
Angela
- 14 hours ago - sciencedaily.com
9-19-09
Environment
Angela
- 14 hours ago - sciencedaily.com
9-18-09
Environment
Daphna
- 17 hours ago - secure.nrdconline.org
9-12-09
Science & Tech
Angela
- 13 hours ago - enn.com
9-5-09
RE: The Plastic Sea,
What a shame. I don't understand WHY people just don't throw their TRASH away?? I just don't get it. It's NOT hard to do by any means. The beaches here in FL are really bad & it's sad everywhere.
Thanks Claudia for sharing.
Environment
Simone
- 2 days ago - sciencedaily.com
Thanks Kat, I didn't know that, About the Garbage Patch. Interesting. thanks
Environment
Cher
- 2 hours ago - ecoworldly.com
Thanks Kat, news noted.
Science & Tech
Tom
- 1 hour ago - latimes.com
distribute widely so we can bring this to an end forever!!!
Secret footage of the current Nambian seal cull, it is very upsetting to
watch but in order to help them we need to get this out there for all to
see.
Please distribute widely.
How sad. That's not right. Can't they get fine for doing that??
Animals
Cher
- 23 hours ago - wwf.org.uk
That's not good. What a shame. Thanks for sharing SunKat!! 
Environment
Cher
- 1 day ago - wildlifeextra.com
Thanks for the info SunKat & Viviane. Great news.
Canada Could Also Adopt an Harmonized Regulation
In a similar vein to what California is doing with ocean-going ships, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a new set of rules under the Clean Air Act that would require all U.S. flagged ocean-going vessels to meet stricter diesel engine and fuel standards, leading to cleaner air along the coasts of the US (and Canada, who's also working on a similar regulation).
So What Kind of Improvement are We Talking About?
"When fully implemented, the coordinated effort would reduce NOx emissions by 80 percent and PM emissions by 85 percent compared to current emissions." By 2030, that's about 1.2 million tons of NOx and 143,000 tons of particulate matter (PM).
The EPA writes:
The rule comes on the heels of a key part of EPA’s strategy, a proposal last March by the United States and Canada to designate thousands of miles of the two countries’ coasts as an Emission Control Area (ECA). The International Maritime Organization (IMO), a United Nations agency, begins consideration of the ECA plan this month, which would result in stringent standards for large ships operating within 200 nautical miles of the coasts of Canada and the United States.
200 miles! Now we're talking. California's new law only applied up to 24 miles from the coasts (for legal reasons), and just for one state. But if the whole US (and Canada) has a uniform regulation that requires cleaner burning engines and fuels, it won't as easy to just ship around the regulation. This should make a real different (if it is enforced properly).
As we wrote previously, cargo ships often have horrible emissions: "Just 15 of the world's biggest ships may now emit as much pollution as all the world's 760m cars"
There's also a good argument to be made that any extra costs from getting cleaner fuel and engines will be partially or completely offset by savings coming from a reduction of health problems and lost productivity.
Via EPA, Environment News Service
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada
on 07. 8.09
Good news from NOAA, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration !
http://www.noaa.gov/features/monitoring_1008/marinelife.html
New Marine Life in Florida Keys
Thanks to conservation efforts by federal, state, and local organizations, there is a resurgence of reef fish and corals in the Dry Tortugas National Park, located about 70 miles west of Key West, Fla.
In 2001, NOAA’s Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary implemented the Tortugas Ecological Reserve, consisting of 151 square nautical miles of protected marine habitat. To monitor the progress of this protected area, which had suffered from overfishing and other environmental changes, the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies funded a marine census to examine how the ecosystem was responding after seven years as a protected area.
Divers from six federal agencies and universities collected data showing increases in the numbers of snapper, grouper, and corals in the outermost Florida Keys — positive signs of recovery.
The census project itself set a record. Over the 20-day study this past summer, 1,710 research dives or studies were made — the most dives for the 38-member team since the project began. There was an average of 86 dives a day from seven feet to 110 feet deep. The divers spent the equivalent of about 46 days underwater.
Environment
Cher
- 9 hours ago - change.org
Animals
Cher
- 9 hours ago - change.org
This post was modified from its original form on 06 Jul, 19:34
Too Many People, Too Much Plastic: Vast Ocean Trash Vortex
June was National Oceans Month, and one issue is particularly emblematic of the burgeoning human population's impact on our biggest salty water bodies: the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Technically known as the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, it's an area devoid of ocean currents where floating objects tend to collect. But "patch" is a misnomer. More than 7 million tons of plastic now clog an area roughly twice the size of Texas. There's six times as much plastic in the gyre as there is plankton, which form the base of the ocean's food chain. And plastic never biodegrades; it only breaks into ever-smaller particles called "nurdles," which often resemble plankton and are mistakenly eaten by bigger sea creatures. Not only do nurdles cause malnutrition, they also tend to concentrate persistent organic pollutants like PCBs and DDT . . . with toxic effects on unsuspecting marine diners.
While regulating global plastic use and disposal would be a good start, there's one simple equation that may point to a solution: too many humans equals too much plastic. We must stop population growth before it nurdles the ocean's wildlife to death.
Check out this Great Pacific Garbage Patch video.
This post was modified from its original form on 05 Jul, 22:10
Environment
Cher
- 16 hours ago - ipetitions.com
THE WORLDS SEA'S
TWO THIRDS OF THIS PLANET IS COVERED IN WATER , AND IT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN MOST PEOPLE THINK FOR THE HEALTH OF THE WORLD.
THE SEA CONTAINS FISH , MAMALS ,PLANKTON,AND SO MANY OTHER LIFE FORMS , SOME WE ARE STILL TO FIND .
THERE ARE MOUNTAINS , VALLEYS , DESERTS AND VOLCANOS .
MAN HAS USED THE SEA SINCE HE LEARNT TO WALK AND USE TOOLS , HE TRADES BY SEA, HOLIDAYS BY SEA,AND HE DUMPS HIS RUBBISH IN THE SEAS .
ESTIAMTES THAT FLOATING IN THE WORLDS SEAS ARE SEVERAL MILLION TONS PER YEAR OF MAN MADE RUBBISH.
WE HAVE DUMPED HOUSEHOLD WASTE , EFFLUANT , OIL AND EVEN NUCULAR WASTE IN THE SEAS .
THE SEAS KEEP THIS WORLD ALIVE , THE SEA SOAKS UP THE HEAT OF THE SUN AND SPREADS IN AROUND THE WORLD BY CURRENTS , ENSURING THAT THE WORLDS TEMPERATURES STAY STATIC , THE WARM AREAS DO NOT OVER HEAT OR THE FROZEN AREA DO NOT COOL DOWN TOO MUCH.
THE SEAS SUPPORT PLANKTON WHICH PRODUCE OVER 80% OF THE WORLDS OXYGEN , AND ALSO SUPPLY FOOD FOR OTHER SEA DEWELLERS
MANKIND HAS OVER THE YEARS OVER FISHED THE SEAS , HAS HUNTED WHALES ,SEALS AND DRILLED FOR OIL AND GAS , ALL OF WHICH HAVE DAMAGED THE ECO SYSTEM OF THE SEAS .
MANKIND SEAMS TO THINK THAT BECAUSE THE WORLDS SEAS COVER SO MUCH OF THE PLANET THAT WE CAN DO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING TO IT .THE AMOUNT OF SCRAP IRON THAT LYES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEAS MUST BE COUNTED IN MILLION OF TONS ,JUST THINK OF THE NUMBER OF SHIPS THAT HAVE SUNK OVER THE YEARS.
THERE IS NO COMBINED EFFORT BY THE WORLDS COUNTRIES TO REDUCE AND STOP THE DUMPING OF RUBBISH , THOSE THAT DO HAVE REGULATIONS ONLY COVER A 12 MILE LIMIT AROUND THIER COUNTRY, SO THEN DUMP PAST THE 12 MILE LIMIT ...SOLVING NOTHING.
EVERY COUNTRY USES THE SEAS FOR FOOD , WHICH IF CONTROLED CAN SUSTAIN THE STOCK OF FISH , THOUGH THERE ARE SEVERAL CREATURES THAT CAN NO LONGER AFFORD TO BE HUNTED .
WHALES HAVE BEEN HUNTED FOR OIL,MEAT AND RESEARCH, NONE OF WHICH CAN NOW BE JUSTIFIED AND WILL HAVE TO BE STOPPED .
SEALS HAVE BEEN HUNTED FOR THIER PELTS , THOUGH NOW CANADA HAS SUFFERED A SET BACK BECAUSE THE EU HAVE NOW BANNED ALL SEAL PRODUCTS , THUS REDUCING INCOME AND CUTTING THE NUMBER OF SEALS NOW BEING KILLED.
SINCE 1992 THERE HAVE BEEN THOUSANDS OF PLASTIC DUCKS CIRCLEING THE WORLD VIA THE OCEANS .
THEY FELL OFF A CONTAINER SHIP AND HAVE BEEN TAKEN BY THE OCEAN CURRENTS THROUGH THE PACIFIC AND ATLANTIC OCEANS ,AND HAVE BEEN FOLLOWED BY OCEANOGRAPHERS WHO HAVE LEARNT A GREAT DEAL ABOUT THE WAY THE CURRENTS WORK IN THE OCEANS AND SEAS OF THE WORLD .
WITH THIS KNOWLEDGE MANKIND SHOULD NOW BE ABLE TO DETERMINE WHERE THE RUBBISH WE THROW INTO THE WORLDS SEAS WILL FLOW TOO.
FOR MANY YEARS I LIVED BY THE SEA , AND EVERYDAY WALKING THE BEACHES I NOTICED THE AMOUNT OF RUBBISH THAT WAS LEFT AT THE HIGH TIDE MARK .
RUBBISH SUCH AS PLASTIC BAGS , HUMAN WASTE, AND WASTE FROM ALSORTS OF MANUFACTUREING PROSESSES,
THE WILDLIFE PROTECTION AND CONSERVATION GROUP IS DEDICATED TO ENSURING THAT THE WORLDS SEAS ARE PROTECTED AND CLEANED UP , BUT IN ORDER TO DO THIS WE NEED HELP FROM EVERYONE ,IN EVERY COUNTRY OF THE WORLD AND NEED FELLOW CONSERVATIONISTS TO JOIN US .
WE NEED TO COMPILE A LIST OF ALL COUNTRIES WITH ACESS TO THE SEA , OF THE DEPT THAT DEALS WITH SUCH ISSUES AND PEOPLE TO CONTACT .
WE NEED THOSE OF LIKE MINDS TO OURS TO ASSIST WITH CONTACTING OF GOVERMENTS AND POSTING NEWS .
THIS IS NOT A SHORT TERM PROJECT AND MAY IN FACT TAKE MANY YEARS TO ACHIEVE OUR AIMS , FOR FIRST WE HAVE TO CONVINCE THE WORLDS GOVERMENTS TO ACT TO PROTECT THE WORLDS SEAS.
THE UNITED NATIONS HAVE GONE A SHORT WAY TO THIS END WITH THE STOCKHOLM CONVENTION ,BUT LIKE ALL GOVERMENT IDEAS IT IS SLOW TO DO ANYTHING , FINDS ITS UNABLE TO IMPLEMENT MOST OF THE RULES , AS NATIONAL GOVERMENTS FAIL TO SIGN UP OR FOLLOW THE RULES , THEY STATE THAT ONE OR MORE PARTS DONT CONCERN THEM OR WILL IN SOME WAY EFFECT THIER COUNTRY.
IT IS NOW TIME THAT ALL COUNTRIES PUT ASIDE THIER PETTY CLAIMS AND JOIN TOGETHER TO CLEAN UP OUR OCEANS , BEFORE THEY ARE DAMAGED BEYOND REPAIR.
WE ONLY HAVE THIS ONE PLANET TO LIVE ON , AND GOD FORBID THAT WE EVER MANAGE TO SETTLE ON ANOTHER FOR WE WOULD ONLY MESS THAT UP TOO.
WE NEED TO COMPILE A LIST OF ALL COUNTRIES AND THE DEPARTMENT IN THAT GOVERMENT WHO DEALS WITH THE SEA, EVEN THE LAND LOCKED COUNTRIES NEED TO JOIN THE EFFORT, THERE IS NO EXCUS FOR NOT HELPING TO CLEAN AND PROTECT THE WORLDS SEAS.
PLEASE JOIN ME IN THIS WORK SIGN UP AS A MEMBER OF THE WILDLLIFE PROTECTION AND CONSERVATION GROUP ,SEND THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS AND ASK THEM TO SEND ON TO THIER FRIENDS AND JOIN THE GROUP.
WE NEED MEMBERS IN EVERY COUNTRY TO ENABLE US TO DO THE WORK ....
PLEASE EMAIL ALL DETAILS OF GOVERMENT CONTACTS TO WORLDPEACOCK@AOL.COM
ROBERT FRY
MAY 2009
Done June 4.
So done !
Environment
Cher
- 4 hours ago - change.org
signed and shared...
Environment
Cher
- 4 hours ago - change.org
