Blog
OSPAR kicks off today in Bergen, Norway
Author: Brussels Office
Date: September 20, 2010Today marks the beginning of the OSPAR Commission meeting in Bergen, Norway.
In case you are wondering what this actually is, we thought we’d give you a bit of background on the Commission and what it is that they do.
OSPAR is the result of the 1992 unification of two international Conventions related to the protection of marine environment: the Oslo convention adopted in 1972 which regulates dumping waste at sea and the Paris Convention, adopted two years later and focusing on land based sources of pollution.
Read More...A few days in the Alabama Alps
Author: Xavier Pastor
Date: September 18, 2010If you’ve been keeping up with the ship's log, you'll notice that these past two weeks have been as equally intense as the others. The departure of Oceana workers from Alaska and Washington and their hydrocarbon sensors was immediately compensated by the arrival of a new group of Spanish divers and the underwater robot (ROV) to Gulfport, Mississippi. Then we begin a new phase of the expedition: the visual exploration of the seabeds in the areas whose surface waters had been covered by oil for weeks.
Read More...An Education on Overfishing
Author: Brussels Office
Date: September 17, 2010A lot of people often ask what they can do to learn about the state of the oceans – there is so much information out there, it can certainly be a daunting task to sort through it all.
That’s why we decided to pull together some of our favorite books and movies on marine issues. This list is by no means an exhaustive one, its just a couple of ideas to help get you on track.
For the Bookworm:
Read More...Acidic Oceans
Author: Brussels Office
Date: September 15, 2010Climate change has been connected to some of the biggest natural disasters of the past few years – the flooding in Pakistan, the destructive hurricanes slamming the US coasts, wild fires wiping out swaths of forests, crop failures around the world, etc. But one of climate change’s most devastating side effects is rarely talked about: Ocean Acidification.
Read More...Underwater Timebombs: World War II bombs and munitions laying dormant on the sea floor
Date: September 13, 2010Last week, our CEO tweeted an interesting article (Why wartime wrecks are slicking time bombs), highlighting the impact of World War II on the oceans. According to the study by Trevor Gilbert and Dagmar Etkin, between 2.5 million tons and 20 million tons of oil are contained in the thousands of ships on the continent shelf of the oceans, just waiting to start leaking – Not good.
Read More...Inspiration: A Portrait of Mr. Mangrove in Senegal
Author: Brussels Office
Date: September 10, 2010We would like to let you know about an inspirational man who came to our attention this morning. In Senegal, Haidar el Ali is fighting for the preservation of mangroves (among many other things related to protecting the ocean’s resources), which are crucial to the reproduction of marine species. The key of his success has been connecting with and educating people on the danger of overfishing and the steps they can take to make a real difference.
Read More...Swept up by Offshore Wind Farms
Author: Brussels Office
Date: September 8, 2010From Paris to Pekin, offshore wind energy projects are taking off. Several weeks after France started a call for tenders for the construction of 600 wind turbines on the Atlantic coast, China has just announced it will launch a 1.000 MW offshore wind farm project.
Read More...MSC’s “Sustainable” Labels Take a Hit
Date: September 6, 2010Those trying to lessen their impact on the environment know how hard it is to keep track of what seafood is sustainable. Not only do you have to take into account the state of the fish stock, but you have to consider mercury levels and the carbon footprint of getting it to your plate. For many, the easiest solution has been to rely on organizations like the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), to tell them what they should and shouldn’t eat.
In the past few weeks however, MSC has come under fire for not living up to its purpose.
Read More...Celebrities, oil sludge and sharks
Author: Xavier Pastor
Date: September 5, 2010Many things happened before we started to measure oil and before my last entry in this blog. The last time we were in Gulfport, almost two weeks ago, we were paid a visit by some Oceana friends who wanted to support our expedition with their presence. Morgan Freeman, Ted Danson and top model Almudena Fernandez came on board to help us spread our message and explain our work to the U.S. press. The mayor of one of the most important cities in Belize, a coastal city threatened by the offshore oil industry, also came on board.
Read More...Baltic Sea Watch
Date: September 3, 2010While marine pollution poses serious long-term threats to the Baltic Sea, the most acute threat to its ecosystem is short-sighted industrial-scale commercial fishing practices. Their destructive impact is magnified by the systematic failure of the Baltic coastal governments to vigorously enforce existing laws and regulations on catch limits, by catch control, and habitat preservation.
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