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Recent successes

Saving 60,000 endangered sea turtles

Every year, shrimp boats in the Gulf of Mexico catch and kill sea turtles in their trawl nets. In February of 2003, Oceana successfully pressured the government to require larger TEDs (turtle excluder devices) on shrimp nets in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Ocean. The new rule will protect some 2,220 endangered leatherback and 58,000 threatened loggerhead turtles from drowning in shrimp nets each year.

The first step to stopping bycatch: Putting more eyes on the ocean

So far, the greatest impediment to preventing bycatch has been a lack of information. Fishery managers are reluctant to make rules about bycatch because they don’t really know what fishermen are catching at sea. The solution to this problem is at-sea observers – independent scientists who travel on boats with fishermen to record what is caught and discarded. Throughout 2003, Oceana advocated increased funding for observer programs to members of the United States Congress. When Congress approved its final budget for FY04, it had doubled available funding for fishery observers.

Potty training Royal Caribbean

Oceana launched the Stop Cruise Pollution campaign in 2003. Within the year, the campaign had collected more than 42,000 citizen pledges to abstain from cruising with Royal Caribbean until the company upgraded to advanced wastewater treatment technology. It had also recruited more than 58 local environmental organizations, local officials, and travel agents as signatories to a letter supporting Oceana and the Royal Caribbean campaign, and had garnered national press – paving the way for a cruise campaign victory just eleven months after the campaign began, in May 2004.
Preventing 20,000,000 Tons of Oil from Being Illegally Dumped in the Ocean
Oceana’s work with the European Union created a new law that mandates serious jail time and substantial fines for the financiers, owners and operators of boats that illegally dump oil. This new law could prevent as much as 20,000,000 tons of oil from getting into the ocean every year—the single biggest reduction in oil pollution in decades, anywhere in the world.

Saving dolphins and whales from active sonar in European waters

Afetr demands by Oceana, both the European parliament and the Spanish government took action to prevent the United States, NATO and other armed forces from using active sonar in manoeuvres in European waters. The scientists believe that use of a " super " sonar causes cetacenas to beach themselves - literally swimmind out of the water to get away from the pain. The European Parliament proposed a moratorium on the use of all active sonar in all European waters. The Spanish goverment has banned their use in the Canary Islands - the place where the greatest number of cetacean strandings in the world has been recorded - especially beaked whales.

Protecting thousand-year-old corals ( and deep sea canyons ) in New England and the Mid-Atlantic

The members of our campaigns convinced the councils for fisheries management of New England and the Mid-Atlantic to vote unanimously to protect communities of deep-sea corals in the underwater canyons off Martha's Vineyard and to ban the use of destructive trawling gear in catching monkfish. Deep-sea corals are very special formations, critical to ocean life, which can be more than o thousand years old and live at great ocean depths. Corals are an essential habitat for hundreds of marine creatures ( many of which have yet to be discovered ). Oceana has been a pioneer in strategies to stop bottom trawlers from destroying coral in areas that contain, or very probably contain, deep-sea corals. Given that many councils have a history of aversion to conservation issues, these recent votes to protect deep-sea coral in New England and the Mid-Atlantic are certainly historic decisions.

Preventing destructive trawling in the state waters of California

The State of California has created a new law that makes it illegal for fishing companies to practice " bottom trawling " in state waters. In association with the largest recreational fishing organisation in California - the United Anglers - and working with other environmental organisations, Oceana was able to convince legislators in Congress to pass this pro-ocean law. Ted Danson, from Oceana, appeared in propaganda across the whole state in support of this proposal.

Putting a stops to cruise ships dumping waste in the state of California

Working together with Blue Water, Oceana was able to convince the state of California to ban the dumping of all waste in state waters by cruise ships - floating cities that can carry more than 3,000 passengers. This law prevents the venting of million of gallons of grey and black waters by these same floating cities - waste from toilets, showers, washing machines and other sources.

Protecting marine mammals in the southern Pacific and Arctic oceans

Following meetings with Oceana and other conservation organizations, the Chilean congress added ten new marine mammals to the goverment's list of protected species, including the Southern killer whale, the Antarctic minke whale, the long-beaked common dolphin and another seven species.

Managing to get Chile to sign the Stockholm Treaty on persistent organic pollutants ( POPS )

The Chilean congress has voted to ratify the Stockholm Treaty on POPS. The traty sets out the objectives for eliminating or severely restricting the global production, use and/or emissions of POPS - such as DTT, PCB and dioxins - which have a negative impact on the health of marine mammals and humans. The treaty also allows for a scientifically-based process for adding other potentially damaging substances to the list.