Published by Ocean Conservancy This blog was written by Hannah De Frond (Researcher at University of Toronto) and Chelsea Rochman (Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and Scientific Advisor to Ocean Conservancy). Turtles tangled in fishing nets, whales washed ashore with stomachs full of plastic bags. These are images we, unfortunately, see far too often. […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy If you follow ocean plastic news you may have noticed a flurry of articles about a recent study showing that windborne microplastics have reached remote Pyrenees peaks. The headlines ranged from straightforward (like USA Today’s Blown by the wind, ‘microplastic’ pollution discovered in pristine mountain peaks) to daunting (like Fast Company’s Microplastics […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy This year, the Earth Day network is asking people to Protect our Species and raise awareness of the thousands of species that are endangered. With climate change, pollution and overfishing, we are seeing dramatic declines in populations, specifically in some of our most charismatic ocean species— sea turtles. Besides being an ocean […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy We received some welcome news this week about a rare subspecies of whale that lives exclusively in the Gulf of Mexico. NOAA has listed the Gulf of Mexico Bryde’s whale (pronounced BROO-dus) as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. With a shockingly low population estimate of merely 33 individuals, the Gulf population […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy In honor of the upcoming National Haiku Poetry Day, I asked some of my most creative colleagues here at Ocean Conservancy to prepare a haiku poem inspired by our daily work to help protect our ocean from its greatest challenges. Which one is your favorite? Share with us your own special haiku […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy As the Trump administration proposes to rollback regulations on offshore drilling, let’s take a look at why these safety measures were put in place to begin with. Nine years ago, on April 20th, 2010, the Gulf of Mexico faced the most devastating environmental disaster in United States history. The BP Deepwater Horizon […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy The internet is kind of like the ocean—it’s vast, often uncontrollable and filled with creatures that rely on it for their survival. That’s why we were so excited to discover that our fintastic app, Clean Swell, was nominated for a Webby Award! Want Ocean Updates? Sign up for our emails! Sorry, but […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy If you’re an ocean lover, you probably already have a favorite ocean creature. Whether that be a whale, octopus or sea otter, I’m here to tell you that you are dead wrong. Sea slugs, or nudibranchs, are by far the cutest, coolest and most entrancing creatures of the sea. Don’t believe me? […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Captain Gary Jarvis is a veteran of the United State Air Force with more than 40 years of experience as a professional fisherman. He is also a partner with his sons in five seafood restaurants in Destin, Florida. Gary is a well-known advocate for a sustainable and accessible Gulf of Mexico fishery […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Today, the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology’s Environment Subcommittee will hold a markup of four bills addressing the impacts of ocean acidification. A markup is an opportunity for all members of a congressional committee to review legislation and “mark” it up with their own thoughts and changes. Here at Ocean […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Interior, David Bernhardt, is about to be voted on by the United States Senate. Ocean Conservancy is opposed to Bernhardt’s nomination, and now is the time to raise the alarm. We believe that Bernhardt’s long record pursuing policy actions that are bad for the ocean and […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Earlier this week, I met with Janet Shamlian of CBS This Morning to explore the overwhelming problem of ocean plastic. Plastic touches all of our lives, from the food packaging we buy to the computers and phones we work on every day. Many of the plastics you touch in your daily life […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Do you remember the last time you saw brightly colored coral? Perhaps it was in an aquarium at a restaurant or doctor’s office. How did it get there? Thanks to improving aquarium technologies in the last 30 years, a trip to see a reef doesn’t necessarily mean booking yourself a flight, but […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Bob Spies is Senior Scientist and former President at Applied Marine Sciences, which he founded in 1990. He has served as Chief Science Advisor to governments on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Restoration Program, and Science Director at the Alaska SeaLife Center, which is dedicated to studying the causes of decline in […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Every year, we landlubbers heartily partake in the tradition of April Fool’s Day—the one day it’s deemed acceptable (nay even expected), to pour salt in an unsuspecting glass of water or hide tiny photos of disgruntled cats everywhere around the office (and we mean everywhere). But for some ocean dwellers, pulling tricks […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Chefs know food—better stated, chefs know good food. And now, more and more chefs are helping lead the charge for sustainable food. Restaurants support millions of jobs and billions of dollars in economic impact in communities across America. They are integral to connecting consumers with diverse and delicious food options—including seafood. As […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy For the last two years, the Trump administration has proposed double-digit percent budget cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), our nation’s premier ocean agency, tasked with managing our ocean resources, supporting our ocean economy and protecting coastal communities. Yesterday, we learned that despite a wave of support for NOAA […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Whale experts may have just discovered an entirely new species of orca—Type D. After reported sightings of what some believed to be a different breed of orca, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries researcher, Robert Pitman, PhD., set sail on research vessel Australis along with five other international whale experts, to […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Any mama will tell you—pregnancy can be a pain. But humans aren’t the only species to experience inconvenience in order to procreate. In fact, some of us humans might benefit from a reminder of just how wild the gestation of some ocean wildlife can really be. You know—to keep things in perspective. […]
Published by Ocean Conservancy Alaska’s remote coastal communities aren’t on the road system, so when they need fuel—like diesel, home heating fuel, gasoline or jet fuel—it is delivered by ship. The coastal waters in western and Arctic Alaska are shallow and deep-draft boats can’t deliver fuel to shore. Instead, fuel is transferred—on the ocean—from large, deep-draft […]