Reducing Plastic Pollution in the Evergreen State

The temperatures are rising, flowers are blooming, picnics are popping up in every green space around. It’s official: summer is here. And at the beginning of summer my thoughts always return to one place: the beach. It’s time to get out the towels, dust off my board shorts from winter storage and don those flip flops. It’s beach season again.

There’s no greater place to hear the call to protect natural beauty than the seaside. It is what drives us every year during the International Coastal Cleanup to ensure our beaches, coastlines and waterways are trash-free. And this year, as I go out to the Oregon coast I have an additional thing to celebrate: the passage of a new bill by our neighbors to the north in Washington that will help keep our Pacific Northwest beaches free of plastics.

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Washington is reducing plastic pollution through SB 5022, signed into law this month. The bill includes one of the most expansive expanded polystyrene (EPS; foamed plastic) bans in the country. It not only includes foodservice packaging but packing peanuts and those white foam coolers you often see in summer. EPS packaging is particularly harmful to our environment because it easily fragments into smaller and smaller pieces, which makes it more likely to be eaten by fish and other wildlife. As someone who has seen entire beaches covered with what looks like EPS “snow,” I can assure you this is a big win for our environment and our ocean!

In addition to reducing waste, the bill also improves recycling in the state. The bill removes the confusing but popular three arrows logo on the bottom of most containers. This symbol has been used to imply that certain materials are technically recyclable, which all plastics are, even if that material isn’t actually accepted for recycling in most municipalities. This often results in good-intentioned people putting materials in their recycling bins that aren’t in fact recyclable in their community, making make it more challenging for recyclers to sort and manage the items that are recyclable.

© Sergei Tokmakov

Along with removing some confusion from the process, the bill encourages recycling by putting a minimum recycled content standard in place for trash bags, beverage containers and bottles for personal care and cleaning products. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that only 8-9% of plastics are recycled in the United States. Requiring minimum recycled content standards helps increase the demand for recycled plastics and makes sure the plastics people are recycling can have a new life in a future product.

The bill also makes single-use utensils, straws, condiment packages and cold beverage lids available on request only. I, like many of us, ordered a lot more takeout during the pandemic. This new policy makes it easy for people to request only what they actually need and keeps stray plastic spoons and soy sauce packets from languishing forever in kitchen drawers or, even worse, in our streams and on our beaches

This is a huge win for the state of Washington and for the ocean. When I go to the beach this summer, I will rest easy knowing more is being done to tackle plastic pollution and hope that other states will soon follow Washington’s lead. There is still plenty of work to be done, but this is a great step forward. You can help lead the charge for national solutions to the ocean plastics crisis by taking action today.

The post Reducing Plastic Pollution in the Evergreen State appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Our 2021 Photo Contest Has Finally Arrived

The moment you’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived! I am thrilled to announce that your chance to share fin-credibly fin-spiring ocean snapshots has finally returned.

Although we haven’t been able to travel as much lately, some of us have been able to spend more time outdoors. Have you captured a picture-perfect sunset strolling on your favorite beach? Did you grab a snapshot of an adorable sea critter in its natural habitat? Whether it’s a brand-new image from a recent getaway or a memorable snap from a past snorkeling trip, we would love to see the ocean photos you’ve got to share.

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Ready to participate? Here’s what you need to know:

• The contest is open to the public and there’s no cost to enter, so submit your ocean photos and invite your camera-savvy friends and family to do the same, now through Sunday, June 13. Once the submission period ends, you’ll have the chance to vote for your favorite photos, too.
• While our panel of esteemed judges will select our grand prize-winning photograph—the Judge’s Choice—the remaining four category winners will be selected by a public vote. We’ll be awarding prizes to our Judge’s Choice winner and to the winners in each of the following four categories:
  • Coastlines and Seascapes: From coral reefs to sensational sunsets, these photos leave us in awe of our ocean.
  • Human Impact: Our actions impact our ocean in both negative and positive ways. From rescue efforts and cleanups to marine pollution and oil spills, these photos inspire individuals to take action for our ocean.
  • Marine Wildlife: Ocean creatures great and small in their natural environment, the ocean.
  • Up Close & Personal: Some of our favorite ocean plants and animals are so teeny-tiny, they just can’t be seen with the naked eye. These macro photography shots help us appreciate the smallest of our ocean friends.
• The first prize winner—the Judge’s Choice—will receive a cash prize of $500 and a weighted blanket from Bearaby. Bearaby’s chunky-knit Cotton Napper ($249) is a buttery soft, breathable, knitted weighted blanket made from long-staple GOTS-certified organic cotton. The Judge’s Choice winner will also be featured in the 2023 Ocean Conservancy Calendar and featured on Ocean Conservancy’s blog, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts. The four category winners will each receive a cash prize of $150 and be featured on Ocean Conservancy’s blog, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.

Still have questions? Check out our FAQ for more details.

Well, what are you waiting for, ocean lover? Submit your photos before it’s too late. I can’t wait to see what spectacular snapshots you will share with us this year. And if you need a little extra fin-spiration, below are just a few of our turtle-y amazing honorable mentions from last year’s contest.

The post Our 2021 Photo Contest Has Finally Arrived appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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The Truth About Sea Angels

Sailors have long reported sights of heavenly creatures swimming just below the water’s surface. They might not have been able to catch glimpses while peering over the rails of their ship, but they were right about one thing: there are sea angels lurking in the oceans.

Sea angels are in the clade Gymnosomata and are teeny tiny sea slugs that can measure up to only seven centimeters in length at most. They get their name from their wing-like appendages which help them glide around their ocean home.

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Sea angels are truly captivating to watch. Part of their overall allure can be attributed to the way they move. These creatures glide through the ocean in pulsing motions as graceful as a choreographed dance. The other thing that makes them so mesmerizing to watch is the fact that these animals are semi-transparent. Just by looking at them, you can see their internal organs and gonads! You don’t need a magic school bus to look deeper into a sea angel’s inner workings. You can see right through these incredible creatures and visualize what makes them tick.

There is a long list of things that make sea angels amazing. They are hermaphrodites, meaning they can switch sexes. Their mating rituals look a lot like a dance—which is every middle school dance chaperone’s worst nightmare—but it’s actually quite lovely to watch. A sea angel couple stays locked together during these rituals, spinning for hours while listening to the symphony of the ocean’s depths.

Sea angels live a truly shell-tered life. They are born with shells, but they lose them as they grow into adulthood. Once they mature and transition to their adult form, they transform like a caterpillar turns into a butterfly. But don’t confuse them with sea butterflies. Those ocean flutterers, though they are in fact fellow pteropods, are no friend to sea angels—they are their lunch!

Yes, I did just lure you into a false sense of security about sea angels. Here’s the turn in the story, the moment the scary music begins to play and we descend into the deep dark secrets of these beautiful sea angels.

You see, sea angels are actually carnivorous, and they feed exclusively on the equally adorable-looking sea butterflies. Just like horror movie villains, different sea angels have different strategies when it comes to killing their prey. Some like to wait for the perfect moment to ambush; others actively hunt down poor sea butterflies before they eat them. Incredibly, sea angels move twice as fast as their prey, making it easy for them to move in for the kill.

Once they catch their unfortunate meal, the real horror show begins. Sea angels open their mouths and roll out special tentacle-like appendages known as buccal cones. Unlike sea angels, sea butterflies don’t lose their shells. Thus, these buccal cones have numerous hooks and teeth-like radula that allow them to scoop the sea butterfly out of a shell and into its gullet.

© Kevin Raskoff

Take a moment to picture this with me. Imagine you’re about to be killed by a ruthless murderer in a horror movie, which is obviously bad enough. This murderer also has transparent skin, so you can literally see its heart beating as it goes in for the kill (yep, even scarier). Then, they take off their mask to reveal a bunch of flailing tentacles with sharp edges designed to scoop out your gooey bits like an avocado from its shell. Yes, we agree: it’s truly terrifying.

Oh … and remember that bit about sea angels’ beautiful mating dance? Well, I did leave a pretty important part out in my description. When mating sea angels get close to a mate, they actually turn their reproductive organs inside out. These critters have special suction cups that hold them together, leaving them literally scarred from the entire experience. Oh, and sometimes they will hunt at the same time as mating. Double the terrifying horror creature murdering you with razor tentacles, double the … fun?

Like every good supervillain, sea angels also make it quite difficult to be killed. Some species produce a chemical defense to deter fish from eating them. This trait has even earned them a henchman! The partners in crime—little crustaceans called amphipods—will attach themselves to these sea angels to take advantage of their superior defenses.

And of course, deep down, every good horror movie contains a lesson in survival. Sea angels are no different. These animals and their prey date back to about 130 million years ago in the Cretaceous period. That means they’ve already survived a mass extinction event and scientists are studying them to see if they have lessons to teach us about resilience as well.

While their behavior might be terrifying, they have reason to be afraid of us as well. Human-induced ocean acidification is directly threatening sea butterflies, which means sea angels are quite literally losing their lunch. The shell of a sea butterfly is very thin, which means it can be dissolved in overly acidic seawater. The good news?  You can take action on ocean acidification today to keep sea butterflies and the terrifying and wonderful sea angels alive and healthy for millions of years to come. Don’t wait: take action today for these jaw-dropping creatures.

The post The Truth About Sea Angels appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Untreated Greywater is Gross—We Need to Do Better for Our Ocean

It may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about cruise ships, but those giant vessels generate a lot of wastewater. Much of that is greywater: liquid waste from things like showers, laundry facilities, dishwashers, bath and washbasin drains.

Greywater may not sound as concerning as sewage (the drainage from toilets and urinals), but a report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concluded untreated greywater has similar characteristics to domestic sewage and can even have higher concentrations of certain pollutants. For example, fecal coliform concentrations in untreated vessel greywater are one to three times higher than untreated domestic wastewater! Even worse, unlike sewage, the discharge of greywater is not regulated in most parts of the world, meaning ships can discharge greywater directly into the ocean, without any form of treatment.

Fortunately, that’s not the case in Alaska. Alaska has required both sewage and greywater of large passenger vessels to be treated by Advance Wastewater Treatment Systems (AWTS) for almost 20 years. In that time, the state has sampled greywater and sewage discharge from passenger vessels in its waters.

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Ocean Conservancy worked with an outside expert to analyze 19 years of data from Alaska’s sampling program. Earlier this year, we released the results of that analysis in a new report that summarizes lessons learned and offers recommendations for both research needed moving forward and how to improve greywater management both in Alaska and internationally.

What are the report’s conclusions?

First, greywater is gross and cruise ships discharge a lot of it.

Sampling in Alaska confirms that untreated greywater contains bacteria, nutrients, solids and a variety of pollutants, some at levels as high as or higher than raw sewage. These concentrations are high enough to impair human and environmental health. Data reported by ships in Alaska also show that ships discharge greywater at much higher volumes than sewage. Greywater discharge is often eight to 12 times greater than sewage discharge.

Second, advanced wastewater treatment systems can work well.

The required AWTS systems on large vessels are very effective at treating greywater. After ships were required to treat greywater with an AWTS, their fecal coliform levels generally tested below the detection limit. Similarly, solids and nutrients were removed at a high rate.

Third, good results are not automatic.

The mere presence of an AWTS on a ship does not necessarily mean ships treat wastewater to the Alaska standards at all times and in all places. AWTS must be maintained and monitored to ensure good results. The data support the need for performance monitoring of greywater treatment. The data also show that non-AWTS treatments—used by many small cruise ship vessels—have greater variability in their test results.

© Andrew Hartsig

What next?

With its greater volume and high values of pollutants and bacteria, it is concerning that greywater, unlike sewage, is not regulated internationally or even nationally in many parts of the world.

Data from the Alaska program shows greywater can be treated to safe levels for discharge. Performance monitoring through a sampling of greywater and sewage discharges in Alaska can be used as an example for future requirements on greywater elsewhere in the world.

One important step is to ensure the International Maritime Organization (IMO)—the UN body that regulates international shipping—takes action to address and regulate greywater. The IMO regulates other forms of waste from ships including sewage, ballast water and exhaust gas cleaners. Greywater—with its high levels of bacteria and nutrients and potentially toxic substances—merits the same level of attention. While achieving IMO regulation of greywater will take years of work, Ocean Conservancy will continue to push the importance of such a measure.

The post Untreated Greywater is Gross—We Need to Do Better for Our Ocean appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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What the Heck is a Hagfish?

Let’s be honest: not many people would have hagfish on their list of “most charismatic marine species.” They are slimy, they eat dead things, they have rows of tooth-like structures straight out of a horror movie.

But arguably their strange and slimy existence is exactly what gives them their charm. In a sea of chipper dolphins and mellow sea turtles, the hagfish swims along, slick and jawless, living its life.

Here are four facts about this weird, wonderful and … weird fish.

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They don’t have jaws

Although they look like eels, they’re a completely different class of fish. Hagfish are in superclass Agnatha, which also includes lampreys. Hagfish are primitive fish, meaning they haven’t changed much since they first evolved hundreds of millions of years ago. They are the only known living animals that have a skull but not a spine, and their skeleton is made of cartilage, similar to sharks, skates and rays.

They are really, really slimy

Hagfish have dozens of glands along the body that secrete a slime made of sugars and proteins. When these protein strands meet the saltwater, they expand into thick blankets of slime. According to Ed Young of The Atlantic, the slime is about 100,000 times softer than Jell-O (what a visual!). This slime is used to evade predators—it’s not easy to move or hold onto a slippery fish in the midst of a pool of slime.

They aren’t picky about food

Hagfish won’t turn up their noses at dead animals. They are known to dive headfirst—literally—into dead and dying animals. They use their teeth-like mouth rakes made of keratin to scrape tissue from the carcasses (another great visual, you’re welcome). But they don’t even need to do that to get their fill—they can absorb nutrients directly through their skin. Scavengers like hagfish play an important role in recycling nutrients from dead animals back into the ecosystem. They’re a common sight soon after whale falls, for example.

They have some … unique skills

The more you read about hagfish, the more you realize these slippery, carcass-eating, jawless fish are one of a kind. To keep themselves from being ensnared in their own goo, hagfish can tie a knot with their eel-like bodies and slide it from head to tail, squeegeeing off the slime. They can also “sneeze” to clear the slime out of their faces. Their soft, nimble bodies are also able to squeeze into crevices half their size.

You don’t have to love hagfish slime or the fact they eat animals from the inside out. But you do have to admit, these guys are pretty wild!

The post What the Heck is a Hagfish? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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An Ocean of Data

The significance of the ocean to humanity cannot be overstated, whether it is regulating Earth’s climate, providing food to billions or helping society transition to renewable, fossil fuel-free energy.

Yet, our understanding of these critical ecosystem services or our ability to sustainably support the $373 billion ocean-based economy is limited by timely and equitable access to data on rapidly changing ocean conditions.

As much as 80% of our ocean remains unmapped or underexplored, meaning there are holes in our knowledge that prevent policymakers from making informed and sustainable management decisions, whether it is siting offshore wind farms or identifying biodiversity hot spots that need protecting.

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But investments in ocean data management lag far behind society’s ever-growing demand for these data, particularly as the shipping, fishing and offshore energy development sectors become increasingly important providers and users of ocean data.

These are among the findings of a report that Ocean Conservancy in partnership with the Center for Open Data Enterprise released today.

Ocean data needs are punctuated by the worsening climate crisis, which is driving changes in ocean conditions that must be monitored and studied closely for responsive and timely management actions. Marine species are shifting their distributions, disrupting fisheries and increasing the potential for vessel-marine mammal interactions in new shipping routes with less sea ice.

Equitable, public access to ocean data is also critical to helping coastal communities adapt to climate change and protecting marginalized residents. For example, Miami’s Afro-Caribbean communities living on desirable, higher ground could be displaced into lower-lying areas vulnerable to rising sea levels or storms as their neighborhoods are replaced by new commercial and residential developments. City officials must have access to ocean and climate data coupled with community needs and values to make informed decisions and enact policies to protect at-risk residents.

© Daniel Sebastian Padilla Ochoa/Ocean Conservancy

Technology is giving humanity an unprecedented window into ocean ecosystems, but the prolific amount of data generated by a growing network of disparate sensors, gliders and smartphones is not always comparable or analyzable because of the different systems and currencies used. The staggering amount of data collected each year are underutilized because the systems of managing and sharing data have not been standardized or modernized to support the exponential growth in data.

At a Congressional hearing last month, officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) echoed these and other concerns described in the report, testifying that the agency cannot keep pace with increasing demands for climate data due to lack of capacity and resources.

Recognizing the need to significantly deepen our understanding and management of ocean ecosystems, the National Strategy for Mapping, Exploring and Characterizing the United States Exclusive Economic Zone would fill large gaps in our knowledge about ocean ecosystems in U.S. waters. However, this undertaking and the equally massive data cataloging necessary to support it will require bipartisan support and sustained funding from Congress. New partnerships among federal agencies, private industry, academia and NGOs will also be a necessity to leverage survey assets, avoid duplication of effort and save taxpayer dollars.

© Getty Images

Ocean data are a virtual commodity that the public and various stakeholders must be able to access to be useful and valuable while protecting the confidentiality of data providers. Lessons learned from the health care industry suggest private data can be aggregated or anonymized to protect proprietary claims and identities while maximizing their benefit for sustainably managing the ocean.

Solutions to these challenges are on the horizon. Led by NOAA, the federal government is positioned to usher in a new era of improved data transparency, access and use to advance marine conservation, inform the blue economy, and promote the sustainable management of ocean resources.

We must modernize and invest in ocean data management to inform our stewardship and sustainable use of marine resources during a critical time of rapid and accelerating change in our ocean.

Access the report:
Challenges and Opportunities for Ocean Data to Advance Conservation and Management

The post An Ocean of Data appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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How Well Do You Know Endangered Ocean Species?

Whale sharks, loggerhead sea turtles, hammerhead sharks … some of our favorite marine animals are some of the ones most at-risk. It’s going to take all of us to ensure that these incredible ocean animals survive and thrive for generations to come.

The good news? The more we know about these animals and the threats facing them, the better we can protect them.

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In honor of Endangered Species Day this week, we’ve put together some of our favorite fun facts about endangered species. Test your endangered species knowledge with our quiz.

The quiz is a win-win. You can brag to your friends about your extensive ocean animal knowledge, or you can impress them with the new fun facts you’ve learned (or both). Then, you can share ways we can all help protect these species from extinction.

Join us in celebrating the wild, wonderful animals who need our help. Will you ace the test? Only one way to find out. Take our endangered species quiz now.

The post How Well Do You Know Endangered Ocean Species? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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12 Incredible Historical Illustrations of Shells

Historical illustrations give us a glimpse into the scientific research of the past—and they can be very cool to look at!

We can view thousands of historical illustrations of marine life thanks to the Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL). The BHL is the largest open-access digital library for biodiversity archives. They work with libraries around the world to offer millions of books dating back to the 15^th century for free. The library is not only an incredible source of data for scientists—it brings scientific art into the homes of people around the world.

Previously, we dug through the BHL archives to bring you some of our favorite ocean, shark and cephalopod illustrations from the 18^th and 19^th centuries. Now, in honor of the summer beach season, we’re bringing you our favorite shell illustrations from the BHL!

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You can explore the BHL too, by visiting their website and Flickr page.

From "Illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals," 1843-1878 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Introduction to the study of conchology," 1825 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Conchyliologie minéralogique de la Grande Bretagne," 1837-1845 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals," 1843-1878 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

© COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals," 1843-1878 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

© COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London," 1833-1965 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "The conchological miscellany of Sylvanus Hanley," 1854-1858 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Illustrations of the shells of molluscous animals," 1843-1878 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

From "Diccionario dos termos technicos de historia natural," 1788 © COURTESY OF BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE LIBRARY

 

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A Victory for Important Arctic Safeguards

Good news! The 2016 Arctic Drilling Rule—an important federal regulation designed to protect the Arctic Ocean from the potentially catastrophic impacts of exploratory oil drilling—is no longer under threat.

Let’s keep the momentum going: urge the Department of the Interior to lead the way toward a renewable energy future.

Last year, the Trump administration proposed regulatory changes that would have stripped away vital safety and environmental protection standards, substantially weakening the 2016 Arctic Drilling Rule. This misguided proposal would have made it easier and cheaper for oil companies to drill in U.S. Arctic waters. At a time when we need to shift away from polluting fossil fuels toward renewable energy sources, a plan to make it easier to conduct risky drilling in Arctic waters would have been exactly the wrong approach.

Fortunately, the Trump administration failed to finalize its proposed changes before President Biden took over. In February, the Department of the Interior—now under new leadership—gave the public more time to comment on the proposed rule changes. Members of the public, including thousands of Ocean Conservancy members and supporters, took advantage of the extended comment period and urged the agency to withdraw the proposed rule change.

The Department of the Interior got the message.

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Earlier this month, the agency announced it was dropping the Trump administration’s plan to weaken the 2016 Arctic Drilling Rule. In doing so, it recognized what was obvious all along: the 2016 Rule is “critical to ensuring adequate safety and environmental protections for this sensitive ecosystem and Alaska Native subsistence activities.”

Make no mistake: this is a big win for the Arctic. It also marks an important turning point. Now that we’ve defeated the Trump administration’s last-ditch effort to strip away Arctic safeguards, we can focus on convincing the federal government to chart a path away from dirty, risky fossil fuels and toward a safe, renewable sources of energy.

The Department of the Interior is ready to listen. Earlier this year, it kicked off a comprehensive review of the federal oil and gas program, including offshore oil and gas activities. This gives members of the public—like you—an important opportunity to urge the Department of the Interior to be a better steward of our ocean. Join us: tell the Department of Interior to lead a rapid, just and equitable transition away from fossil fuels and toward a renewable energy future.

The post A Victory for Important Arctic Safeguards appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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A Visit to Matanuska Glacier

At the end of April, my wife and I went away for a couple of nights, a welcome change of scenery in the era of COVID-19. We stayed near the 22-mile-long Matanuska Glacier, in the Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska. In addition to relaxing somewhere other than in our home, we toured the glacier by helicopter and on foot. A massive body of ice dozens of miles inland may not seem connected to the ocean, but, of course, everything is connected on our beautiful planet.

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In the height of the summer melting season, the Matanuska Glacier sends more than 100 million gallons of water an hour down to Cook Inlet, the arm of the Pacific Ocean that reaches north past Anchorage, Alaska. This water is both fresh and silty, affecting the salinity of the upper Cook Inlet just as it adds mineral nutrients to the water column.

© Henry Huntington

The Matanuska Glacier is one of thousands of glaciers in southern Alaska, all contributing to the Alaska Coastal Current that flows clockwise around Alaska. This current helps produce abundant salmon runs and flourishing coastal fisheries and ecosystems. Some of the water comes from last winter’s snow, but some has been locked in the glacier for hundreds of thousands of years. And now it rejoins the world’s water cycle.

The glacier is stunningly beautiful, and we feel fortunate to spend time here. However, not all is well. Alaska’s glaciers are melting faster than the snow can replenish them. Water that has been stored as ice on land is rejoining the sea and, as a consequence, sea levels are rising. Alaska is warming quickly, so its glaciers are contributing more than their share to sea-level rise. Nonetheless, the amount of water in Alaska’s mountains is a small fraction of what is stored in the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.

In other words, what we are seeing in Alaska is a small symptom of a global problem, an early indicator of what is in store if global warming continues. We still enjoy the sights and the experience of our day on the Matanuska Glacier but wish our pleasure was not tinged with worry about our planet.

Learn about the many wonders of Arctic sea ice

The post A Visit to Matanuska Glacier appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Nations Make Waves on Ocean-Climate Action

For those of us at Ocean Conservancy, Earth Day was less of a day and more of a week-long event this year, and we couldn’t be happier with the outcomes. Ocean-based climate solutions were at the heart of the discussions during Ocean Conservancy’s and the United Nations Foundation’s event How Ocean-Based Solutions Contribute to Net-Zero.

At President Biden’s Leaders Summit on Climate, President Biden announced the United States’ new Nationally Determined Contribution, which is the country’s climate commitment as part of the Paris Agreement, to reduce U.S. emissions by 50-52% compared to 2005 levels. After the last four years, this is the type of action we want to see more of from the Biden-Harris administration. Within this new climate commitment, the administration specifically calls out ocean-based solutions such as offshore wind, blue carbon and unlike in many climate plans and events, shipping didn’t get off the hook this time and was similarly included.

For a sector that accounts for as much greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution as a G7 country like Germany or Japan, it’s a welcome sign that greater attention and action is focused on the shipping industry and that it’s setting us on a better course at last. Let’s talk through all of the new action on shipping we heard during Earth Week, and what it all means for climate action overall within the industry.

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First is Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s ambitious call to work with the International Maritime Organization(IMO) to achieve absolute zero-emissions shipping by 2050, and the inclusion of action on domestic and international shipping within the United States own Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). Right now, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has set a target of reducing emissions by 50% by 2050 from 2008 levels, before fully decarbonizing at some point. We’ve talked before about how this target falls well short of the Paris Agreement’s goal of keeping warming under 2°Celsius, and how far off the mark we are from even this more modest target. Instead of settling for half, Kerry’s remarks set a new guiding star for ambition at the IMO, one which was quickly echoed by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Justice and the North Sea Vincent Van Quickenborne of Belgium, who proposed a cut of emissions by 55% by 2030 alongside 100% by 2050.

It’s important to note that neither of these targets are “net-zero” targets, but are absolute-zero targets. While net-zero by 2050 is a great starting point, considering the long lifespan of marine ships, shipping companies need clear signals that our ultimate priority rests with preventing emissions before they happen rather than something to be offset after the fact. We also recommend plenty of actions we can start taking today to meet this goal or surpass it.

Another fantastic signal was sent by the United Kingdom’s commitment to include shipping and aviation in their national climate accounting, with a plan to cut the sectors’ overall emissions by 78% by 2035. By bringing shipping under the fold, nations can finally take ownership of all climate impacts associated with their economy. It’s a great marker for other nations to follow, especially if they’re pairing it with international action at the IMO.

Aerial view of container ship in the sea at winter time © GreenOak/Adobe Stock

Other countries pledged spiritually similar actions. For example, Norway’s Minister of Climate and Environment Mr. Sveinung Rotevatn also reiterated their commitment to reducing domestic shipping emissions by 50% by 2050.

Outside of new commitments, we also heard exciting announcements that touched on the technology or policy we need to see to help achieve an emissions-free future for the shipping industry. Japan’s Deputy Director-General for Engineering Affairs, Maritime Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Hideaki Saito pledged a zero-emission commercial vessel on the water by 2028. This is another key piece of the decarbonization puzzle for shipping. Zero emissions ocean-going vessels need to be produced as soon as possible and they must be capable of running on truly zero-emissions fuels produced by renewable resources. As the World Bank reiterated in April, this is a huge opportunity for developing countries like Chile with abundant renewable resources.

Building the overall framework for these fuels to take off commercially may require a market-based measure, and His Excellency President David Kabua of the Marshall Islands signaled what an ambitious proposal to tackle this price should look like. The Marshall Islands and the Solomon Islands have submitted a proposal to the IMO’s next meeting in June for a levy of 100 dollars per tonne of CO₂. By placing a price on carbon that ratchets up over time, the Marshall Islands offer a framework that could fund both the research and development shipping companies want, as well as provides funds for climate adaptation efforts that these Pacific Island nations need in the face of rising sea levels and fiercer storms.

Taken together, the commitments and announcements countries made during Earth Week set the table for a hearty meal of ocean-based climate actions. With a target of zero emissions by 2050, ships on the water, a full accounting of shipping emissions and backed by the kind of levy to help green fuels soar, we have a clear course charted to tackle this challenging sector. We’re excited to work with all these countries to make their commitments in Earth Week a reality.

Will you join us in taking action to protect the Arctic from International Shipping?

The post Nations Make Waves on Ocean-Climate Action appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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For Ocean Action in Sports, Go To … Louisville

Through Ocean Conservancy’s participation in the Sport Positive Summit in the Fall of 2020, we were privileged to meet with Dr. Jessica Murfree, Ph.D. and learn about her interest in the subject of climate impacts on sports. For her Spring 2021 Sport and the Environment class in the University of Louisville’s Sport Administration Program, she invited us to sit in on her students’ final project presentations. The class showed an understanding of the interconnectedness between what happens in our ocean and how it can have an effect on professional, collegiate and individual athletics. From harmful algal blooms in the Great Lakes impacting the Ohio River and leading to cancellations of an Iron Man race to the more frequent postponements and rescheduling of summer sports due to extreme heat, the class demonstrated an understating of these challenges and an eagerness to come up with different types of solutions.

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Out of the many outstanding projects from the class, three examples from students Dwayne Depp, Spencer Stone and Amanda Barr stood out for their creativity, detailed plans and geographic relevance. Here is a look at their ideas:

Dwayne Depp – Class of 2021

© Dwayne Depp

Major: Science
Hometown: Versailles, Kentucky
Project: Best Bay Reusable Fan Bag and Biscayne Bay Cleanups with Miami Heat

When Dwyane Wade and LeBron James led the Miami Heat to consecutive NBA Titles in 2012 and 2013, they inspired a generation of young fans from across the country. One of those fans was Dwayne Depp. Depp, a former track star who traveled with Team USA for the Down Under Tour in 2016, credits Dr. Murfree with opening his eyes to the ways the environment can impact sports. During his trip with Team USA in 2016, one of the stops was Australia, where he was able to get certified and dive the Great Barrier Reef. It was a life-changing experience for him and he credits that time underwater and his passion for the Miami Heat in crafting his idea.

© Dwayne Depp

For Heat fans, he proposed a reusable bag for use both inside and outside the arena. He tapped into nostalgia, using the team’s throwback logo from the 1990s, a tip of the cap to the Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway days. There is no shortage of Heat legends, from the aforementioned Mourning and Hardaway to Team President Pat Riley, Wade, Shaq, Udonis Haslem and more. Depp proposed working with those players and the current roster to do a series of cleanups along Biscayne Bay. Few NBA teams share as strong a connection to the water as do the Heat and by connecting those dots, Depp’s idea hits the mark.

Spencer Stone – Class of 2021

Major: Sport Administration
Hometown: Bellevue, Washington
Project Idea: Green Gunner Season Ticket Promotion with Arsenal Football Club

If you’ve ever been to or known anybody from the Pacific Northwest, you’ll understand how important nature and environmental stewardship is for locals. Spencer Stone is a member of that club, growing up in Bellevue, Washington, where weekend activities included hiking, white water rafting and a lot of time outside. In grade school, Stone and his classmates worked on a project around the sea-level rise in Alaska and its impact on those communities. That background traveled with him to Louisville, where he would combine his interest in the outdoors and his passion for sports.

Stone, an avid football fan, chose Arsenal (his favorite English Premier League club) for his sustainable season ticket project. Arsenal fans are passionate about their club and the Gunners are one of the leading clubs when it comes to environmental action and sustainability, finishing second in the Sport Positive Sustainability Table. Stone’s idea connects the fan base and the club’s environmental work, with a promotion for season ticket holders to get a piece of Emirates Stadium, via commemorative seats made from ocean plastic. He also proposed working with Arsenal players and legends to wear green kits, made from recycled ocean plastics. The project doesn’t end with the fans, it also brings in the stadium vendors, encouraging action on their part to make match day single-use plastics free.

© Spencer Stone

Amanda Barr – Class of 2021

Major: Sports Administration
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Project Idea: Recycling Nights with the Milwaukee Brewers

Louisville is home to Louisville Slugger, the official bat of Major League Baseball (MLB) and also home to the Louisville Bats, the Cincinnati Reds Triple-A affiliate, so it’s no wonder that Louisville-native Amanda Barr chose a baseball team for her project. Barr, who is currently interning with the Bats, didn’t think much about the connections between sports and sustainability growing up. It wasn’t until her class with Dr. Murfree that she realized the opportunities for sports to get on the field and play a role in climate action.

The Milwaukee Brewers are one of the most active MLB clubs when it comes to sustainability and it was that background that led Barr to choose them for her project. Fan nights are common throughout sports and are a great way for teams to interact with their supporters. Barr proposed taking this existing program with the Brewers and making it into a sustainably focused event for fans, where they could bring in their plastic debris from home or work and turn it in for the club for disposal and repurposing. In return, fans would get a reusable Brewers bag for use in their daily lives. Like Depp in utilizing Biscayne Bay, Barr also would encourage Brewers players to join fans for select cleanups along Lake Michigan which is only 3.9 miles from the ballpark.

© Amanda Barr

As you can see, when these students enter the workforce, they will be bringing ideas and enthusiasm to this growing sector. The common thread between all of these is the impact that one person can make and in this case, it was Dr. Murfree’s energy, knowledge and mentorship that led them to these outstanding ideas and will surely stay with them throughout their careers. Dr. Murfree will begin a new chapter this summer as a visiting professor at Texas A&M University where she will continue to focus on the intersection of climate and sports and we wish her and all of her students the very best. To follow Dr. Murfree’s work, please check in here.

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The post For Ocean Action in Sports, Go To … Louisville appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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