Three Ways You Can #SeaTheChange 

The plastic pollution problem is vast. Plastics have been found everywhere from the Mariana Trench, the Earth’s deepest trough, to the top of Mount Everest, our planet’s highest peak. Yet this massive problem is one we can start addressing today. And what is great, absolutely everyone can be a part of the solution. 

I am inspired to work to keep our ocean cleaner every day because I’m not alone as I face a tidal wave of trash heading to our ocean. I’m joined by hundreds of thousands of people who join us each year for the International Coastal Cleanup®. Every year volunteers, like you, come out to your beaches, waterways, parks and neighborhoods to pick up trash. This year you can be the change that helps the ocean #SeatheChange. All you need to do is to join our league of ocean heroes and come out and clean up! 

The International Coastal Cleanup kicks off this Saturday, September 17, 2022. but you can start working toward a healthier ocean now! Join us for an entire season of action by working to protect our ocean with these helpful tips: 

Learn and Take Action

When I work with scientists and community leaders from around the world on this issue of ocean trash, I always discover there is more to learn. Sometimes I find a new dimension to the problem, but I also often find new solutions. As you start on your journey, we have great resources both to dive deeper into the issue and to take action to promote high-impact solutions. I’ve chosen a few great topics to get you started, but you can always plunge into the latest on Ocean Conservancy’s work toward Trash Free Seas® on our blog. 

Tiny Plastics Are a Big Problem

The term “microplastics” describes tiny pieces of plastic that are often too tiny to see. While these plastic particles are small, the ocean feels their impact in a big way. Our dependence on plastics in our daily lives has led to widespread contamination of microplastics in some of the most remote places in the world. This is because microplastics are produced when bigger plastic items—such as shampoo bottles, foam cups, plastic bags and even old clothing—break up in the environment. Microplastics impact the health of the ocean, its sea life  and even our own bodies due to microplastic contamination in what we eat and drink. What we put in our environment matters—not only for the sake of the planet, but also for our own health. Use your voice to push for policies to help keep microplastics out of our ocean.

From Parks to the Ocean

It isn’t hard to understand why we must protect our majestic national parks that remind us of the many natural wonders our planet and our own country hold. Plastic pollution doesn’t just threaten our national treasures by sea and land, it can also pollute them from the air. Scientists recently discovered that microplastics can be transported by wind, and more than 1,000 metric tons—roughly the weight of 1,000 elephants—fall onto national park lands each year! Recently, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced an order to phase out the sale of single-use plastic products in national parks by 2030, but there is more we can do now to protect our country’s wonders. Take action to push for policies that keep plastics out of our national parks.

The Tale of Ghost Gear

When we think of plastics in the ocean, the image that comes to mind often is that of the kinds of plastics we see in everyday life. Yet the most widespread and deadliest form of debris in the ocean is one you probably haven’t seen before: ghost gear. Simply put, this is fishing gear that is lost in the ocean. A single abandoned commercial fishing net is estimated to kill an average of 500,000 marine invertebrates, 1,700 fish and four seabirds. You can learn more about ghost gear by taking our quiz. Then, put that knowledge to work by taking action to tackle this single most harmful form of plastic pollution.

Organize a Cleanup 

We love watching people come together each fall for a healthier ocean, but that’s by no means the only time you can join us for a cleanup. You can use the Clean Swell® app anytime to log a cleanup and help power science and policies that create long lasting solutions to the plastic pollution crisis. Try out plogging to incorporate trash cleanups into your daily run or pick up a few pieces of litter while walking your dog. Get your friends and family involved to help remove trash from a local park before celebrating with your favorite pastime or a nice meal. We’ve got everything you need to bring people together for a cleanup with our step-by-step guide. 

Reduce Waste at Home

One way we can help the ocean is by reducing our reliance on plastics at home. Many of the most common items found by International Coastal Cleanup volunteers can easily be avoided or replaced. Here are some easy places you can reduce plastic waste in your life: 

• Straws pose a real danger to many ocean animals. Next time you’re out simply say “no thanks” to straws and stirrers or bring a reusable option from home. 
• International Coastal Cleanup volunteers have removed more than two million plastic knives, spoons and forks from our beaches and waterways. You can Quit the Cutlery by asking delivery places to forgo disposable utensils or stashing your own “spork.”
• Food wrappers are a uniquely challenging problem. They are effectively unrecyclable, and few comparable alternatives are more eco-friendly. You can take our Food Wrapper Challenge to find ways to reduce this form of waste in your home.  
• Reducing waste at home isn’t the only challenge that needs your help. You can also advocate for better solutions for issues like food and beverage plastic packaging that so commonly comes with our takeout orders and causes a big problem for our ocean. Tackle takeout waste here.
• Get creative! Whether it is turning trash into treasure through upcycling or finding new plastic-free alternatives, a little bit of ingenuity can reduce plastic waste for a healthier planet and ocean. 

The International Coastal Cleanup is a wonderful time for celebrating ocean advocates like you and inspiring everyone to work towards a cleaner, healthier ocean. You can find even more ways to get involved by texting “ICC” to 69866 or signing up for our email list in the footer below.

The post Three Ways You Can #SeaTheChange  appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/6vVbCEf https://ift.tt/X8sv6V1

Celebrating 50 Years of Ocean Conservancy

It’s a very exciting time here at Ocean Conservancy. We’re celebrating fifty years—five decades—of advocating for our ocean. I am honored to be at the helm of this incredible organization as we reflect on this important moment in our history and look forward to our future.

Ocean Conservancy has seen so much in the last 50 years—many victories and many challenges. But one thing is for sure: Our network of dedicated ocean advocates, including people like you, has grown tremendously. It’s thanks to you that we’re able to look back on all the ocean triumphs we’ve celebrated together over the years, and look forward to what comes next.

In honor of the last 50 years of ocean conservation, here are a few of the (many) highlights and current areas of work:

• We’ve acted on climate. Alongside dedicated partners, we’ve helped bring our ocean to the center of international discussions on climate solutions. Learn more about how we’re combatting climate change today.
• We’ve cultivated a strong community: We’re proud to have engaged generations of people through a shared love for the ocean to protect whales, clean up beaches and persuade elected representatives that the ocean matters. Join our online community on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
• We’ve fought for crucial legislation: Through the years, we’ve helped shape the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Marine Debris Act, the Magnuson-Stevens Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. Read about one of our recent legislative victories, the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act.
• We’ve held people accountable for pollution: Following the devasting BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster in 2010, we worked alongside partners to hold BP accountable, resulting in $20.8 billion for the environmental damage settlement. Explore the timeline of the BP Deepwater Horizon recovery efforts.
• We’ve combatted plastic pollution: Through our International Coastal Cleanup® (ICC), we’ve engaged 17 million volunteers to tackle 350 million pounds of ocean trash. Join this year’s ICC at a cleanup location near you.
• We’re committed to ocean justice: As we rise to the climate crisis, Ocean Conservancy is incorporating an ocean justice lens across all our conservation initiatives. We’re dedicated to fair and equitable distribution of both the benefits of the ocean’s bounty and the burdens of its complex care. Explore our current ocean justice initiatives.

As tempting as it is to spend today reminiscing about the past, we also need to look to the future. Although we have seen some big challenges over the last five decades, we are likely to see even greater challenges in the next 50 years.

Despite this, I’ve never been more hopeful for the future of our ocean. More and more people are advocating for immediate climate action to protect each other and our ocean. We’re embarking on critical work to include more diverse voices and viewpoints in conservation. And we are witnesses to a generation of young people who are rising up to fight to live in a sustainable, just and equitable world.

In honor of our 50^th anniversary, I hope you’ll join me in taking action to support ocean conservation. For five easy ways to help our ocean today, just remember the acronym O.C.E.A.N:

• Open an ocean conversation. One of the best ways to get loved ones to act for our ocean is to share stories of why you love the ocean and why it needs our help.
• Check the candidates. Whether it’s climate crisis, plastics or ocean justice, it’s not too early to find out where the candidates stand on the ocean issues that matter to you.
• Enjoy the ocean. Even if you don’t live near the ocean, simply enjoying a story, photo or video about the ocean reminds us of all it has to offer.
• Act for the ocean. Join us in a cleanup or check out our Action Center for more ways you can help right away.
• Now is the time—think about the future we want for our ocean, and what it takes to get there. By acting now, we can change the future.

I am honored to work alongside you and can’t wait to see what we achieve in the next chapter of Ocean Conservancy’s history. Thank you, as always, for your support. And thank you for joining us in celebrating this exciting and humbling milestone. Here’s to 50 more years!

The post Celebrating 50 Years of Ocean Conservancy appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/O9tRjHw https://ift.tt/jfDCcWk

Highlights from Ocean Conservancy’s Inaugural Shores Forward Summit

It’s been more than two years since Ocean Conservancy’s Florida Conservation Program launched Shores Forward, our flagship initiative to create positive change for our ocean across Florida. We work with local governments to implement on-the-ground projects with local changemakers and partners. We now bring these successes to Tallahassee where we advocate and help craft legislation that protects our ocean.

When we launched our first Shores Forward partnership with City of Miami in 2019, we were eager to help make impactful projects come to life. Since then, working with local governments, we have brought Shores Forward to Miami Beach, Orlando and soon, Pinellas County. Our vision for the future of the Shores Forward initiative is to create a community of practice in which these projects across Florida are catalysts for learning and an undeniable swell of support for our ocean.

© Ocean Conservancy

Our goal is for Florida to become the model for innovative and effective marine conservation.

On August 26, we celebrated two years of this powerful work by convening the inaugural Shores Forward Summit. Our partners across south and central Florida joined our Ocean Conservancy team in Miami for an all-day event where we celebrated collective wins and announced exciting upcoming projects.

Staff from City of Miami, City of Miami Beach, Miami-Dade County and City of Orlando participated in panel discussions and brainstorms alongside more than 70 non-governmental organization partners, including Dream in Green, Debris Free Oceans, Healthy Little Havana and Big Blue & You. Ocean Conservancy announced the latest developments in the work to support the findings from the Miami Circularity Assessment Protocol (CAP) with the launch of the CAP Community Action Guide. Professor Jenna Jambeck, from the Circularity Informatics Lab at University of Georgia, shared the methodology of the CAP and key takeaways from the Miami CAP.

© Ocean Conservancy

Building on the success and momentum behind tackling marine debris in South Florida, Ocean Conservancy announced a recent award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to reduce marine debris in the Miami River and in Biscayne Bay. The two-year grant will fund the expansion and implementation of Plastic Free 305 in key portions of Miami-Dade County, alongside partners Debris Free Oceans and Big Blue & You. Building on the business-focused voluntary campaign to reduce single-use plastics, Ocean Conservancy and partners will work with high school students in eight schools to train the next generation of environmental and sustainability champions to canvas local businesses across Hialeah, Hialeah Gardens, Medley, Miami Springs and City of Miami to eliminate single-use plastics. A panel discussion consisting of Ocean Conservancy, Chief Bay Officer Irela Bague, District 5 Miami-Dade County Commissioner Eileen Higgins, Debris Free Oceans Co-Founder and Executive Director Caiti Waks and Miami Beach Environment and Sustainability Department’s Senior Sustainability Coordinator Alyssia Berthoumieux highlighted the need to coordinate across levels of government and the public to move away from single-use plastics.

© Ocean Conservancy

Attendees were also given a sneak peek into City of Miami’s Sustainable Events Action Guide. The Sustainable Events Action Guide will be given to all special-event applicants in City of Miami to guide them in organizing a sustainable event. The guide includes information on sustainable transportation and energy use, protecting sensitive habitats and avoiding waste and plastic pollution. Following the sneak peek, we held a Q&A panel on the genesis of the Sustainable Events Action Guide with Miami-Dade County Chief Heat Officer Jane Gilbert, Ocean Conservancy staff and representatives from City of Miami and Ascendance Sustainable Events.

Near the end of the day, key partners in the audience participated in a brainstorming session to capture major takeaways and identify potential areas for collaboration. Ideas spanned from prioritizing the most troublesome plastics to focusing on boater and tourist education. Everyone left with recycled-plastic coasters to commemorate the inaugural Shores Forward Summit.

Attendees agreed that the inaugural Shores Forward Summit was a wholehearted success that left them and Ocean Conservancy staff buzzing with excitement for what’s next in Shores Forward’s future.

The post Highlights from Ocean Conservancy’s Inaugural Shores Forward Summit appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/6xbimO3 https://ift.tt/Dxp41j6

Cheers to Pipefish

Ask anyone on the street, and chances are they can tell you about seahorses. You don’t need to be an expert to recognize these small, odd-looking critters—their long faces are really unique in the ocean. Or are they?

Pipefishes are close relatives of seahorses and seadragons, but they don’t get nearly the amount of attention. Today, we’re going to change that! Here are a few things to know about pipefish.

Pipefish are (almost) everywhere

Pipefish are in the family Syngnathidae, which also contains seahorses and seadragons. There are more than 225 species of pipefish found all over the world, from the tropics to the subarctic (but you won’t find any at the poles, unfortunately). There are a few freshwater species, but most are marine.

One species, the Atlantic snake pipefish (Entelurus aequoreus), exhibited a curious range shift in the early 2000s. These fish used to be an unusual sight in northern Norway, but in 2002, they expanded their range pole-ward. Suddenly, people were seeing these “rare” fish in big numbers, likely due to changes from warming waters. Their numbers in northern waters dropped again by 2007, but scientists are keeping an eye out to see if their populations fluctuate again. This species is not alone in that distinction—scientists have seen plenty of range shifts in the face of climate change.

Pipefish shape is important

Pipefish might not have the flashy body shape that their seahorse cousins have, but their shape works for them. They have long, slender bodies—as if you stretched out the coiled body of seahorse into a straight line. Many species hang out in seagrass beds or coral reefs where they can blend into swaying grasses and soft corals.

Some pipefish are quite small; the dwarf pipefish, for example, only grows to about four inches. The brushtail pipefish, on the other hand, can grow to 25 inches. They use their elongated mouths to suck up tiny prey items like small crustaceans.

 Boo! There are ghost pipefish

Ghost pipefish are a relative of pipefish, but they are in different families © Nick Hobgood/ Wikimedia

Ghost pipefish look similar to pipefishes but are actually in a different family. (I know, taxonomy is confusing.) They’re in the family Solenostomidae, which has six species that are mostly found in the Indo-Pacific region.

Ghost pipefish look drastically different than their more streamlined pipefish cousins. Many have intricate camouflage that they use to blend into corals, crinoids and other structures on the sea floor. The ornate ghost pipefish, also known as the harlequin ghost pipefish, can have the bright red “stalk” and flowing white “tentacles” of a soft coral. The robust ghost pipefish has a rich brownish-green or reddish color that perfectly blends with algae or leaves.

Pipefish dads have a unique role

Like seahorses, pipefish flip the script in reproduction. Females lay their eggs in the male’s brood pouch where he fertilizes them. Then, he will keep them safe and sound until the baby pipefish are ready to hatch. Location of brood pouches vary for different species; snake pipefish, for example, have the pouch on their stomachs where broadnose pipefish have it on their tails. In many species, the males can provide nutrients and oxygen to their offspring straight through the pouch.

Pipefish face changing threats

Pipefish are a diverse group, and some species are more threatened than others. The estuarine pipefish, for example, is found in South Africa and is critically endangered. It was so rare that scientists declared it extinct in 1994 before it was rediscovered in 1996. But generally, pipefish are at risk from threats like pollution, climate change and habitat loss that affect many ocean species.

Learn about Ocean Conservancy’s efforts to combat climate change and protect unique animals like pipefish.

The post Cheers to Pipefish appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/HyzcqTp https://ift.tt/Dxp41j6

What is Wave Energy?

Here at Ocean Conservancy, we know the ocean provides powerful solutions to the climate crisis. Often, that conjures up images of rotating wind turbines rising up from the sea. Offshore wind energy is a growing source of renewable energy in Europe and East Asia, and it is taking off along U.S. coasts. But there is another renewable energy source just over the horizon—wave energy.

What is wave energy?

Waves are created when wind blows over the ocean, moving water molecules at its surface, creating ripples and, eventually, waves. Waves can then drive generators that produce electricity using devices called wave energy converters (WECs).

Engineers around the world have been trying to harness the power of waves into electricity for at least 200 years because of their capacity as a large, predictable and renewable energy source. Wave energy potential exists along every coast although it is greatest in windy areas along the western edges of continents. Just ten percent of the potential wave energy in the continental United States would supply electricity to 13 million homes.

Before we dive deeper into wave energy, I want to clarify one thing: When speaking of “wave energy,” we are not talking about capturing power from ocean currents or tides—those are slightly different types of marine renewable energy that are also currently being researched. Now, let’s dive in.

What does wave energy look like?

Waves are complex and operate in turbulent environments and multiple categories of WECs along with even more specific prototype and experimental designs that exist to generate electricity. Some, like the point absorbers, attenuators and wave surge converters pictured below, use the water to directly push and pull pistons, hydraulic rams or rotary electrical generators to produce electricity. In fact, the first commercial-scale offshore WEC device to sell electricity to a national grid was a 150-meter-long attenuator produced in 2008 off the coast of Portugal. Use of this device, however, was shut down within two months of opening due to technical problems. Other WECs, like the oscillating water column example below, use the waves to drive compressed air through turbines above the water level to generate electricity.

Point absorber WEC

© Al Hicks, NREL

Attenuator WEC

© Al Hicks, NREL

Oscillating wave surge WEC

© Al Hicks, NREL

Oscillating water column WEC

© Al Hicks, NREL

Still many more examples exist as industry engineers have yet to coalesce around a cost-effective and efficient design that can withstand various ocean conditions. While some companies have been able to sell electricity from waves to local grids, commercial WECs remain costly, very small in scale and exist in only a few locations in the world.

Where would we see wave energy?

Wave energy will likely take off where it holds the most promise for certain communities and applications.

At a small-scale, wave energy could power individual devices at sea. Underwater drones, stationary pieces of scientific equipment or marine internet-connected devices could benefit from a renewable energy supply from waves.

Requiring more electricity, remote coastal and island communities must often use small, diesel-powered generators. Many of these communities want to move past these polluting fuel sources, particularly when prices are high. But renewable energy sources such as wind and solar might be too intermittent or sparse to rely on. Waves, however, constantly crash near the shore, offering more stable electricity production.

The proximity of waves to communities can reduce the need for long transmission lines as well. In the United States, almost 40% of the population (127 million people) lives in coastal counties. Much of their electricity is produced far inland, making wave energy and its reduced infrastructure needs an attractive alternative. Utility-scale wave energy production is likely decades in the future, but small-scale wave farms could boost energy resilience sooner by kickstarting larger power grids out of blackouts caused by storms or providing power for emergency communications.

If utility-scale wave energy does take off, it could also complement wind and solar projects in two ways: It could provide electricity when the sun is not shining, or the wind is not blowing. In addition, wind and solar sometimes produce more electricity than is needed at a specific time, so large batteries are used to store that excess power for later. These batteries are expensive and their critical mineral components are currently in tight supply. Wave energy could offset these needs by providing a consistent baseload power, wind or no wind, day or night.

Wave energy in the United States

Interest and infrastructure for wave energy are slowly growing in the United States. Multiple wave energy development companies have tested their new devices inside artificial wave tanks and are looking to jump into ocean trials. Since 2015, the U.S. Navy has been hosting WECs in Hawaii at one of the few open-ocean, grid-connected wave energy test sites in the world, and the Department of Energy is constructing another larger facility in Oregon that might host WECs in late 2023. Having two sites with monitoring capabilities and different real-world wave conditions will greatly speed up wave energy development.

What are the environmental impacts of wave energy?

In all honesty, so few WECs have been successfully deployed in the ocean that more studies are needed to determine the long-term impacts to the neighboring environment and communities. In addition, WEC designs vary widely, making specific studies less broadly applicable. The Hawaii and Oregon test sites mentioned above will help to bridge those information gaps particularly by monitoring for noise, water chemistry, electromagnetic fields and the alteration of water and sediment flow. Leaking hydraulic fluids and the possible creation of artificial reefs from the WECs will also need investigation.

What’s next for wave energy?

The possibilities for wave energy seem to be as wide as the ocean. The growing interest in ocean renewables, coupled with the additional Oregon testing site coming online soon, gives us hope for another viable clean energy option. So, stick around as we watch the horizon for what happens next!

The post What is Wave Energy? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/5eVt7UT https://ift.tt/Khg2Emr

How Are Ocean Animals Impacted by Plastics?

The ocean is a vast and beautiful home to so many incredible animals. However, a growing number of creatures are finding their ocean homes polluted by trash. Every year, 11 million metric tons of plastics enter our ocean. To put that in perspective, 11 million metric tons is roughly the same weight as 55,000 blue whales, the largest animal in the ocean. Sadly, that number is larger than the actual population of blue whales currently swimming our Big Blue today. That is a devastating amount of plastic!

However, there is hope. Together, we can keep plastics out of our ocean and away from ocean wildlife. Every fall I get a boost of hope during the International Coastal Cleanup®. Over the years, 17 million volunteers have collected more than 350 million pounds of plastic and debris. This year you can join us to #SeatheChange by cleaning up your local beaches, streams, parks and neighborhoods.

Our trash can affect animals in the ocean hundreds of miles away and picking up that trash can help protect those same animals. Let’s meet some of the marine animals that are affected by ocean plastics and could #SeatheChange from your efforts at this year’s International Coastal Cleanup.

Hermit Crabs

Hermit crabs don’t deserve their name. They are social creatures that live in groups that can include hundreds of their fellow crabs. You’ll see these adorable and friendly crustaceans gracing our International Coastal Cleanup shirts this year as we gather to make a difference for the ocean.

Hermit crabs, unfortunately, are also examples of why we need to do this important work to keep the ocean healthy. Hermit crabs use the discarded shells of other animals to protect themselves. But when they go on their hunt for a new home or for food on polluted beaches, they can become trapped in trash—like bottles or cans—and die. This sets off a deadly chain reaction, because when they die, they emit a scent that tells other hermit crabs in the area that their shell is available to use. These crabs will follow that scent just to become entrapped and perish with the first hermit crab. A research expedition to two remote islands found half a million hermit crabs had been killed by being trapped in trash.

Octopuses

Octopuses are among the smartest invertebrates on the planet. They can escape some of the trickiest situations, twisting and contorting their bodies to evade predators. Yet, there is one threat they cannot escape: ocean plastics.

We’ve seen heartbreaking images of octopuses hiding in or holding onto plastics. In 2017, a scientist in Hawaii found a baby octopus in a pile of plastic debris. A diver in Australia’s New South Wales videoed an octopus clutching four straws in its arms. Another group in Indonesia discovered an octopus living in a plastic cup. And these are only a few that we know of—imagine how many other octopuses are living in plastics but haven’t been caught on camera.

Sea Turtles

© Stacy Groff

Sea turtles see so much of the vast ocean. One leatherback turtle was clocked travelling more than 12,000 miles from Indonesia to Oregon. During their globetrotting, they encounter lots of trash in the ocean. Sea turtles can easily confuse plastic bags for one of their favorite foods: jellyfish. One study tested more than 100 sea turtles from all seven species around the world and found microplastics in the stomachs of every single turtle.

While there’s no good age for sea animals to encounter pollution, trash on our beaches and in our ocean can be particularly deadly for young sea turtles. For baby sea turtles, just half a gram—one one-thousandth of a pound—of ingested plastic can kill them. When a mother sea turtle is crawling back onto the beach where it was born to lay its eggs, it shouldn’t have to dodge plastic debris to get there. And, when sea turtles are in the sea searching for a snack, they shouldn’t be finding—and digesting—single-use plastics like plastic bags.

Whales

 In May 2022, a 47-foot-long adult male sperm whale beached itself in the Florida Keys. The magnificent animal, which typically lives in deeper water offshore, was emaciated. Tragically, it died after stranding in the shallow waters around the Mud Keys, north of Key West,. A necropsy revealed a tangled mass of plastic bags, fishing line and tattered fishing nets had blocked the whale’s stomach, preventing it from absorbing nutrients. The knotted mass of plastic debris likely caused the whale to starve to death.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. In Thailand, a stranded pilot whale was found with 17 pounds of trash in its stomach. Another was found dead in Indonesia after digesting more than a thousand pieces of plastic from bags to flip flops. We should not have to accept these tragic losses of marine life to plastic pollution. The global ocean plastics crisis is one that we humans created, and it’s one that, together, we have the power to solve.

What Can You Do?

From plankton to whales, animals throughout the ocean are finding their homes polluted by plastics. Millions of volunteers from over 173 countries have picked up 384 million of pieces of trash since the start of the International Coastal Cleanup in 1985, all the while recording what they find and helping inform research and legislation across the world. Every bottle, every straw, every piece of trash you clean up can lead to a cleaner, healthier ocean.

No matter where you are, you can help ocean creatures enjoy a trash-free home. Ready to #SeatheChange? Find out how you can join the International Coastal Cleanup.

The post How Are Ocean Animals Impacted by Plastics? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/LoBlCDq https://ift.tt/Khg2Emr

How Can We Protect the North Pacific Right Whale?

This blog was written by Kirsten Williams, Summer 2022 Legal Intern for Ocean Conservancy. Kirsten is entering her fourth year as a joint Law (JD) and Master of Environmental Management (MEM) student at Vermont Law & Graduate School and the Yale School of the Environment. Her work focuses on climate change litigation, ocean law and policy, and renewable energy. 

The North Pacific right whale is one of the rarest of all large whale species, and one of the most endangered species on the planet. Despite its massive size (more than 50 feet long!), the North Pacific right whale feeds on tiny plankton by filtering hundreds of gallons of seawater in a single gulp to filter out the organisms with baleen plates.

In addition to the North Pacific right whale, two other species of right whale exist: the North Atlantic right whale, found in the Atlantic Ocean, and the Southern right whale, found in the Southern hemisphere. This blog focuses on the North Pacific right whale.

NOAA Fisheries estimates that only about 30 individuals remain in the Eastern North Pacific right whale stock that visits the Gulf of Alaska and the Southeast Bering Sea.

The North Pacific right whale has been listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act since 1973 and is listed as “depleted” under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Data are exceedingly limited for North Pacific right whales due to their small population size and scattered distribution. According to a 2020 stock assessment, the location of winter calving grounds for the North Pacific right whale remains a mystery. Researchers also struggle to assess threats to this species. NOAA Fisheries hypothesizes that vessel strikes, entanglement with fishing gear and other marine debris, ocean noise, biotoxins from harmful algal blooms and climate change may contribute to the whale’s declining numbers.

On July 12, 2022, NOAA Fisheries announced in a review of the designated critical habitat for North Pacific right whales under the Endangered Species Act. Critical habitat is habitat that is needed to support recovery of a listed species. In designated critical habitat, federal agencies are required to consult with NOAA Fisheries to help ensure federal actions do not destroy or adversely modify the habitat.

NOAA Fisheries’ critical habitat announcement came in response to a petition requesting that the agency connect two existing critical habitat areas. According to the petition, connecting the two existing critical habitat units into one expanded, single unit would better protect the fundamental physical and biological needs, such as vital feeding grounds, of this gravely endangered whale. 

In April 2008, after the North Pacific right whale was listed as a separate endangered species—distinct from the North Atlantic right whale—NOAA Fisheries designated approximately 1,175 square miles in the Gulf of Alaska and approximately 35,460 square miles in the Southeast Bering Sea as critical habitat for North Pacific right whales.

Map showing current North Pacific right whale critical habitat designated by NOAA Fisheries in 2008 (gold line) and the requested revision(red line) to critical habitat put forth by the petitioners. © NOAA

The Endangered Species Act requires NOAA Fisheries to solicit comments and new information. Members of the public, governmental agencies, Tribes, the scientific community, industry, environmental organizations and any other interested parties are invited to submit comments on the proposed expansion of designated critical habitat for North Pacific right whales.

Following the public comment period that ends September 12, NOAA Fisheries embarks on an extensive review of the whale’s status, including its biology, ecology, abundance/population trends and any current threats. The agency has 12 months after receiving the petition to conduct the status review and make a final determination on whether the petitioned action—critical habitat expansion—is warranted.

The post How Can We Protect the North Pacific Right Whale? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

from Ocean Conservancy https://ift.tt/NdXF7zf https://ift.tt/J58w6mS