Ocean Conservation & Tidalpunk

archived (Wayback Machine)

archived (Wayback Machine)

archived (Wayback Machine):

• Mongabay article
• latest study cited

Costa Rica has protected 30 percent of its marine territory, and the small Central American country wants more care for the ocean, including a moratorium on deep sea mining.

...but they are still exploiting the ocean's inhabitants for profit:

"One of the most profitable activities that we have is deep sea fishing. These fish are caught for sport and released immediately. That generates a lot of work, jobs and income for coastal societies and protects the species. There is a lot to be gained from the ocean if we manage it correctly."

...and reforming the killing machine rather than abolishing it:

"We have reduced the catch of sharks enormously by collaborating together with the fishermen and changing fishing technology so it’s less harmful to sharks. We changed the fishing hook. We have also installed satellite tracking mechanisms on most of our ships, right, and the legal ships are reporting the ones doing illegal fishing."

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cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/23170867

archived (Wayback Machine)

• Artificial upwelling is a form of geoengineering that aims to use pipes and pumps to channel cool, nutrient-rich water from the deep ocean to the surface. In doing so, it could fertilize surface waters, prompting the growth of plankton, which can then absorb and store large amounts of atmospheric carbon.
• Long considered a potential marine carbon dioxide removal (CDR) method, artificial upwelling has more recently been coupled with seaweed farming to potentially soak up even more atmospheric CO2.
• But technological challenges have plagued open-water upwelling experiments, while environmentalists worry that large-scale use could ultimately prove ineffective and ecologically harmful.
• Experts state that though upwelling could prove a viable solution to improve fisheries and protect coral reefs from marine heat waves, more research is needed. Considering the rapid current pace of climate change, it’s debatable as to whether implementation at scale could come in time to stave off dangerous warming.

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• Mangroves in Belize protect coastlines, are nursery grounds for fish, and store vast amounts of carbon.
• In 2021, the government of Belize committed to restoring 4,000 hectares (nearly 10,000 acres) of mangroves, and protecting an additional 12,000 hectares (nearly 30,000 acres) within a decade, as part of its emissions reduction target under the Paris climate agreement.
• To support this restoration target, WWF Mesoamerica is developing a national mangrove restoration action plan.
• Restoration initiatives are already underway in areas like Gales Point, Placencia Caye and elsewhere.

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• Applications for deep-sea mining permits in Brazil have soared in recent years: of the 950 requests filed since 1967, nearly half were submitted between 2020 and 2024.
• Demand for key minerals used in the clean energy transition, as well as geopolitical uncertainties, are driving the race to the seabed.
• Loopholes in Brazilian legislation are allowing mining companies to work without environmental licensing, a situation made worse by the lack of specific rules for deep-sea mining.
• Researchers warn that the lack of environmental impact studies could have widespread impacts on marine ecosystems, especially on coral reef biodiversity.

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• Just 0.001% of the deep seafloor has ever been captured by photo or video images, a new study finds.
• That which has been captured is “biased” and potentially unrepresentative: 65% of observations have been in the waters of the United States, Japan or New Zealand, according to the study.
• Experts told Mongabay that policymakers at a wide range of international institutions should bear the study’s findings in mind, including those governing high seas fisheries, deep-sea mining, and the use of marine carbon dioxide sequestration systems.

archived (Wayback Machine):

• Mongabay article
• research cited

Reducing travel speeds and using an intelligent queuing system at busy ports can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from oceangoing container vessels by 16-24%, according to researchers. Not only would those relatively simple interventions reduce emissions from a major, direct source of greenhouse gases, the technology to implement these measures already exists.

• Drifting fish aggregating devices (dFADs) are floating rafts with underwater netting used by fishing vessels to attract tuna.
• A recent study estimated that between 2007 and 2021, 1.41 million dFADs drifted through 37% of the world’s oceans, stranding in 104 maritime jurisdictions and often polluting sensitive marine habitats.
• Strandings were most frequent in the Indian and Pacific oceans, with the Seychelles, Somalia and French Polynesia accounting for 43% of cases; ecosystem damage and cleanup costs fall on local communities.

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Seaspiracy

Marine bacteria control how much CO2 is stored in the oceans, by swimming after and degrading sinking particles that would otherwise remain stored in the ocean for millennia. Researchers have discovered that some bacteria can swim for several days without food while searching for these particles, losing body weight in the process. Understanding how marine bacteria do this may lead to a better prediction of marine carbon storage capacity and climate mitigation.

Bacteria are often overlooked in mathematical models that describe the transformation of various forms of carbon, such as CO2, in the ocean.

Ahead of oil-rich Suriname's election, the country's president tells AFP that a looming energy windfall will not spell a shift away from climate-friendly policies.

The country of 600,000 recently discovered a vast oil field off the Atlantic coast that within years should be capable of producing 220,000 barrels daily.

There will be "a huge amount of income for the country" once drilling gets underway in 2028, Chan Santokhi told AFP in an interview on the eve of the vote. (...)

Note: He got re-elected, which means more oil drilling, there too unfortunately.

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A mysterious, brown foam appeared on a beach an hour south of Adelaide. It was just the beginning of a toxic algal bloom that has now grown to thousands of square kilometres in size, killing precious sea life in its wake. Experts say it could be a sign of things to come.

The blame was placed on an “ongoing marine heatwave” which had seen water temperatures 2.5 degrees Celsius warmer than usual.

On Kangaroo Island, which reported its first fish kills in March, some beaches were so littered with dead sea life, the smell was overpowering.

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Ibama approves Petrobras plan for Foz do Amazonas that allows oil exploration

The next step in the oil extraction project in the Foz do Amazonas region is to carry out practical tests with animals

arquivado (Wayback Machine)

A new study finds that scientists have likely underestimated heat stress on coral reefs in the South Atlantic Ocean, further raising concerns for coral bleaching amid climate change.

archived (Wayback Machine):

• Mongabay article
• new study doesn't want to be archived
• previous studies suggest

• In Baja California Sur, Mexico, a private tourism company, Aquamayan Adventures, and the port administration have reached an agreement that allows mega cruise ships to enter Bahía de La Paz. Environmental organizations are urging the government to cancel the agreement.
• The agreement allows at least 150,000 annual visitors, a figure four times that of cruise passengers received in 2023 and equivalent to 60% of the resident population of the city of La Paz, the state’s capital.
• In addition, the company intends to build a large tourism and commercial complex that could have serious environmental, social and economic impacts on the city and surrounding area, according to organizations concerned about the project.
• Bahía de La Paz is a critical location for marine species like the whale shark, which was affected by the presence of a high number of mega cruise ships in 2020, and which could now be the victim of collisions with vessels arriving to port.

archived (Wayback Machine)

archived (Wayback Machine)

• The world’s most influential seafood companies and industry associations mostly lobby against environmental protections, a report by the U.K.-based NGO InfluenceMap found.
• The report assesses the biodiversity-related lobbying efforts of a list of the 30 most influential seafood companies in the world and 12 of the main industry associations they’re members of.
• The vast majority of the companies and industry associations engage in lobbying that’s misaligned with international biodiversity goals agreed to in a 2022 treaty.
• Industry associations told Mongabay that they support science-based policy and that the report is flawed.

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Seaspiracy