Blog :: Earth Protect - Earth Protect Blog

Sunshade Cover to Save Great Barrier Reefs

Posted by acox on Wednesday, 26 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Australian scientists have proposed covering endangered coral reefs with cloth to give them shade as a "last resort" to protect the Great Barrier Reef. The cloths would be anchored with ropes and float on the water surface to protect corals from sunlight, reducing heat stress which leads ...

How can we make our oceans well again?

Posted by bchristo on Wednesday, 26 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

One-size-fits-all prescriptions do not work. The Ocean Health Index will assess how oceans are able to support life Around 20 years ago I took a submarine dive in the Sea of Japan. As we descended into the darkness to a depth of almost 5,500m (18,000ft) – more than two-thirds the height of Mt Eve...

What Sea-Ice Loss Means for Development in the Arctic

Posted by henryfool on Monday, 24 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Arctic sea-ice extent shrank to an unprecedented low this summer, part of a long-term decline in the icy white cap over the far northern ocean.Researchers predict that nearly ice-free summers are on the way, although it’s not yet clear when this will happen. This shift has implications for climate —...

Mapping Coral Reefs to Save Wildlife

Posted by Angel on Thursday, 20 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

SAWFISH and snubfin dolphins on the brink of extinction are top priority in a plan to restore degraded coral habitats and reconnect coastal ecosystems along the Great Barrier Reef. The plan by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority comes as the CSIRO today will launch a report in Brisbane, ...

African and Caribbean seas 'need protection'

Posted by plantitfilm on Tuesday, 18 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

More research and better policies are needed to protect the world's most vulnerable seas, lying off the coast of West Africa and the Caribbean, local experts have toldSciDev.Net. The two regions have some of the world's unhealthiest seas, according to a new index that assessed the health ...

Florida Bans Removal of Giant Sea Anemone

Posted by Aaron on Wednesday, 05 September 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

The giant Caribbean sea anemone, whose tentacles snatch fish, shrimp and other creatures from South Florida's reefs, is itself frequently snatched by divers collecting them for the aquarium trade. To help rebuild their dwindling population, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission on Wednes...

Screenings of Mission of Mermaids, a film about our ocean

Posted by Gwen on Saturday, 25 August 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

I'd like to bring everyone's attention to the upcoming screenings of the film Mission of Mermaids, on which I have had the privilege of working as associate producer and as outreach consultant. The film will be screening around the world this summer and fall--Brazil, Australia, US. For more informat...

Scientists Score Ocean Health 60 out of 100

Posted by plantitfilm on Monday, 20 August 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

STANFORD / UC SANTA BARBARA (US) — Scientists have assessed the state of the ocean and its ecosystems, and the global average is 60 out of 100. If thought of as a school report card, 60 out of 100 looks like a failing grade, but that’s not quite how the assessment should be read. “It’s better to t...

Is the Global Ocean Healthy? We Can Answer That Now

Posted by bchristo on Saturday, 18 August 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

by Ben Halpern, Jameal Samhouri, and Karen McLeod of psmag.com As the Ocean Health Index makes its public debut, three of its parents describe the moment of 'Eureka!' in summing up the well-being of the global ocean and its human dependents. There are very few moments in science where years of wor...

Long stretch of above-normal ocean temps off NJ spawn fish tales but no jellyfish, algal bloom

Posted by plantitfilm on Saturday, 11 August 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Ocean temperatures along and near the New Jersey coast have averaged between five and 10 degrees above normal since late last year, a phenomenon that has intrigued some scientists and has excited area residents and fishermen. The mild winter meant that water retained much more heat than usual. When...

Why New York's Sea Level Is Rising Faster Than the World's

Posted by Aaron on Monday, 09 July 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Sea level is rising around the world, but in many places on the U.S. East Coast, it's rising considerably faster than elsewhere. An oceanographer studying this phenomenon explains. A team of U.S. Geological Survey scientists recently discovered that the sea level along the East Coast of the United ...

Relax, Outer Banks: NC state legislature outlaws sea level rise

Posted by henryfool on Monday, 09 July 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

by Kaid Benfield Sometimes, you just can’t make this stuff up. It’s really embarrassing for me to write this, but the legislature of my native North Carolina has made it illegal for public officials to consider current rates of sea level rise as they plan for the future. And, no, I did no...

Internation Study of Ocean Acid

Posted by bchristo on Thursday, 28 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

The UN nuclear agency announced on Monday the creation of a new centre in Monaco to help coordinate international efforts to research and combat the serious environmental problem of ocean acidification. "During the past five years, numerous multinational and national research projects on ...

L.A. County beach pollution case goes to U.S. Supreme Court

Posted by bchristo on Wednesday, 27 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear Los Angeles County's appeal of a lower court decision requiring the county to clean up polluted runoff that flows to the ocean through two urban waterways. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals last year sided with environmental groups in finding the county a...

Sea rise faster on East Coast than rest of globe

Posted by EarthDude on Tuesday, 26 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

By Seth Borenstein From Cape Hatteras, N.C., to just north of Boston, sea levels are rising much faster than they are around the globe, putting one of the world's most costly coasts in danger of flooding, government researchers report. U.S. Geological Survey scientists call the 600-mile swath a "h...

Calif. to get seas rising 6 inches by 2030

Posted by Wolf on Friday, 22 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

By JEFF BARNARD The West Coast will see an ocean several inches higher in coming decades, with most of California expected to get sea levels a half foot higher by 2030, according a report released Friday. The study by the National Research Council gives planners their best look yet at how melting ...

Humans are primary cause of global ocean warming

Posted by EarthDude on Thursday, 21 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

by Anne M Stark The oceans have warmed in the past 50 years, but not by natural events alone. New research by a team of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory scientists and international collaborators shows that the observed ocean warming over the last 50 years is consistent with climate models o...

Ocean Protection and Rio+20

Posted by plantitfilm on Sunday, 10 June 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Promises made at previous summits have not delivered enough protection for the oceans — campaigners are pushing for better results from Rio+20, writes Prime Sarmiento. This month, scientists, campaigners and many developing nations are optimistic they will set in motion a deal on the conser...

Climate change still reef's biggest threat

Posted by EarthDude on Saturday, 12 May 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

A post summer check up of the Great Barrier Reef has revealed low level coral bleaching at some locations and signs of minor stress from wet season flooding.The low to moderate coral bleaching was found in the central region of the Great Barrier Reef and some bleaching occurred in the northe...

Corals 'Could Survive a More Acidic Ocean'

Posted by bensor on Wednesday, 11 April 2012 in Ocean/Seas/Coastlines

Corals may be better placed to cope with the gradual acidification of the world's oceans than previously thought -- giving rise to hopes that coral reefs might escape climatic devastation. In new research published in the journal Nature Climate Change, an international scientific team has identifie...