Oceans / Public News Service

A 2018 law in Washington state phased out fish pen farming of non-native species. (cascoly2/Adobe Stock)

Thursday, July 25, 2024

Seattle conference inspires push for sustainable fishing in WA

A meeting on sustainable fishing in Seattle could inspire greater protections for Washington state's waters in Olympia. The State Innovation Exchange …

U.S. per capita consumption of fish and shellfish rose from nearly 16 lbs. in 2002 to more than 20 lbs. in 2021, a 31% increase according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. (Adobe Stock) <br />

New guidelines aim for sustainable growth of MA aquaculture

New global guidelines for aquaculture aim to address growing concerns about the industry's impact on the oceans. Scientists have suggested ways to …

The town office and post office in Machias, Maine, could face biannual flooding by 2050, according to a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists. (Charlie/Adobe Stock)

Report: Maine’s coastal infrastructure at risk as sea levels rise

A new report is warning of threats to Maine's coastal infrastructure. From power plants and post offices to affordable housing units, the report …

Radioactive contaminants can create harmful effects on public health, particularly for pregnant people, as well as for the environment. (Alexeiy/Adobe Stock)

Groups renew calls to address radioactive contamination in food, water

Some organizations are renewing calls to address radioactive contamination in U.S. food and drinking water. The issue has gained prevalence in the …

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has issued its busiest preseason Atlantic hurricane season forecast ever in 2024, predicting the North Atlantic could see 17 to 25 named storms, eight to 13 hurricanes, and four to seven major hurricanes by the end of November. (Adobe Stock)

New England braces for 'above-normal' hurricane season

Forecasters are warning New Englanders to prepare for an "above-normal" number of hurricanes this summer. Hurricane Beryl was already the strongest …

Americans produces roughly 47 pounds of electronic waste per person each year, with more than 3 million tons of American e-waste going unrecycled annually, according to the report. (Adobe Stock) <br />

Advocates highlight alternatives to deep-sea mining for NC coast

Advocates for North Carolina's coastal waters are raising concerns about the risks of deep-sea mining and suggesting alternatives. The latest report …

A new report from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission showed Chesapeake Bay's adult female blue crab population is around 133 million. While it is above the 72.5 million threshold to pause the harvest, it is well below the target of 196 million. (Adobe Stock)

VRMC votes to reopen winter blue crab harvest season

Virginia's Marine Resources Commission is ending the winter blue crab harvest prohibition. Crabbing is permitted from March to the middle of …

Environmentalists say the plastics and fossil fuel industries driving plastic pollution and related problems have made false promises about efforts to address the pollution. (aryfahmed/Adobe Stock)

TX environmental groups fight for global plastics treaty

Environmental groups in Texas are backing a proposed global plastics treaty set to be finalized by the end of the year. The treaty aims to minimize …

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimated up to 89.5% of the world's fish stocks are exploited at or beyond their maximum sustainable levels. (Adobe Stock)

Marine national monument off MA coast protects ocean biodiversity

A new marine national monument in the Atlantic Ocean aims to protect one of the most biodiverse spots on the planet from overfishing. Located 130 …

The nonprofit Pacific Environment worked with University of California-Berkeley to develop recommendations for decarbonizing oceangoing vessels. (Federico Rostagno/Adobe Stock)<br />

For World Ocean Month, calls to cut emissions, pollution from shipping

June is World Ocean Month and groups fighting climate change are asking President Joe Biden to act to clean up emissions and pollution from the shippi…

Of the nearly 2.5 million people living within the 78 coastal communities in Massachusetts, roughly 55% are in state-designated Environmental Justice Block Groups, communities of color and low-income populations dealing with the effects of climate change. (Adobe Stock)

Federal funds help build Boston’s climate-ready workforce

The City of Boston has been awarded nearly $10 million in federal funding to help build a Climate-Ready Workforce. More than 1,000 people will …

Other efforts in North Carolina aimed at protecting salt marshes include Gov. Roy Cooper's Executive Order 80, and the state's 2020 Climate Risk Assessment and Resilience Plan. (Adobe Stock)

NC counts on salt marshes' role in hurricane protection

Hurricane season is here, and conservationists are shining a light on the role salt marshes play in protecting coastal North Carolina communities…

Clapper rails find food, shelter and a place to raise their young in the highly productive South Carolina salt marsh habitat. (South Carolina Department of Natural Resources)

Salt Marsh Initiative aims to protect SC lowcountry from storm surges

With hurricane season underway, South Carolina's 344,000 acres of salt marshes are the first line of defense for the state's lowcountry against storm …

Monterey Bay is one of many marine areas to be evaluated for inclusion on the list of places that qualify as

CA makes progress toward conserving 30% of land, water

The public comment period is now open on California's new framework for deciding which managed areas within coastal waters meet the definition of "con…

Salt marshes are composed of a variety of rushes, sedges and grasses. Florida's dominant salt marsh species include black needle rush (Juncus roemerianus). (Florida DEP)

Conservation groups tout natural defenses against hurricanes

With the start of hurricane season, salt marshes are among the natural features playing a critical role in protecting coastal communities by …

More than one-third of plants and animals in Maine are expected to suffer dramatic population decline by the end of the century due to the impacts of climate change, according to the Natural Resources Council of Maine. (Adobe Stock)

Climate change alters ME biodiversity as species' range shifts north

Scientists said climate change is having an unprecedented and accelerating effect on the biodiversity of plants and animals in Maine. Rising sea …

The United Nations estimates global shipping is responsible for about 3% of emissions worldwide. (Francis/Adobe Stock)

Cleveland port’s ‘electrification hub’ anchors progress toward net-zero emissions

By Kathiann M. Kowalski for Energy News Network.Broadcast version by Farah Siddiqi for Ohio News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism …

Advocates want the Biden Administration to require ships to use low-sulfur fuels or zero-emission technology in U.S. waters. (Adobe Stock)

Advocates call on Biden administration to decarbonize maritime shipping

With the Port of Baltimore nearing a return to full commercial operations, advocates are renewing their call for an executive order to address …

The five states included in the Gulf Coast Resilience Network are Texas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee and Louisiana. (Rawpixel.com/Adobe Stock)

Child care centers along the TX coast prep for hurricane season

The advocacy group Save the Children is working with child care providers along the Texas coast ahead of the upcoming hurricane season. The …

The latest Living Planet Index report finds freshwater migratory fish saw an average 81% collapse in monitored population sizes between 1970 and 2020. This includes massive declines in Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe. (Adobe Stock)

CT groups prepare for World Fish Migration Day

Groups in Connecticut are preparing to celebrate World Fish Migration Day on Friday. The biennial event celebrates migratory fish species and their …

The North Carolina Division of Mitigation Services has determined the real estate value of salt marshes in the state is more than $123 billion, based on their overall contributions to the environment and economy. (Adobe Stock)

North Carolina launches five-year plan to restore salt marshes

North Carolina's 220,000 acres of salt marshes face multiple threats to their major roles in climate protection and ecosystem health, from rising …

Marine research on a recent expedition off of Santa Cruz Island in Southern California mapped the habitat of red gorgonian coral, sea stars and sheepshead fish. (Danny Ocampo/Oceana)

Ocean expedition seeks to map CA biodiversity

Marine researchers just wrapped up the first of three ocean expeditions off the coast of Southern California to map the biodiversity and support effor…

According to the EPA, Georgia has warmed less than most of the nation in the last century but in the next few decades, the changing climate is likely to harm livestock and increase the number of unpleasantly hot days and heat-related illnesses. (Laura Ballard/Adobe Stock)

Scientists call on moms to help fight climate change

Mothers from a nonpartisan climate science group are gearing up for summer, getting the word out to Georgia families on how more frequent and extreme …

Local oyster harvesters help deploy limestone rock, a restoration material, for the Apalachicola Bay System Initiative oyster reef restoration experiments. (Courtesy FSU Coastal and Marine Laboratory)

Community effort aims to restore Apalachicola Bay oyster harvests, livelihoods

Since the 2020 collapse of the famed Apalachicola Bay oyster fishery, people who made their livelihoods on the bay have been counting on local …

Maine's aquaculture harvest more than doubled in volume and in value over the past decade. It creates more than $100 million in annual revenue for the state, according to the Maine International Trade Center. (Adobe Stock)<br />

New England groups warn against 'factory' fish farming in federal waters

New England fishermen and environmental groups are working to prevent the growth of industrial-size fish farms in U.S. open waters. They said …

Humpback whales sometimes get tangled up in ropes from discarded crab fishing gear. (Jenn Tackaberry/Kiirsten Flynn/National Marine Fisheries Service)

Partial shutdown of crab fishing season considered to protect whales

A working group convened by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife meets today to consider a partial closure of the commercial Dungeness crab …

Atlantic herring serve as valuable bait for fishermen and lobstermen in Massachusetts, making them vital to the health of the state's blue economy, which grew 38% between 2009 and 2019. (Adobe Stock)

New England anglers seek greater protections for Atlantic herring stock

Recreational fishermen in New England say commercial trawlers are threatening the survival of smaller businesses relying on a healthy stock of Atlanti…

The Atlantic herring is one of the most important fishery resources in Maine, supplying the primary bait used in its iconic lobster industry. It is also an important forage species for seabirds, marine mammals and a variety of larger fish species, according to the Maine Department of Marine Resources. (Adobe Stock)<br />

Anglers seek trawler buffer zone as Atlantic herring stock declines

Recreational fishermen in New England say commercial trawlers are threatening the survival of smaller businesses relying on a healthy stock of Atlanti…

Many species, including sea lions, are injured or killed by set gillnets, which target halibut and white sea bass. (Robert Schwemmer/NOAA)

CA bill aims to reduce marine mammal entanglements in set gillnets

A new bill aims to reduce the number of sea lions, sharks, rays, skates and giant sea bass dying off the coast of Southern California in huge set …

Chesapeake Bay Foundation educators, with students on a field trip, explore the Susquehanna River at City Island. The Capitol building is in the background. (Chesapeake Bay Foundation)

PA students gain hands-on experience in watershed conservation

It is almost time for some Pennsylvania students to get out of the classroom and into a canoe. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Pennsylvania Rivers …

Salmon populations have dwindled in the Northwest, hurting the orcas that rely on them for food. (Stanislav/Adobe Stock)

Next steps for recovery after endangered orca decision in OR

The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission has decided to list Southern Resident orcas as an endangered species. With it comes guidelines for how the …

Local and federal resources for Mainers who have been affected by the damaging storms that hit Maine on December 18, 2023, and January 10, 2024, are available through the Maine Emergency Management Agency by calling 1-800-452-8735. (Adobe Stock)<br />

Climate change, development threaten Maine’s working waterfronts

Reintroduced federal legislation aims to preserve Maine's iconic, working waterfronts still recovering from recent powerful storms. Strong winds and …

Southern Resident orcas' habitat stretches from Canada to California. (CarloEmanuele/Adobe Stock)

OR to decide on added protections for decreasing orca population

Oregon officials are considering providing additional protections to orcas in the region. The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide on …

The Ports for People ordinance calls for more vessels like the Maersk ship Laura, which is the first low-emissions container ship powered by methanol. (Jens Dorhn/Creative Commons)

Conservation group promotes 'Ports for People' ordinance

Groups concerned about air pollution and public health are asking the city councils of Long Beach and Los Angeles and their respective Harbor Commissi…

Since 2017, right whales have been experiencing an Unusual Mortality Event, which has resulted in more than 20 percent of the population being sick, injured, or killed. (Adobe Stock)

Advocates call for action to save endangered North Atlantic right whales

Advocates are calling for action to save the North Atlantic right whale, a critically endangered species. The Biden administration has appropriated $…

Virginia lawmakers approved a bill to design a study methodology for menhaden research. It estimates the study will take several years and cost $2.6 million. (Adobe Stock)

VA General Assembly nixes menhaden study bill

Virginia's General Assembly has killed legislation to address the declining menhaden population. The tiny forage fish are an important part of the …

Vessel strikes can lead to slow or quick deaths for right whales. The North Atlantic right whale population has been put in grave danger from both, according to Defenders of Wildlife. (Adobe Stock)

Right whale advocates call for vessel speed limits

Wildlife advocates are calling on the Biden administration to tighten regulations protecting right whales in the North Atlantic following a series of …

An octopus hides out while a squat lobster stands guard beneath a vase sponge at a recently identified reef off Santa Barbara Island. (Oceana)

CA coral reefs protected as new fishing areas reopen

Good news for fishing crews and marine conservationists: Large fishing grounds are reopening, while other areas receive new protections. Some 4,500 …

More than 250 volunteers planted 500 trees on a Pennsylvania farm, helping to reduce the effects of climate change. (Chesapeake Bay Foundation)

PA to plant 10 million trees to improve Chesapeake Bay water quality

The Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership is helping to get Pennsylvania on track for its 2025 Chesapeake Bay pollution reduction goals. So far…

In 2021, scientists determined Rice's whale was a unique species, genetically and morphologically distinct from Bryde's whales. (NOAA Fisheries)

Protecting Rice's whale, others, on 50th anniversary of Endangered Species Act

Wildlife experts are spotlighting the Rice's whale, which was classified as its own species in 2021, as one of many reasons to preserve the …

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, changing the climate is likely to increase the severity of both inland flooding and droughts. Since 1958, the amount of precipitation falling during heavy rainstorms has increased by 27% in the Southeast. (Adobe Stock)

Leaders address need for resilience planning in Georgia

Leaders across Georgia are joining forces to address the pressing need for resilience planning amid rising risks of severe storms. The Institute for …

A Spray underwater glider shortly after deployment in the Gulf Stream offshore of Miami, Fla., began one of the many glider-based surveys of the Gulf Stream completed by Associate Scientist Robert Todd's group at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution since 2015. (Robert Todd/WHOI)

Study confirms Gulf Stream warming, shifting toward Maine coast

The latest research finds the Gulf Stream has warmed faster than the global ocean over the past two decades, and has shifted toward the Atlantic …

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation's biennial State of the Bay report gave the bay's overall health a D+, the same grade it received in 2020. (Adobe Stock)

Farm Bill funding impacts Chesapeake Bay conservation efforts

Virginia environmentalists are seeking Farm Bill funding to help Chesapeake Bay conservation efforts. The proposed Chesapeake Bay Conservation …

The Department of Energy is revoking $37 million previously awarded to Ohio's six-turbine Icebreaker wind project, which has been in the works since 2009. (Adobe Stock)

Michigan and Great Lakes slow offshore wind collection

Offshore wind development in the Great Lakes region has had a turbulent history and faced many challenges. Initially considered a promising location …

Eelgrass, pictured here at Joemma Beach State Park, provides food, shelter, and nursery habitat for a wide range of creatures, ranging from small invertebrates to commercially important fish species and wading birds. (WA DNR Nearshore Habitat Program)

WA kelp, eelgrass recovery plan tackles big losses in marine habitat

Bull Kelp in South and Central Puget Sound has declined more than 90% over the last 150 years - and eelgrass meadows severely declined as well…

Along with flooding, Virginia is experiencing sea level rise. Between 1950 and 2023, the state has seen a 14-inch rise in sea level rise, putting 45,000 homes at risk of tidal flooding. (Adobe Stock)

Wetlands forming on VA surface mines, impacts uncertain

A recent report found wetlands forming on surface mines in Virginia can benefit the state. The wetlands form because surface mining flattens land…

Backers of offshore wind tout good jobs, fossil fuel independence

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy wants the state's Board of Public Utilities to initiate more bids for offshore wind projects in the New Year. The move …

An endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle swims off San Francisco, in September 2022. (Geoff Shester/Oceana)

Endangered sea turtle killed by discarded fishing gear in CA

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife just announced a marine warden discovered an endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle dead, drowned …

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Oceans