Tuesday, June 19th, 2007
The first buoy to monitor ocean acidification has been launched in the Gulf of Alaska. Attached to the 3-metre-diameter buoy are sensors to measure climate indicators. These transmit their readings via satellite. The instruments will measure the air-sea exchange of carbon dioxide, oxygen and nitrogen gas in addition to the pH. This is the first system specifically designed to monitor ocean acidification.
The buoy is anchored in water nearly 5,000 meters deep.
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Saturday, June 16th, 2007
Short-sighted plans to allow European companies to buy their way out of making reductions in their greenhouse gas emissions are undermining efforts to prevent climate change, a new WWF report shows.
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Thursday, June 14th, 2007
Turtles in the Caribbean are under threat from over-fishing and illegal trade, with almost all eggs laid in Guatemala taken by humans, a wildlife trade monitoring network has said.
"Caribbean nations need to improve their cooperation to manage and conserve the region's turtles."
What were once vast breeding colonies of green turtles in the Cayman Islands have all but vanished.
More than half of the 26 nations surveyed -- in Central America, island states in the Caribbean and Venezuela and Colombia -- had weak regulations on turtle catches.
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Wednesday, June 13th, 2007
There is a growing body of scientific evidence that demonstrates that the establishment of large-scale networks of Marine Reserves could be key to reversing global fisheries decline.
Large-scale Marine Reserves are areas that are closed to all extractive uses, such as fishing and mining, as well as disposal activities. Within these areas there may be core zones where no human activities are allowed, for instance areas that act as scientific reference areas or areas where there are particularly sensitive habitats or species.
Marine Reserves are not just about overfishing - even if one of the primary reasons for creating them is to preserve fish stocks. They are increasingly seen as an essential global tool to protect the marine environment, including from pollution - caused particularly by the disposal of wastes, and the uncertain effects of climate change. In order to be robust and protect ocean ecosystems Marine Reserves need to be large.
Greenpeace has been campaigning for Marine Reserves for years. Globally we are campaigning for a network of reserves covering 40 per cent of the world's oceans.
We currently have two political opportunities to make marine reserves happen - the EU Marine StrategyDirective (MSD) and the UK Marine Bill. Environment Minister David Miliband is the UK minister responsible for both of these.
Please write to David Miliband and ask him to ensure that marine reserves are established in the North Sea and throughout Europe as a matter of urgency.
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Tuesday, June 12th, 2007
Monitoring the saltiness of the ocean water could provide an early indicator of climate change. Significant increases or decreases in salt in key areas could forewarn of climate change in 10 to 20 years time. Presenting their findings at a recent European Science Foundation (ESF) conference, scientists predicted that the waters of the southern hemisphere oceans around South Africa and New Zealand are the places to watch.
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Monday, June 11th, 2007
Europe's seas are in serious decline from coastal development, overuse of fertilisers, chemical pollution and over-fishing, a new study warns. Over the next 20 to 30 years, the Mediterranean, Baltic and Black Sea, and the North Atlantic will deteriorate further unless action is taken, say the researchers, who were funded by the European Union.
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