• Ocean

A Sigh of Relief for Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Monument

• Marine National Monument
• Northeast Canyons and Seamounts

by Ashira Morris, ODP Staff Writer The U.S. has only one marine national monument in the Atlantic Ocean, and its existence won’t face a Supreme Court challenge this year. The court declined to hear a case challenging President Obama’s 2016 designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. The underwater monument is about […]

• Ocean

Marine Mammals Help Mitigate Climate Impacts on Ocean Ecosystems

• acidification
• climate change
• kelp forests
• marine mammals
• ocean
• urchin

Kelp forests along the U.S. West Coast are threatened because of an exploding sea urchin population caused by the climate crisis, but in Monterey Bay, sea otters keep the urchin population in check and kelp forests healthy. While many natural underwater systems are out of whack because of climate change, sea others aren’t the only marine mammals helping maintain some equilibrium:

Why this Matters: Marine mammals play an important role in global ecosystems as “apex predators, ecosystem engineers and even organic ocean fertilisers,” The Conservation writes. 

• Ocean

Democrats Introduce Environmental Justice Legislation with Advocate Support

• Congress
• Demcorats
• Environmental Justice

by Amy Lupica, ODP Staff Writer Congressional Democrats are making environmental justice a focus of their climate agenda., Recently, t two new bills were introduced that seek to lower utility bills and decrease the disproportionate burden of pollution experienced by communities of color. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), who is reintroducing the Environmental Justice for All Act which […]

• Ocean

Bottom Trawling Fishing Gear Releases Huge Amounts of Carbon From Sea Floor

• #30x30
• bottom trawling
• carbon
• carbon sink
• fishing

The ocean floor stores a massive amount of carbon, and when fishing boats drag heavy nets across it, that releases as much carbon as the entire aviation industry, according to a new study by 26 marine biologists. Right now, a measly 7% of the ocean is protected, and even within parts of the ocean that are marine protected areas, bottom trawling is still happening.

• Ocean

New Study: Protect 30% of Ocean by 2030, Boost Fisheries, and Sequester Carbon

• #30x30
• carbon sequestration
• carbon sink
• fisheries
• food security
• ocean conservation

A new study published in Nature by 26 authors from around the world details the overlooked benefits of ocean protections that would be secured if countries protect 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030 — and provides a blueprint of the best areas for conservation. 

Why This Matters: Protecting 30% of our oceans by 2030 could ensure the health of key biomes while also boosting ocean-reliant economies, many of which need a jumpstart due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Ocean

Portraits of Change: Climate Change Is Challenging Fishing in the U.S.

• #EDF
• climate change
• fisheries
• ocean
• ocean warming
• shifts

This week, we have featured this series of videos by the Environmental Defense Fund about the impacts climate change is having on the ocean as observed by the people who live and work there — fishermen and women. Their stories have been compelling and provided a sense of the ways that climate change is harming and shifting global fish stocks. 

Why This Matters:  On Tuesday, pursuant to President Biden’s climate executive order, NOAA announced: “an agency-wide effort to gather initial public input” on “how to make fisheries, including aquaculture, and protected resources more resilient to climate change.