• 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.

• Forests

California’s Kelp Forests in Climate Peril

• California
• carbon sequestration
• climate change
• kelp
• oceans

Kelp forests are some of California’s most iconic ecosystems and a new satellite study show they’re almost gone. As the Ocean Conservancy explained, kelp forests are the anchor of nearshore ocean wildlife communities, sustaining marine biodiversity by providing shelter, habitat, and even food for an array of fish and invertebrates. They’re also important to coastal […]

• Energy

Cleaning Up Oil & Gas Wells Could Net $21 Billion in Benefits

• carbon sequestration
• oil and gas
• oil and gas drilling

by Amy Lupica, ODP Staff Writer A new study published on Monday found that cleaning up the nation’s more than 2 million acres of oil and gas wells could result in billions of dollars of economic growth. Experts estimate that there are as many as 3.2 million gas and oil well sites no longer in use, and when companies leave or […]

• Forests

The Climate-Fighting Power of Kelp

• carbon sequestration
• kelp
• nature based solutions

by Ashira Morris, ODP Staff Writer For all the high-tech solutions proposed to draw carbon out of the atmosphere, the low-tech of the natural world can be just as effective. Planting trees falls into this category. So does farming kelp. As Maine Public Radio reports, Portland-based Running Tide Technologies is growing “massive amounts of seaweed” […]

• Forests

New Study Finds Trees Absorbing More Carbon than Previously Thought

• carbon sequestration
• photo
• trees

by Amy Lupica, ODP Staff Writer A new study has found that, contrary to the expectations of the scientific community, trees are expertly adapting to increased carbon in the atmosphere and absorbing even more carbon while increasing their water use efficiency. However, while these findings reinforce the importance of forests as carbon sinks, many forests are plagued […]

• Land

For Peat’s Sake: Protecting Scotland’s Bogs

• #30x30
• 30 by 30
• carbon sequestration
• peat bogs
• peatland
• Scotland

by Ashira Morris, ODP Contributing Writer Scotland’s Flow Country could soon be home to the globe’s first peat bog protected as a world heritage site. The blanket bog covers over 1,500 square miles stretching across the northern tip of Scotland. Peatlands like the ones in Flow Country are one of the most efficient carbon trappers […]