Oceans

May 4, 2009 -- A new set of ocean observing data that enhances the ability to track probable paths of victims and drifting survivor craft should improve search and rescue efforts along the U.S. coast. The data comes from the Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS®), part of a joint effort among NOAA, the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Department of Homeland Security.    » read more »

Quirky fish is key to protecting coast's most fragile ecosystems

LOS ANGELES (April 15, 2009) – In an attempt to save a unique and endangered fish found only in the most fragile of California coastal habitats, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) will file a suit today against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service after habitat protections were needlessly limited. NRDC fought to keep the fish on the Endangered Species List in 2000, and now a removal of habitat that the Service had previously labeled as essential to the species’ survival have forced a return to the courts.    » read more »

April 15, 2009 -- San Francisco, CA - Hundreds of California residents, fishermen, scientists, environmentalists and youth are expected to speak out against proposed offshore drilling plans tomorrow at a public hearing held by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar in San Francisco. This is the last of four hearings and the only one held on the West Coast.    » read more »

April 13, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that Connecticut has applied for $12.6 million in federal stimulus grants to help fund four projects that will restore fragile marine and costal habitats, protect aquatic species and improve recreational fishing opportunities across the state.

The projects are:

· Removal of the Springborn Dam on the Scantic River in Enfield

· Construction of a fish passage at the Tingue Dam on the Naugatuck River in Seymour

· Construction of a fish passage at the Rainbow Dam on the Farmington River in Windsor

· Restoration of tidal wetlands along the lower Connecticut River in the towns of Chester, East Haddam, Essex, Haddam, Lyme, Old Lyme and Old Saybrook    » read more »

Office of Habitat currently seeking project proposals from coastal and Great Lakes communities

March 23, 2009 -- NOAA has begun accepting proposals for coastal habitat restoration projects under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The effort will foster healthy and resilient American communities while generating and protecting jobs for the thousands of people whose task it will be to restore valuable coastal and marine habitat.

NOAA anticipates that up to $170 million may be available for coastal and marine habitat restoration; typical awards are expected to range between $1.5 million and $10 million.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 03/09/2009 - The Pew Environment Group today called upon the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to diligently implement important new federal requirements designed to prevent overfishing and rebuild depleted fish populations.

The council is currently developing plans to apply the new federal rules, which became effective on February 17, 2009. These rules correspond to 2006 congressional amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s primary law governing management of U.S. fish populations.    » read more »

Jekyll Island, GA - 03/05/2009 - Holly Binns, Project Manager for the Pew Environment Group’s Campaign to End Overfishing in the Southeast, issued the following statement today about the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s 7 to 6 vote to halt red snapper fishing for six months, with an optional six-month extension, in the South Atlantic from North Carolina to Florida. The moratorium would go into effect as early as mid-June.    » read more »

Environmental experts deliver first-of-a-kind progress report to Capitol

TALLAHASSEE (March 2, 2009) – While Florida has made several improvements in its efforts to restore the health of its ocean and coasts, the state still has work to do, according to a report card released today by a group of nationally and internationally recognized environmental organizations. The report card evaluated the progress the state has made in reversing the decline of its ocean and coastal resources in 2007 and 2008.    » read more »

Feb. 25, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, co-chair of the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, today told task force members that the Obama Administration is committed to quick action on global warming—a key threat to coral reefs—and that the economic stimulus package, clean energy and community service programs and ethic of preserving natural treasures add up to good news for coral reef conservation.    » read more »

February 24, 2009 -- ATLANTA, Ga. -- The state of North Carolina will receive $5 million for a statewide risk assessment and mitigation strategy demonstration of the potential impacts of climate change-induced sea level rise.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will use the results of this study to assess the long-term fiscal implications of climate change as it affects the frequency and effects of natural disasters. Information from the study will be shared with other states to inform their climate change mitigation efforts.    » read more »

02/23/2009 - A new collaboration of key Australian and international conservation groups today launched Save Our Marine Life to secure the future of Australia’s south west marine environment. This globally significant region is home to a far greater proportion of unique marine life than the Great Barrier Reef.

At the launch in Perth, a new report was also released. It found that up to 9 out of 10 marine species found off Australia’s south west coast are found nowhere else on Earth, but less than 1% of this region is protected.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 02/12/2009 - Culling whales will not increase fisheries catches in tropical waters, according to a new paper supported by the Lenfest Ocean Program and published today in the journal Science. For years, Japan has argued that reducing the number of baleen whales in the oceans would improve fisheries because whales eat fish that are caught for human consumption. The study published today found that even a complete eradication of whale populations in tropical waters would not lead to any significant increase in fish populations.    » read more »

Lisbon, Portugal - 02/11/2009 - The Pew Whales Commission, a high level body of eminent diplomats, judges, lawyers, scientists and former Ministers, today called for government ministers to resolve the whaling stalemate.

"The Pew Whales Commission agreed on the need for a higher level of political muscle to move the International Whaling Commission (IWC) out of its current impasse," said Dr. Peter Bridgewater, Commission Chair and former chair of the IWC. "All agreed that the IWC must be preserved as the organization to conserve whales, but it needs to be brought up to date. The 1946 treaty simply does not protect whales from the threats of the 21st century."    » read more »

New Rules Endanger Whales and Dolphins and Fail to Satisfy Federal Law

LOS ANGELES (January 23, 2009) – Last-minute rules proposed by the Bush administration will expose millions of marine mammals to harm from naval training with high-intensity sonar unless amended by the Obama Administration. The rules, issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), address Navy sonar training in the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, in waters off Southern California, and around Hawaii.

Together, they authorize over 10 million marine mammal “takes” incidental to Navy sonar training during the next five years. Each “take” is an instance of harm caused by high intensity sonar that can range from disorientation, to hearing loss, stranding and death.    » read more »

Court Order Upholds Federal Environmental Laws and Reduces Harm from Naval Exercises

LOS ANGELES -- August 12, 2008 – The Navy’s use of low frequency active sonar will remain restricted to certain military training areas of the Pacific Ocean, according to an agreement approved by a U.S. district court in San Francisco today.    » read more »