How To Protect The Ocean

Deep-sea mining is on the minds of many mining and tech companies as there is a potential to mind the metals that are so badly needed for computer chips that power the very devices you are using to listen to this podcast. However, we are not aware of the ramifications of mining unique areas such as deep-sea hydrothermal vents.  A PhD candidate in deep-sea biology for Queen's University Belfast, El...

NFTs are all the rage in the cryptocurrency world these days. Many artists, digital creators, and even marine organizations are making money using NFTs. However, the way NFTs are processed could have implications for increasing climate change. NFTs use the Eurythreum cryptocurrency, which is controlled by users (called miners) having to solve complex puzzles to gain tokens. Solving the puzzles tak...

The Indonesian government took coal ash off the list of hazardous materials even though there is evidence that there are harmful metals such as mercury and arsenic that can leech into the environment. The coal industry lobby worked with the government to get the removal passed.  The government followed up with a policy where the fisheries ministry would by bricks made from coal ash and use them as...

There are many designation categories for protected areas in the ocean; however, they are often lumped into one category: Marine Protected Area. Marine Protected Area (MPA) is a term that has a very specific definition that is different from other protected area categories.  A marine protected area is an area in the ocean where no extractive activities are allowed. Some parks are called MPAs, but...

In May 2021, a container ship called the X-Press Pearl caught fire and sank off the coast of Sri Lanka spilling large amounts of toxic chemicals in the form of fuel and a high concentration of microplastic pellets, called nurdles.  These nurdles can wreak havoc on ocean habitats as they are made from fossil fuel chemicals and break down once in the water. The nurdles are ingested by sea turtles, m...

New research published in the Journal of Heredity identified 3 new genetically distinctive populations of tiger sharks: one population is in the Indo-Pacific Ocean basin; one is in the Atlantic Ocean basin, and the third is in the waters surrounding the Hawaiin Islands.  The new populations will no doubt add a call to protect the distinct population keeping in mind that tiger sharks are mass migra...

Polish researchers observed a young female polar bear chasing a reindeer into the ocean, drowning it, and feeding on it.  The observation in addition to another observation of the same young female feeding on a different reindeer carcass in the same region sparked a wonder as to whether polar bears were altering their diets in the Svalbard region because there was less ice.  Other researchers disa...

Did you ever wonder how well your State is managing your beaches? Your state has a coastline along the ocean or the Great Lakes which can be a dynamic place. Coastlines are always changing, usually slow changes, but they are changing. Your state and local governments are in charge of how your beaches are managed and adapted to any changes that might occur but are they managed well? There are so ma...

There have been over 1,000 manatees that have died in 2021. Most of the manatees died of starvation due to the lack of seagrass available for food.  This episode explores why the seagrass disappeared over the past decade and suggests what needs to be done to protect the manatees better.  Link to article: https://www.ecowatch.com/florida-manatees-starvation-feeding-2655776281.html#toggle-gdpr Conne...

The North Atlantic Right whale's population dipped from 366 to 336 from 2019 to 2020 making it the lowest it has been in 20 years. Whale entanglement is the leading culprit in the North Atlantic Right Whale's mortality off the coast of Maine. Lobster fishing gear tends to be the gear that entangles the whales.  A court recently ruled on whether the government should implement a 4-month ban on offs...

This interview with Alifa Haque is a sample of the second episode of season 2 of the Beyond Jaws podcast about the science and conservation actions for wedgefish and guitarfish.  Alifa is a doctoral candidate at the University of Oxford and is studying shark catches in Bangladesh, her home country.  In this episode, Alifa tells the story of how she wanted to learn more about the shark fishery in h...

My co-host for the Beyond Jaws Jaws podcast, Dr. David Ebert, joins me on the podcast today to discuss the new season of our podcast discussing wedgefish and guitarfish science and conservation. Wedgefish and guitarfish are commonly known as rhino rays or shark rays due to their long rostrum and uniquely shaped bodies.   This season of Beyond Jaws features interviews of shark scientists from all o...

OceanEye, a non-profit organization dedicated to collecting plastic pollution in the Mediterranean Sea to understand the level of pollution, has contributed data and results to international bodies such as the IUCN and UN for their reports. The reports address the plastic pollution problem in the sea that is bordered by 22 countries.  Each country has its own policies to dispose of its trash; howe...

I was pleasantly surprised when I heard the latest voicemail that came in was from my neighbour Brynn, who lives two doors down the street from me. She responded to my request for people to send a voicemail to discuss their thoughts on the COP26 announcements.  Brynn found more hope in local action and less hope in federal announcements. Cities tend to take a more action-based approach to climate...

COP26 is all about the big announcements and Canada definitely made a big one. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada will cap emissions on the oil and gas industry, but the cap won't affect the production of oil and gas.  Canadian scientist and environmentalist, Dr. David Suzuki, did not attend COP26 this year because he is tired of empty promises. He is happy that the government mad...

Good ol' COP26, the Climate Change meeting, is happening again and there were some major announcements made at the meeting by countries such as the US, India, and Canada. I will cover the Canadian announcement in the next episode.  The announcements sounded great, but what do scientists think about the announcements. Link to article: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-03034-z Connect with...

I received some great questions from some audience members about episode 1230 where I interviewed Dr. Virginia Schutte about the Teamseas campaign and why you might not want to support the campaign, but donate directly to an organization's programs (such as the Ocean Conservancy's Plastic Pollution Program).  Andrew Lester-Coll asked another great question today. He asked whether it was a good ide...

There are many fundraisers that occur throughout the year for the oceans and they are run by various organizations. Most of them have good intentions to help protect the Oceans. Some raise a lot of money and some not so much; however, the organizations to which you donate matter.  There is a large fundraiser that is going on right now to help raise $30 million dollars that promises to take out 30...

There was an unfortunate situation along the Pacific Coast when at least 300 Olive Ridley's Sea Turtles washed up dead on the shore.  Experts say that cause of death was most likely drowning after getting caught in fishing gear; however, there was no mention of fishing gear found with the sea turtles.  Link to article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-59077086  

I answer a listener voicemail on today's episode. Laura asked if an organization's work, named Coral Vita, is worth supporting. She wanted to know if the work they do is helpful to coral reefs.  Coral Vita recently won the Earthshot Prize as they were recognized for the coral reef restoration work that they do in the Bahamas. However, not every organization that wins a prize does work that will ha...

I answer a listener question from a voicemail I received about how people who communicate science can get their message across to their target audiences about Climate Change.  There is a long history of messaging about climate change and how scientists were late to the game in getting the message out about a topic that is affecting all of us today.  I discuss why scientists were late to the game t...

I received a question from Josie Greenston who asked me (I am paraphrasing): Where do I begin with helping with the Ocean? There are so many things that are harming the ocean (climate change, over-fishing, plastic pollution, etc.) that I don't know where to begin helping the Ocean. Josie asks a great question that I've heard before. I wanted to take this episode to address how people can help the...

I see many people profess to go Zero Waste and I think it's great; however, I have trouble relating to them because they are oftentimes at different life stages than I am. They are single or a two-person household, which makes it easier to change their lifestyle choice than it is with a family with kids.  Or it was just one of the many excuses I use to procrastinate more on changing my lifestyle. ...

The Blob, a massive heatwave in the Pacific Ocean raised the average sea surface temperature by 2-4C and changed the distribution of some species.  The Blob raised the temperature in cooler waters as well as the direction of currents. These changes allowed for species in the south to move north as their habitat was suitable.  New species could outcompete species that are already found in the north...

Last episode (Episode 1223), I spoke to Virginia Schutte and Bethann Merkel about their approach to Science Communication that they discuss on their new podcast called Meteor.  During the interview, I talked about how I just launched Speak Up For The Ocean Blue with minimal planning because I just wanted to start doing the "fun part" of my SciComm. I now realize that I would do things differently...