If you’re in the sailing world, you’ve no doubt heard a lot about the 34th America’s Cup lately. They have screaming fast boats and team budgets supported by billionaires-everything you could want from a sailing race…Or a reality TV show? Some may say that composting and copper-free bottom paints are the least exciting part of … Read more
Green VI, a local not-for-profit organization, is working towards a greener, cleaner, and healthier BVI. Their projects focus around the themes of waste, energy, water and education. Green VI has initiated the following projects around the waste theme namely: A glass studio as a demonstration project to prove that waste can … Read more
Relative isolation from human influence helps make Cuba’s coral reefs unique. Protecting these ecosystems — and species that rely on them — requires careful collaboration and cooperation among managers, scientists, fishermen and local fishing communities. Well-designed marine protected areas (MPAs), combined with innovative fisheries management, are the foundation for both sustainable commercial and recreational fisheries … Read more
The Endeavor – URI’s Research Vessel Greening The Endeavor UNOLS began to promote the goal of “greening the fleet”, which is still exploring the technologies and practices best-suited to move forward in developing and maintaining more efficient research vessels. The Graduate School of Oceanography at URI has taken this goal to heart, and research is currently … Read more
The sea turtles that exist today represent an evolutionary lineage that dates back at least 110 million years. Based on current data and trends, sea turtles are considered by many to be on the brink of extinction; immediate action is imperative if they are to rebound. There are seven species: flatback, green, hawksbill, Kemp’s ridley, … Read more
Bristol Bay’s sailboat era hung on until the 1950s, and much changed in the ensuing decades. One thing has remained remarkably constant, however: the fish. Even now, the 128th year of commercial salmon fishing in Bristol Bay, this remains without question the greatest wild salmon run on Earth. All five species of Pacific salmon occurring … Read more
On Saturday, August 4, 2012, the Mystic River Watershed Association (MyWRA) and Groundwork Somerville made one last summer push in a multi-year effort to eradicate the invasive Water Chestnut from the Mystic River in Massachusetts, and removed a record-breaking 806 20-lb. baskets of Water Chestnuts in one morning! With the help of hundreds of volunteers … Read more
Much like the lions of Africa’s Serengeti, as apex predators living at the top of the food web, large sharks play a pivotal role in maintaining the health and balance of marine ecosystem. Changes in their abundance or behavior can have cascading effects on the whole community. This is a problem because rampant overfishing is … Read more
In the Great South Channel, a deep-water passage between Nantucket and Georges Bank, thick swarms of tiny marine organisms known as copepods appear every spring. Basking sharks, cod, haddock, and endangered North Atlantic right whales all feast upon these dense patches. In a way, the Great South Channel is like the right whales’ favorite restaurant, … Read more
Alewife and blueback herring, collectively known as river herring, were once found in nearly every coastal river in the Northeast. Now, federal fisheries managers are evaluating these fish for a potential listing under the Endangered Species Act. Role in ecosystem Although small in size, river herring play a major role in coastal and marine ecosystems. They … Read more
