World Oceans Day June 8, Oceans Week June 1-8

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Tribute to Max Keeping: A retired Vice President and News Anchor of CTV Ottawa, we are forever grateful for Max's help in raising awareness about World Oceans Day and the importance of caring for our oceans. Max forged a respected career around the world.

Save $$$, reduce plastic use; reusable water bottles and cloth shopping bags will save you money. Keep plastic away from all waterways: rivers and streams flow to lakes and oceans. Plastics cause a slow painful death for marine life and birds.

News Articles and Documentaries

United Nations Summit in Ottawa Canada April 2024 After Canada proposed World Oceans Day in 1982 it took 15 years for the United Nations to declare World Oceans Day as the sister to Earth Day. It is fitting that 15 years later the UN meetings are scheduled to be held in Ottawa Canada. The 4th session will focus on the plastic pollution in the Antarctica and the draft of the international legal binding instrument on plastic pollution. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/statement-by-the-prime-minister-on-united-nations-day-893869746.html

United Nations Summit April 23 – 29, 2024 Ottawa, Canada.

Focus is Plastic Pollution The session will be preceded by regional consultations on 21 April 2024. The revised draft text of the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (UNEP/PP/INC.4/3), is now available here in all six UN official languages". https://www.unep.org/inc-plastic-pollution/session

The Oceans Are Talking To Us, And It's Not A Pleasant Conversation

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/ocean-warming-signals-1.7086410

Salton Sea in California continues to dry up Lithium valley is below the surface https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/lithium-valley

Australia's Great Barrier Reef suffers 'extensive' coral bleaching Scientists conducted an extensive aerial survey of Australia's Great Barrier Reef finding mass bleaching due to heat stress. CNN's Lynda Kinkade speaks to Roger Beeden, chief scientist at the Great Barrier Reef Park Authority. https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/03/02/exp-great-barrier-reef-bleaching-kinkade-beeden-intv-cnni-climate.cnn

Warming climates have chimps changing behaviors - but it can only go so far

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/what-on-earth-chimps-climate-1.7163506

Drought in British Columbia caused the Fraser River to run dry

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/dry-nechako-riverbed-in-prince-george-1.7159123

A robot travelled to the deep sea. See what it found With the help of a deep sea robot, scientists discovered over 100 new marine species off the coast of Chile, according to the Schmidt Ocean Institute. Diving explorer and medical researcher Dr. Joseph Dituri discusses the significance of this ocean expedition. https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/02/26/deep-sea-robot-expedition-new-species-chile-joseph-dituri-cnc-vpx.cnn

Dozens of new species discovered in deep sea expedition Marine scientists document dozens of new species during a research expedition off the coast of Chile. Erin Easton, Chief Scientist at the Schmidt Ocean Institute, joins Michael Holmes to share her team's findings. https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/03/04/exp-chile-undersea-creatures-erin-easton-intv-030412aseg2-cnni-world.cnn

One of the world’s biggest cities may be just months away from running out of water

Mexico City, a sprawling metropolis of nearly 22 million people and one of the world’s biggest cities, is facing a severe water crisis as a tangle of problems — including geography, chaotic urban development and leaky infrastructure — are compounded by the impacts of climate change. https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/25/climate/mexico-city-water-crisis-climate-intl/index.html

Mystery of whale song unraveled by scientists, study says How baleen whales, which include humpback whales, are able to sing underwater has eluded scientists since whale songs were first discovered more than 50 years ago. https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/22/world/whale-song-mystery-intl-scli-scn/index.html

Japan's newest species is a tiny, panda-like sea creature The distinctive skeleton panda sea squirt is Japan's newest species. This is the first time scientists have studied the tiny sea creature. https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/02/20/skeleton-panda-sea-squirt-japan-cprog-orig-jc.cnn

Atlantic Ocean circulation nearing 'devastating' tipping point, study finds
CNN's Meteorologist Chad Myers looks at a new report that warns that key ocean currents could collapse, with devastating changes to our climate.

https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/02/10/exp-chad-myers-atlantic-ocean-study-021005aseg1-cnni-world.cnn

Scientists discover an alarming change in Antarctica’s past that could spell devastating future sea level rise
Evidence from a 2,000-foot-long ice core reveals that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet shrank suddenly and dramatically around 8,000 years ago, according to new research — providing an alarming insight into how quickly Antarctic ice could melt and send sea levels soaring. https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/08/climate/west-antarctic-ice-sheet-melt-collapse-climate-intl/index.html

Pod of at least 10 killer whales appears trapped by sea ice in Japan https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/06/asia/killer-whales-trapped-sea-ice-japan-intl/index.html

Data from centuries-old sea creatures suggest the world is warming faster than scientists thought. Using sponges collected off the coast of Puerto Rico in the eastern Caribbean, scientists have calculated 300 years of ocean temperatures and concluded the world has already overshot one crucial global warming limit and is speeding toward another. https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/05/climate/sponges-climate-limit-study/index.html

‘Save the Whales’ was a shining success. Now can humpbacks save us from ourselves? https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/04/climate/whale-threats-solutions-antarctica/index.html

Antarctica's Plastic problem In Antarctica, Latin American scientists are looking for manmade microplastics. The goal: Obtain a "thermometer reading" of just how badly the world is affected by human activity and consumption.
https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/02/04/exp-antarctica-plastic-pollution-rosales-pkg-cnni-world.cnn
Meet the explorers documenting the unknown depths of the ocean The mesophotic zone is one of the planet's great unexplored ecosystems. As part of Rolex's Perpetual Planet Initiative, divers from Under the Pole have been recording these depths, in order to protect them. https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2023/12/12/under-the-pole-ghislain-bardout-ocean-exploration-c2e-intl-spc.cnn

Protecting whales from one of their biggest threats

Meet father-daughter duo Michael Fishbach and Delphi Waters, co-founders of Whale Guardians, an organization that works directly with the maritime industry to prevent collisions between ships and whales. https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2023/07/17/whale-guardians-protecting-whales-c2e-spc-intl.cnn

The science of seaweed In Roscoff, France, scientists are investigating how seaweed could be used to mitigate climate change and feed the planet. https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2023/10/03/seaweed-science-brittany-france-c2e-intl-spc.cnn

World Oceans Day June 8 - Why Should We Help Our Oceans, Rivers and Lakes
As World Oceans Day June 8th approaches we are reminded not only do our waterways as well as oceans provide swimming and boating fun, each provides us with food, medicine, jobs along with 80% of our oxygen.
Beaches and boating are fun but we must never leave our garbage behind; plastics break down into tiny pieces from exposure to sun and water – fish and birds eat the tiny pieces which causes their slow death.
We can all use less energy by turning off lights and we can reduce our waste   by only buying what we really need then reusing items as much as possible.
Water is not a limitless resource so we must conserve water; simply turning off the tap while we brush our teeth each person will save 30 litres per day, turning off the shower while we apply soap saves more than 60 litres per day per person and we can do the same when we wash the car.
One simple step we can all take is reduction of our Carbon Footprint; measure yours at https://WorldOceansDayEducation.org/your-carbon-footprint
Oceana and Sea Shepherd report that whaling has continued despite being against the law. Please send a letter to your elected officials to demand respect for and preservation of our marine life.
Join a World Oceans Day event in your area, get involved to make a difference. Together we can protect our earth and our ocean for us and for future generations. https://worldoceansdayeducation.org/

15 Atlantic Salmon Fish Farms ON THE PACIFIC OCEAN are being shut down FINALLY to protect Wild Pacific Salmon
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/fish-farms-not-renewed-1.6752997
https://ottawa.citynews.ca/national-news/fisheries-department-to-shut-15-salmon-farms-off-bcs-coast-to-protect-wild-fish-6576448

Whale for sale in Japan vending machines https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/24/asia/japan-whale-meat-vending-machine-intl-hnk
Japan still sending whaler ships out, as far as the Antarctica, and calling them “research ships” yet whaling has been banned internationally since 1986.

How to bring Black and Indigenous voices into the climate discussion https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/what-on-earth-black-indigenous-climate-change-1.6757942

Antarctic expedition gets up close and personal with a melting glacier
https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/antarctic-melting-thwaites-glacier-1.6754917

Seaweed covers beaches, removes oxygen, creates dead zones
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/seaweed-sargassum-florida-caribbean-scn/index.html

Bottle Water Study

No government department checks bottle water. Aquafina is made mostly from tap water by Pepsi and tastes metalic. Dasani is full of sodium, making people thirstier. When the bottle water industry is not using tap water, it is stealing from the farmers and Indigenous water tables, leaving their wells dry.

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Media Articles & TV

News Articles and Documentaries

Astronaut raises environmental alarms for our earth after trip to International Space Station
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/24/europe/thomas-pesquet-iss-climate-change-c2e-scn-spc-intl/index.html

Recreational Divers cleaning under the water of Okanagan Lake BC and shoreline https://globalnews.ca/news/8696933/volunteers-clean-up-okanagan-lake-and-shoreline/

Ocean temperatures are high https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/05/world/ocean-surface-temperature-heat-record-climate-intl/index.html

Underwater Film Inspired Kenya Marine Protected Area https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/23/africa/jahawi-bertolli-underwater-kenya-c2e-spc-intl/index.html

Ocean census aims to discover 100,000 previously unknown marine species https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/27/world/ocean-census-launch-scn/index.html

Antarctica and Arctic 104 F and 86F (40C and 30C) degrees above normal https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/hot-poles-antarctica-arctic-40-and-30-degrees-above-normal-1.5827714

Canada saved Humpback Whale from fishing lines Thank you to Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans who just saved a Humpback Whale from dying a slow death due to fishing lines entangled through her mouth, preventing her from eating. The Drone video is great
https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/humpback-whale-freed-from-ropes-in-remarkable-b-c-video-1.6116227

Great Barrier Reef suffers widespread coral bleaching due to high ocean temperatures Australia's Great Barrier Reef is suffering widespread and severe coral bleaching due to high ocean temperatures two years after a mass bleaching event, https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/great-barrier-reef-severe-coral-bleaching-1.6389540 https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/18/great-barrier-reef-suffers-widespread-coral-bleaching.html#:~:text=Australia's%20Great%20Barrier%20Reef%20is,government%20agency%20said%20on%20Friday

Microplastics in Fresh Antarctic Snow https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/researchers-discover-microplastics-in-fresh-antarctic-snow-1.5937859

So what is it that Marineland is hiding? Marineland has arbitrarily banned those who protect whales and those interested in the protection of marine life. Why? What is it they are hiding? None who received the legal order banning them from Marineland have ever had anything to do with Marineland. https://ottawa.citynews.ca/around-ontario/marineland-bans-lawyer-filmmaker-and-scientist-among-others-from-entering-park-5395046 https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/marineland-bans-lawyer-filmmaker-and-scientist-among-others-from-entering-park-1.5913681

New Marine Refuge Area off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada (4 times the size of Cape Breton) https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/huge-area-off-ns-declared-marine-refuge-1.6481700

Protected waters off the coast of Kenya https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/23/africa/jahawi-bertolli-underwater-kenya-c2e-spc-intl

Ancient Forest update https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/prince-george-rainforest-conservation-protection

World’s oceans were warmest on record in 2021, climate report says https://globalnews.ca/news/8845519/ocean-temperature-report/
Ocean needs version of International Space Station https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/scientists-push-for-ocean-version-of-the-international-space-station-1.6457142

Climate report highlights need for more renewable energies to save our oxygen and oceans https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?playlistId=1.5908797

Amazon Rain Forest At Risk “We lose about 90 billion tons of carbon dioxide mostly in the trees but also the soil (of the Amazon),” https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/07/americas/amazon-tipping-point-climate-scn/index.html

Deadly Land Pathogens travel to the Oceans on Plastics https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/deadly-pathogens-can-hitch-a-ride-on-ocean-microplastics-study-finds-1.5883208

Electric Trucks: Calgary Power, Bison Transport, PEI school buses https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/bakx-ev-mhdvs-budget-bison-transport-enmax-1.6419896

Challenge: Electric vehicle battery recycling is the challenge https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/what-on-earth-ev-battery-recycling-1.6420048

Coral Reefs could disappear in three decades https://www.earth.com/news/without-action-coral-reefs-could-disappear-in-the-next-three-decades/

Compostable bread clips https://www.supermarketperimeter.com/articles/8009-bimbo-canada-transitioning-to-cardboard-bread-bag-clips

How plastic pollution is choking the planet, and what’s being done about it https://globalnews.ca/news/8707787/how-plastic-pollution-is-choking-the-planet-and-whats-being-done-about-it/

SurfRider taking the lead on coast clean up due to cargo ship spill https://ottawa.citynews.ca/national-news/debris-from-cargo-ship-spill-last-fall-spreading-along-bc-coast-beach-cleaners-5130732
https://globalnews.ca/news/8661988/slow-moving-disaster-group-wants-urgent-action-on-cargo-spills-in-b-c/
UN Plastics Pollution agreement https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/plastic-pollution-agreement-1.6369869

Bottle Water was checked by United Nations doctors years ago: Dr. Hill, worked for the UN checking bottled water around the world. He often caught hotels filling bottles with a hose at the back of the hotel yet claiming “ fresh mountain spring water when they manually and illegally sealed the bottles for sale”.
Today, 2022, no level of government checks bottled water anywhere in the world: the Department of Agriculture never checks bottled water as it is not a food, the Department of Health never checks bottled water as it is not a drug. Companies can put whatever they want in a bottle and call it clean water. And can steal the water from farms, towns and nature.
Our advice from World Oceans Day Education, if you must purchase bottled water boil it for 5 minutes!

Electricity:   Companies are harnessing oceans and rivers for electricity production:
https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/11/tech/tidal-energy-climate-change-renewable/index.html

The Ocean Clean Up Project https://theoceancleanup.com/
https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/vessels-return-to-victoria-after-collecting-8-tonnes-of-trash-from-great-pacific-garbage-patch-1.5578625

Oceana Updates https://oceana.org/victories/
https://oceana.ca/en/press-releases/

Sea Shepherd   Seashepherd.org Updates: https://seashepherd.org/seashepherdnews/

Countries like China fish in other nations' ocean waters   https://oceana.org/reports/tracking-harmful-fisheries-subsidies/
Sea Shepherd tracks illegal fishing fleets from China https://seashepherd.org
https://leads.ap.org/best-of-the-week-second-winner/investigating-chinese-distant-fishing-fleet
Amazon’s enormous and rapidly growing plastic pollution problem https://oceana.org/reports/amazon-report-2021
Microplastics found in the mountain air of France https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/microplastics-have-now-been-found-in-pristine-air-at-high-altitudes-in-the-french-pyrenees-study-1.5715510
Ocean Cleanup Documentary Film https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/people-need-to-get-their-hands-dirty-newfoundland-diver-cleans-ocean-floor-one-discarded-tire-at-a-time-1.6313741
https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/hell-or-clean-water-1.6305218
NASA re Climate Change https://globalnews.ca/news/8508696/nasa-climate-change-extreme-weather/ also https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/13/world/45-years-in-a-row-above-average-global-temperature-climate/index.html
Coral Reef found deep in the Pacific Ocean https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/world/coral-reef-tahiti-twilight-zone-climate-scn/index.html
Oceans continue to warm, setting new alarming records https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/world-s-oceans-were-warmest-on-record-again-in-2021-study-1.5735439
Hurricanes & Flooding worsens as oceans get warmer   https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/11/world/oceans-warmest-on-record-2021-climate/index.html
Companies Using Oceans and Rivers To Generate Electricity   https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/11/tech/tidal-energy-climate-change-renewable/index.html
Canada, USA and Germany helping our oceans breath https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/marine-trap-door-labrador-sea-1.5455141
Oceans around South Africa are full of biodiversity https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2022/01/10/south-africa-biodiversity-sea-turtles-penguins-dolphins-sardines-whale-crier-spc.cnn
After 8 voyages to the deepest parts of oceans James Cameron gives insight and warnings to humanity https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/16/world/james-cameron-ocean-twilight-zone-c2e-spc-intl-scn/index.html
Fishing Gear and Nets damage our oceans and marine life   https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/09/asia/ghost-net-climate-hong-kong-intl-hnk-c2e-spc/index.html
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/ghost-gear-lobster-crab-retrieved-ocean-garbage-1.6135251
Discarded Tires in Oceans damage marine life   https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/29/world/hermit-crabs-trapped-tires-scn/index.html
Discarded Tires and Styrofoam in Lakes damages marine life   https://www.castanet.net/news/Kelowna/203579/Follow-law-on-docks

CANADA TO BAN SINGLE USE PLASTICS

https://globalnews.ca/video/5372648/trudeau-announ...

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday a ban on single-use plastics to come into effect as early as 2021 in Canada with a list put together grounded in scientific evidence, closely mirroring actions by the European Union, adding that the responsibility will fall on the plastic industry for the appropriate recycling. (Canada is supporting a company designing biodegradable food packaging).

https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/10/americas/canada-sin...

PADDLE BOARDER HAS A MISSION, HE CHALLENGES EVERYONE

BC business man Aaron Nasipayko picks up plastic bottles, plastic bags, cans and styrofoam garbage as he paddles. Aaron challenges all to do a little bit to help clean up creeks, rivers, lakes and oceans. We can each do a little bit.... https://www.facebook.com/aaron.nasipayko/posts/101...

https://www.castanet.net/news/Vernon/255916/lakes-...

DEAD BABY DOLPHIN HAD PLASTIC IS HIS STOMACH

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/29/us/rough-toothed-do...

BUTTS HARM ALL WATERWAYS

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-256028...

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS REUSE PLASTIC RECYCLING

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-258030...

HOW DO PLASTICS ENTER OUR OCEANS? Answer is us, all of us, are guilty. HERE IS HOW WE CAN HELP !

Scientists believe 80% to 90% of plastics entering our oceans come from land; while some is litter along our ocean beaches most plastics flow down our streams, creeks, lakes and rivers to our oceans.

While many marine researchers agree 5 Asian countries are responsible for a high percentage of plastics entering our oceans that still leaves the rest of us around our world guilty, very guilty.

Municipalities report only 9% of plastics are turned in for recycling leaving the rest littering shorelines or sent to landfill where these light materials blow into our local waterways, all of which flow to our oceans.

In 2016 the World Economic Forum warned “there will be more plastics than fish in our oceans by 2050 if we continue on the path we are on”; we now dump eight million tonnes of plastic into our oceans every year, killing and harming marine life.

So what can we do?

Carry a reusable water bottle and/or coffee cup
Save money, avoid bottled water, put safe city water in the fridge, tastes great
Put all plastics into a recycling bin, not the garbage bin where wind carries plastics from landfill to our rivers and lakes then to our oceans
Never litter
Say no to plastic plates and cutlery, carry your own spork, ask for paper plate
Ditch the plastic wrap, foil is recyclable
Use plastic free tea bags or loose leaf tea, disposing of regular teabags ultimately leads to microplastics entering our waterways and eventually our food chain
Say no to plastic straws and stir sticks, ask for an alternative or carry your own
Give up the gum, it is made of plastic
Use biodegradable glitter, all others are made of plastic
Ditch balloons, decorate with paper items and soap bubbles
Choose not to purchase items encased in plastic
Refuse the plastic bag, ask for paper bags or use reusable bags

World Oceans Week is June 1 to 8 and World Oceans Day is June 8; other ideas to help as well as events filled with fun, education and action can be found on World Oceans Day www.WorldOceansDay.ca

MEASURE YOUR PLASTIC FOOTPRINT
Omni Calculator https://www.omnicalculator.com/ecology/plastic-foo...

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/news/article/...

HOW OCEANS PLAY A ROLE IN WEATHER & CLIMATE EXTREMES
https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/news/article/...

PLASTICS INDUSTRY NEEDS RADICAL CHANGES

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-257972...

EVERY COUNTRY MUST WORK TOGETHER ON CLIMATE CHANGE

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/07/opinions/cfr-climat...

SUPER CORAL GIVES GLIMMER OF HOPE

https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/super-corals-give-...

http://xn--abcdeespaa-19a.com/super-corals-give-gl...

UPDATE ON SOLUTIONS - DEALING WITH THE MESS IN OUR OCEANS

SeaBin designed by surfers sucks up plastics

https://seabinproject.com/

The Ocean Cleanup technology was designed by a 17 year old Holland man

https://www.theoceancleanup.com/

ONE MILLION OF OUR 8 MILLION SPECIES FACE EXTINCTION BY HUMANS

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/06/world/one-million-s...

STUDENTS SAY "EACH OF US CAN DO SOMETHING TO HELP"

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/07/health/climate-anxi...

ICE MELTING 10 TIMES FASTER

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/30/health/ross-ice-she...

BANNING PLASTIC BAGS GAINS MOMENTUM

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phase-out_of_lightwe...

CO2 HIGHEST IN 3 MILLION YEARS

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/04/health/co2-levels-g...

186 COUNTRIES SIGN UN PLASTICS WASTE PACT BUT NOT USA

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/landmark-u...

DOLPHINS PLAY WITH WHALES

https://www.ctvnews.ca/lifestyle/caught-on-camera-...

OCEANA NEWS https://oceana.ca/en/press-center/press-releases

https://oceana.ca/en/our-campaigns

https://oceana.org/victories

DOCUMENTARIES

Jeff Bridge's "Living in the Future's Past"

"Plastic Beach"

"Our Planet"

CTV NEWS

We're In A Crisis https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?playlistId=1.4458402

Protestors Demand Reduction of Plastics https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1703288

Canada Announces $13 Million for Coastline EcoSystems Restoration

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/ottawa-announces-13-million-...

How We Can Protect The Ocean https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1702663

Carnival Cruise Line Pleads Guilty to Ocean Pollution https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/carnival-will-pay-...

ABC NEWS

How to help: https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/world-ocean-day-...

Canada bans whale/dolphin captivity https://abcnews.go.com/International/canada-passes...

2018 News Articles and Documentaries

Documentaries:

A Plastic Ocean

https://plasticoceans.org/about-film/

BlueFin

https://www.nfb.ca/film/bluefin/

Blue The Film, a documentary delivering a tough message, screening dates:

https://bluethefilm.org/screenings/

http://vancouversun.com/entertainment/movies/film-qa-director-karina-holdens-blue-delivers-a-sad-message-about-our-oceans

National Geographic - Full Week of Activities

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-geographic-celebrates-world-environment-day-and-world-oceans-day-with-full-week-of-activities-highlighting-the-need-to-reduce-plastic-pollution-and-improve-ocean-health-300659189.html

Film: Planet or Plastic? launch and will help support the theme of both World Environment Day and World Oceans Day 2018

JACK JOHNSON SHORT DOCUMENTARY "THE SMOG OF THE SEA"

Planet or Plastic? is National Geographic's multiyear initiative aimed at raising awareness about the global plastic crisis and reducing the amount of single-use plastic that enters the world's oceans. Using the power of storytelling and science, National Geographic is encouraging its audiences around the world to help tackle the crisis, beginning with the release of the June issue of National Geographic magazine, which takes an in-depth look at the impact of plastic on ocean health and is available on newsstands now. The multiyear effort includes a major research and scientific initiative; a continued consumer education and engagement campaign; updated internal corporate sustainability commitments; and innovative partnerships with like-minded corporations and non-governmental organizations from all over the world.

ARTICLES

HUMANS CAUSE DEATH OF MARINE ANIMALS

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Human+discards+mean+slow+torture+marine+mammals/10888543/story.html

Science Daily

Plastics Give Off Lethal Chemicals

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180403111101.htm

World Economic Forum

The Oceans Will Contain More Plastics Than Fish By 2050 If We Continue Doing What We Are Doing

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/oceans-plasti...

Fish and Birds Thank Consumers for This Big Win

Plastic straws on the outs (finally) , banned or replaced by businesses, thanks to environmentalist consumer demands.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/03/climate/plastic...

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-230511...

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/features...

Surf Rider partnering with CNN

On June 8 Surf Rider is partnering with CNN to ask students around

the world to celebrate World Oceans Day with a Zero Plastic Lunch -

a lunch with NO single use plastics. Join and share videos of your lunch.

Learning PDF on this page too.

https://www.cnn.com/specials/world/zero-plastic-lunch-day

https://www.surfrider.org/programs/youth-program

Autopsy of dead Whale full of Plastic (warning - graphic)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DF6GfqG-IQE

CNN

Saving Our Oceans From Plastic Polution

https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2018/06/08/newsstream-world-oceans-day-stout-cousteau.cnn

Whale Dies After Eating More Than 17 Pounds of Plastic Bags and Packaging

https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/03/asia/whale-dead-plastic-bags/index.html

Bride Wedding Plans Cancelled Due to Dead Fish

https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2018/06/07/bride-wedding-plans-dead-fish-orig.cnn

The Weather Network – Ocean Reports Coast To Coast all day June 8th

In Honor of World Oceans Day – Here Is Why Water Matters

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/heres-why-world-water-day-2018-matters-facts-about-water/97824/

Oceans Mean The World To Me – Do They Mean That To You?

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/oceans-mean-the-world-to-me-world-ocean-day-june-8-2018-jaclyn-whittal/104166/

Time Is Running Out On Averting Ocean Oxygen Depletion

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/time-is-running-out-on-averting-ocean-oxygen-depletion/94933/

Ikea To Use Only Renewable and Recyclable Materials By 2030

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/ikea-to-use-only-renewable-and-recyclable-materials-by-2030/104181/

Business Promises:

On World Oceans Day A&W announced no more plastic straws. With public pressure all restaurants & take out will follow.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/a-w-canada-to-quit-using-plastic-straws-by-2019-1.3965773

On World Oceans Day Ikea promised to eliminate single use plastics

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5816631/Ikea-remove-single-use-plastics-global-range-2020.html

Oceana “Save The Oceans, Feed The World “

Victories To Celebrate World Oceans Day

https://oceana.org/file/oceana-victories-celebrate-world-oceans-day

5 Surprising Benefits Of Healthy Oceans

https://oceana.org/blog/watch-5-surprising-benefit...

How To Save The Oceans

https://oceana.org/blog/op-ed-how-save-oceans

Eco Watch

Make A Difference

https://www.ecowatch.com/world-oceans-day-make-a-difference-2575124896.html

The Weather Channel

World Oceans Day: G7 Summit Encouraging More Countries To Work Towards A Plastic-Free Future

https://weather.com/en-CA/canada/news/news/2018-06-08-oceans-plastic-pollution

Ocean Blu

Donation to Shoreline Cleanups

https://www.drinkoceanblu.com/our-promise?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2evWi7nE2wIVENVkCh12zQ9PEAEYASAAEgK-DfD_BwE

Vancouver Sun

Film Review: Blue

http://vancouversun.com/entertainment/movies/film-qa-director-karina-holdens-blue-delivers-a-sad-message-about-our-oceans

Wearable Plastics

http://vancouversun.com/life/fashion-beauty/wearable-plastics-new-conscious-exclusive-collection-highlights-innovation-in-textiles

Sustainable Oceans, Key to Prosperity

http://vancouversun.com/opinion/op-ed/robert-lewis-manning-sustainable-oceans-key-to-british-columbias-prosperity

Hook, Line And Sustainability – How Our Grocery List Can Protect Our Oceans

http://vancouversun.com/opinion/op-ed/jay-lugar-ho...

Save Money, reduce plastic use; reusable water bottles and cloth shopping bags will save you money. Keep plastic away from all waterways: rivers and streams flow to lakes and oceans. Plastics cause a slow painful death for marine life and birds.

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Human+discards+mean+slow+torture+marine+mammals/10888543/story.html

Marine Litter Solutions

https://www.marinelittersolutions.com/what-we-do/p...

CBC News

Focus on Plastic Polution – World Oceans Day

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrado...

Kids Get Up Close With Marine Life for World Oceans Day

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/programs/hereandnow/kids-get-up-close-and-personal-with-sea-life-for-world-oceans-day-1.4697469

CTV News

World Oceans Day at the Discovery Center

https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1412679

Virus Killing Farmed Salmon Raises Risk for Wild Salmon

https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/virus-killing-farmed...

Could You Live Without Single Use Plastic?

https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/could-you-live-without-single-use-plastic-1.3898644

Toronto Bars and Restaurants Limit Use of Plastic Straws

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/toronto-restaurants-bars-take-part-in-campaign-to-limit-use-of-plastic-straws-1.3897593

Zero Waste Grocery Store Expands

https://www.ctvnews.ca/lifestyle/zero-waste-grocery-store-movement-spreads-to-halifax-1.3895354

Science Says: Amount of Plastic Pollution Is Huge

https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/science-says-amount-of-straws-plastic-pollution-is-huge-1.3895167

CBS News

Dangers Our Oceans Face

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/world-oceans-day-dangers-oceans-face/

8 Things You Can Do To Help Our Oceans

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/world-oceans-day-8-things-you-can-do-to-make-a-difference/

Eco Watch

Make A Difference

https://www.ecowatch.com/world-oceans-day-make-a-difference-2575124896.html

ABC News

FOX News

Divers Cleanup Plastics

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/06/08/cleaning-seabed-divers-halt-carnage-ghost-nets.html

Halifax Chronicle Herald

Our Planet Is Choking On Plastic

http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/1576335-opinion-planet-is-choking-on-plastic-and-it%E2%80%99s-urgent-to-act-decisively

4 Top Ocean Issues

http://thechronicleherald.ca/nowns/conversations/1575363-a-snapshot-into-the-top-four-ocean-issues

Oceans Discussion at G7 Summit

http://thechronicleherald.ca/canada/1570537-oceans-discussion-at-g7-summit-in-quebec-to-replace-usual-african-focus

Globe And Mail

Why Canada Must Push For a G7 Plastics Charter

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/commentary/article-why-canada-must-push-for-a-g7-plastics-charter/

Federal Leader Calls For Ban On Single Use Plastics

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/video-jagmeet-singh-calls-for-ban-on-single-use-plastics/

Dear Canadians, Your Addiction To Plastic Needs A Cure

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-dear-canadians-your-addiction-to-plastic-needs-a-cure/

Canada Bans Salmon Fishing To Save The Whales, But Two Other Threats Still Loom

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/british-col...

Huffington Post

Humanity Is Drowning In Seas Of Plastic

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-suzuki/plastic...

Canada Should Aim To Recycle 85% of Plastics by 2025

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/06/04/canada-pl...

2017

Fish Farms continue to damage our oceans, Atlantic Salmon escaped into Pacific Ocean spreading diseases. (Really? What are they thinking?) http://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/w5-investigates-the-battl...

Whales continue to die: https://globalnews.ca/news/3696173/united-states-c...

Styrofoam on docks is illegal everywhere https://www.castanet.net/news/Kelowna/203579/follo...

Styrofoam harmful to fish and birds
http://www.cbc.ca/listen/shows/daybreak-kamloops/segment/13226103

The only car with no carbon footprint, Kamloops, British Columbia

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-197787...

News from Oceana

http://oceana.org/

http://www.oceana.ca

The Ocean Cleanup unveils the first prototype

https://www.theoceancleanup.com/

Boyan Slat, of Holland, is the youngest to receive the UN highest Environmental Award. He founded The Ocean Clean Up at age 17 to reduce the time of cleaning up our oceans. (Note: With 6 massive garbage patches of plastics in our oceans around our world this technology offers hope, but only if humans stop allowing plastics to enter our rivers and lakes which all lead to our oceans.)

Oil Spills Again

Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico Again

North Dakota, Saskatchewan added to the long list

Whales - spike in injured and dead

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/theres-been-a...

Litter in waters hurts fish, birds dolphins

http://www.wdcs.org/wdcskids/en/story_details.php?...

The Oceans Will Contain More Plastic Than Fish By 2050

Yes, you read that correctly.

In case you need further evidence that mankind is doing a remarkable job of destroying the planet, consider this: If we continue our ways, the world’s oceans will soon be home to more plastic than fish. That’s according to a new report from the World Economic Forum and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. "The best research currently available estimates that there are over 150 million tonnes (165 million tons) of plastics in the ocean today,” the report reads. “In a business-as-usual scenario, the ocean is expected to contain 1 tonne (1.1 tons) of plastic for every 3 tonnes of fish by 2025, and by 2050, more plastics than fish (by weight). In other words, in just 34 years, plastic trash in the ocean will outweigh all the fish in the sea."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/oceans-plastic...

Researchers estimate 10,000 metric tons of plastic enter Great Lakes every year

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/12/1612...

Microplastics at 'alarming levels' in Canadian lakes and rivers

Microbeads just tip of plastic iceberg floating in Canadian waters
http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/microplastics-at...

These 50 Fascinating Facts About The Ocean Will Boggle Your Mind

Who knew we had learned so much about an environment we’ve explored so little?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/everything-you...

More than 70 percent of Earth is covered by ocean, and yet the marine environment remains one of the most mysterious ones on Earth. Maybe that’s not surprising, given that we’ve explored only about 5 percent of the ocean to date. So what do we know about the vast ocean that surrounds us? Quite a lot, as it turns out. Just check out the 50 fascinating facts on the mind-boggling infographic below, which was created by the online scuba diving magazine Dive In.

Please see the Table of 50 Fascinating Facts on Huffington Post

Large Swaths Of The Pacific Ocean May Actually Suffocate In Just 15 Years

Take a wild guess what the culprit is.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/climate-change...

It should come as no surprise that human activity is causing the world’s oceans to warm, rise and acidify.

But an equally troubling impact of climate change is that it is beginning to rob the oceans of oxygen.

While ocean deoxygenation is well established, a new study led by Matthew Long, an oceanographer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, finds that climate change-driven oxygen loss is already detectable in certain swaths of ocean and will likely be “widespread” by 2030 or 2040.

Ultimately, Long told The Huffington Post, oxygen-deprived oceans may have “significant impacts on marine ecosystems” and leave some areas of ocean all but uninhabitable for certain species.

While some ocean critters, like dolphins and whales, get their oxygen by surfacing, many, including fish and crabs, rely on oxygen that either enters the water from the atmosphere or is released by phytoplankton via photosynthesis.

But as the ocean surface warms, it absorbs less oxygen. And to make matters worse, oxygen in warmer water, which is less dense, has a tough time circulating to deeper waters.

For their study, published in the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles, Long and his team used simulations to predict ocean deoxygenation through 2100.

“Since oxygen concentrations in the ocean naturally vary depending on variations in winds and temperature at the surface, it’s been challenging to attribute any deoxygenation to climate change,” Long said in a statement. “This new study tells us when we can expect the impact from climate change to overwhelm the natural variability.”

And we don’t have long.

Deoxgenation due to climate change is already detectable in some parts of the ocean. New research from NCAR finds that it will likely become widespread between 2030 and 2040. Other parts of the ocean, shown in gray, will not have detectable loss of oxygen due to climate change even by 2100.

By 2030 or 2040, according to the study, deoxygenation due to climate change will be detectable in large swaths of the Pacific Ocean, including the areas surrounding Hawaii and off the West Coast of the U.S. mainland. Other areas have more time. In the seas near the east coasts of Africa, Australia, and Southeast Asia, for example, deoxygenation caused by climate change still won’t be evident by 2100.

Long said the eventual suffocation may affect the ability of ocean ecosystems to sustain healthy fisheries. The concern among the scientific community, he said, is that “we’re conceivably pushing past tipping points” in being able to prevent the damage.

Michael Mann, a climate scientist at Penn State University, shared these concerns, telling The Washington Post that the new study adds to the “list of insults we are inflicting on the ocean through our continued burning of fossil fuels.”

“Just a week after learning that 93 (percent) of the Great Barrier Reef has experienced bleaching in response to the unprecedented current warmth of the oceans, we have yet another reason to be gravely concerned about the health of our oceans, and yet another reason to prioritize the rapid decarbonization of our economy,” Mann said.

Unfortunately, this reason is unlikely to be the last.

Another Spill: Shell Oil Spill Dumps Thousands Of Barrels Of Crude Into Gulf Of Mexico

An oil sheen of 2 miles by 13 miles could be seen off the Louisiana coast.

05/12/2016 09:55 pm ET

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/shell-oil-spil...

HOUSTON (Reuters) - A 2,100-barrel oil spill in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico forced Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday to shut in all wells that flow to its Brutus platform, federal regulators said. The U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said a 2 mile by 13 mile (about 3 km by 21 km) sheen was visible in the sea about 97 miles off the Louisiana coast.

Listen To The Bizarre Sound Deep Sea Critters Make Each Night

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bizarre-sound-...

Each night, billions of marine organisms around the globe travel from the mesopelagic zone — a dark stretch of ocean ranging from 660 to 3,300 feet deep — up to the surface to get their fill. While the feeding frenzy is well documented, scientists for the very first time have captured what the mass migration of fish, shrimp, jellyfish and squid sounds like. “It’s not that loud, it sounds like a buzzing or humming, and that goes on for an hour to two hours, depending on the day,” Simone Baumann-Pickering, a marine biologist at the University of California, San Diego and co-author of the new study, said in a release.

Deadly salmon disease found in B.C. farmed stock, federal scientists say

It is not clear yet if HSMI disease in farmed Atlantic salmon could threaten B.C.'s wild salmon

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/far...

A feared viral disease proven deadly in Norwegian fish farms has been confirmed for the first time by federal scientists studying farmed salmon in B.C.

Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation (HSMI) has been linked to the deaths of up to 20 per cent of stock at some Norwegian farms.

"The concern is that it is a disease that hasn't previously been detected in B.C. and at the present time we really don't have sufficient evidence to know if it causes mortality or is a production issue here," said Kristi Miller, part of a team of federal scientists studying farmed fish samples from sites along the B.C. coast.

The lesions indicated that the fish had HSMI, a disease found in several countries including Norway in the late 1990s, where it was linked to low levels of mortality ranging from 0-20 per cent on various farms.

'A fish that has heart disease and muscle damage ... it's not going to make it up to spawn' - Rick Routledge, Simon Fraser University professor

"We know that this virus, in other parts of the world, can be observed in freshwater origin fish and we believe we know that here in B.C. in Atlantic salmon," Miller said Friday.

"But in Norway, while the virus can be observed in fish in hatcheries, the prevalence of the virus can become much, much higher in the marine environment," she added.

The fear is that the virus will spread to wild fish once it gets into the open ocean.

Miller's team used cutting-edge technology and collaborated with international scientists to study 2,400 live and dying salmon from four Vancouver island fish farms from 2013-2015..

Scientists are trying to define the relationship between HSMI and a virus known as Piscine Reo-virus (PRV).

This virus was first identified in farmed Atlantic salmon in Norway. It's linked to HSMI, but research is still underway to determine whether PVR is the cause of the heart and skeletal inflammation.

While experts say there is no definitive proof that one causes the other, the evidence suggests that relationship.

Simon Fraser University professor Rick Routledge said that despite the low mortality of farmed fish, HSMI could really hurt wild salmon.

"A fish that has heart disease and muscle damage ... it's not going to make it up to spawn," said Routledge.

Federal biologists have found no evidence of HSMI disease in wild salmon in B.C.

Research is still in early stages, and will continue.

With files from Stephanie Mercier

CAPE BRETON CTV NEWS 2016

Iona, Nova Scotia: Thurs. June 2nd to Sun. June 5th, 2016

Aros na Mara World Oceans Day 2016

http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=884723

Wood Lake BC a little cleaner

The shoreline of Wood Lake is a little cleaner thanks to the efforts of a handful of volunteers who gave up their Sunday to clear trash from the local lake. Bags of plastics, Styrofoam and other garbage was collected along the banks of the popular Okanagan fishing lake. Wind, rain and run off flush the materials into the lake, but sometimes it is simply tossed there by people.

World Ocean Day is June 8 and and people around the world are encouraged to clean up local waterways.

Darren Handschuh - Apr 4, 2016
http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-162329-...

Good News: Small Brewery Uses Edible 6 Pack Rings Instead of Plastic

Edible six-pack rings

Robin Jones - May 20, 2016 / 12:01 am | Story: 166186

Most plastic six-pack rings end up in our oceans and pose a serious threat to wildlife. This new edible six-pack packaging design actually feeds animals instead of killing them. (Note: If a small brewery can do this, we must demand that all breweries protect our marine life and STOP using plastic rings)

A group of beermakers in Delray Beach, Fla., north of Miami, has created a way to sell six packs with rings that are made of biedegradable — and edible — material.

Saltwater Brewery now sells “edible six pack rings … using barley and wheat remnants from the brewing process,” the company says in a video, below:

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-166186-...

http://news.discovery.com/earth/oceans/brewery-mak...

http://www.sciencealert.com/these-edible-six-pack-...

Between 40,000 and 110,000 metric tons of plastic from Americans ends up in the ocean every year, according to a study in Science last year. Researchers said the plastic waste frequently comes from coastal areas — but some also makes its way through inland waterways to the ocean.

How Does Your Plastic Bag Get Into the Ocean?

Plastic can become stuck in sea animals’ bodies along with toxic chemicals and bacteria absorbed by the material.

“We ideated, designed, prototyped and manufactured Edible Six Pack Rings,” according to We Believers, a NY-based ad agency that partnered with the brewery on the project. “A six-pack packaging design that instead of killing animals, feeds them."

And while it’s not clear that you’d want to encourage sea animals to eat beer packaging — biodegradable or otherwise — if this packaging does make it to sea, at least it's possible it will dissolve or can be consumed.

Good News: Meet Ooho!, the Edible, Plastic-Free Water Bottle

http://www.discovery.com/dscovrd/tech/meet-ooho-th...

It's no secret that plastic water bottles are a detriment to the environment -- Americans alone use approximately 50 billion plastic water bottles each year, only 23% of which are recycled. Thus, an additional 38 billion plastic bottles begin a centuries-long decomposition journey annually.

What if we could replace those plastic bottles with something more environmentally friendly -- edible, even?

Enter Ooho!, a completely biodegradable water "bottle" that eschews plastic packaging altogether for a biodegradable seaweed- and calcium chloride-based membrane that is safe for human consumption. Vaguely reminiscent of a silicone implant, Ooho! is essentially an edible water balloon. When you're ready to hydrate, you simply pierce the membrane and slurp away:

To create the bottles, spheres of ice are treated with a liquid form of the seaweed-derived membrane. When the membrane solidifies and the water melts, a portable, eco-friendly serving of packaged water remains. Each orb costs only 2 cents to construct.

"The most clear inspiration is the way nature encapsulate liquids using membranes. Made of lipids and proteins, the membrane enclose, limit and give a shape, keeping the balance between the interior and the exterior," the product's designers write.

Ooho! is the brainchild of London-based Skipping Rocks Lab, which just received a sizable sustainability grant from the European Union to hopefully introduce its novel concept on a large scale. The product also won the Lexus Design Award last year.

Good News: Oceana Canada

Mission: Save the Oceans, Feed The World

http://www.oceana.ca/en

Protecting the World's Oceans

Good News: Change Is In The Air

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-suzuki/change-i...

When Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in June 1914, no one thought, "Uh-oh, World War I is starting..." We only recognize the significance of events in the context of history. I recently had a day like any other except it made me wonder if we're on the verge of historical change.

On March 2, 2016, I woke to CBC's Early Edition and heard program host Rick Cluff interviewing Canada's Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna. She was explaining her infant government's intention to meet the emissions targets set in Paris in December.

(Please see David Suzuki's full article on Huffington Post)

The reporters wanted to know what specific proposals we had to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I pointed out the important hurdle was to commit to reduce emissions, because until we start, we won't know what opportunities will arise. I reminded them that in 1961 when President John F. Kennedy said the U.S. would get American astronauts safely to the moon and back in a decade, no one knew how they were going to do it.

Amazingly, not only did they achieve the goal before the decade was over, there were hundreds of totally unanticipated spinoffs, including laptops, cellphones, GPS, ear thermometers and space blankets. I am absolutely certain the same will happen when we commit to avoiding chaotic climate change.

This day wasn't much different than the day before or the next one, but it made me feel that a revolution is already underway.

Learn more at www.davidsuzuki.org.

Good News: New Research Offers Much-Needed Hope For Our Oceans

“We can have our fish and eat it too.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/healthy-fisher...

Earth’s fisheries are in bad shape — populations of some stocks, including tuna and mackerel, declined 74 percent between 1970 and 2010. A new study, however, offers a glimmer of hope of what we could expect in the not-so-distant future if global action is taken.

The study, published in Monday’s issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds that with better fishing practices, the majority of the world’s fisheries — 77 percent, to be exact — could recover to a healthy state within a decade. And by 2050, global fish populations could double, resulting in a 204 percent profit increase for the world’s fishermen.

Amanda Leland, senior vice president for oceans at the Environmental Defense Fund and a co-author of the study, called the findings surprising and inspiring.

“There’s a really positive story right around the corner,” she told The Huffington Post. “We can have our fish and eat it too.”

“It would be very hard to find another global, significant environmental challenge that could be solved so quickly,” Leland added.

For the study, researchers from the Environmental Defense Fund, the University of Washington and the University of California, Santa Barbara analyzed data from 4,713 fisheries worldwide — representing 78 percent of global reported fish catch.

To no surprise, they found that business as usual would result in a

“continued collapse for many of the world’s fisheries.” Sustainable

management reforms, however, including science-based catch limits, could

generate yearly increases of more than 16 million metric tons of

seafood, with annual profits of $53 billion, according to the research.

Good News: After years of pressure, Sea World to stop breeding orcas

Jennifer Kay And Mike Schneider, The Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla. - After years of pressure, SeaWorld made a surprise announcement: It no longer breeds killer whales in captivity and will soon stop making them leap from their pools or splash audiences on command.

Surrendering Thursday to a profound shift in how people feel about using animals for entertainment, the SeaWorld theme parks have joined a growing list of industries dropping live animal tricks. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is retiring all of its touring elephants in May. Once-popular animal shows in Las Vegas have virtually disappeared.

"Society's attitude toward these very, very large, majestic animals under human care has shifted for a variety of reasons, whether it's a film, legislation, people's comments on the Internet," SeaWorld Entertainment CEO Joel Manby said. "It wasn't worth fighting that. We needed to move where society was moving."

SeaWorld's 29 killer whales will remain in captivity, but in "new, inspiring natural orca encounters," according to the company. SeaWorld's orcas range in age from 1 to 51 years old, so some could remain on display for decades.

Attendance at SeaWorld's parks declined after the 2013 release of "Blackfish," a highly critical documentary. Some top musical acts dropped out of SeaWorld-sponsored concerts at the urging of animal rights activists, who kept up a visible presence demonstrating outside the parks' gates.

Still, the decision shocked advocates who have spent decades campaigning against keeping marine mammals captive, and it represents a sharp U-turn from SeaWorld's previous reaction to the documentary.

In August 2014, SeaWorld announced major new investments in the orca program, including new, larger tanks, first in San Diego and then at its parks in Orlando and San Antonio, Texas.

But the California Coastal Commision didn't approve the $100 million expansion until last October, and when it did, it banned orca breeding as part of the decision. SeaWorld sued, arguing that the commission overstepped its authority, but said it would end its San Diego orca shows by 2017.

Meanwhile, SeaWorld brought in a new leader with more experience in regional theme parks than zoos and aquariums, which have been fending off such protests for decades. Manby was hired as SeaWorld CEO last March 19 after running Dollywood and other musically-themed parks. He said Thursday that he brought a "fresh perspective" to the killer whale quandary, and soon realized that "society is shifting here."

Orcas have been a centerpiece of the SeaWorld parks since shows at the Shamu stadium in San Diego became the main draw in the 1970s. But criticism has steadily increased in the decades since and then became sharper after an orca named Tilikum battered and drowned trainer Dawn Brancheau after a "Dine with Shamu" show in Orlando in 2010.

Her death was highlighted in "Blackfish," and it wasn't the first for Tilikum. The whale also killed an animal trainer and a trespasser in the 1990s.

"Blackfish" director Gabriela Cowperthwaite said she applauds SeaWorld's decision, "but mostly I applaud the public for recalibrating how they feel ethically about orcas in captivity."

The new orca shows will begin next year at the San Diego park, before expanding to its San Antonio park and then to Orlando in 2019, Manby said.

What about shows involving dolphins and other marine mammals?

"Stay tuned on that," Manby said. "A lot of people don't understand how hard it is internally to make these kinds of decisions. We need to execute this well. We need to make sure we have the organization in the same direction. Then we will apply those learnings elsewhere."

SeaWorld has not only discontinued breeding orcas through artificial insemination; it also feeds the whales birth control medication, Manby said.

One of SeaWorld's most prolific breeders has been Tilikum. The 35-year-old whale has sired 14 calves during his 23 years in Orlando, but he's gravely ill now and not expected to live much longer.

"So you're saying you're ending your breeding program? Well, guess what? Your breeding program is ending anyhow. I think it's greenwashing," said Ric O'Barry, who directs the DolphinProject.net advocacy group.

In 2012, SeaWorld sent workers to infiltrate the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which has been particularly critical. Manby confirmed the effort last month. He said the undercover workers were sent to protect the safety of SeaWorld employees and customers, but he vowed to end the practice.

Now, SeaWorld hopes to turn a less strident foe, the Humane Society, into a collaborator, helping to educate guests about animal welfare and conservation through interpretive programs and expanded advocacy for wild whales, seals and other marine creatures.

Humane Society CEO Wayne Pacelle, who called SeaWorld's about-face a "monumental announcement," said his organization is by no means naive about SeaWorld, but sees a chance to make progress for animal rights."

"We didn't want to be endlessly mired in conflict," Pacelle said.

PETA wasn't satisfied, insisting Thursday that SeaWorld should give up its orcas altogether.

"SeaWorld must open its tanks to the oceans to allow the orcas it now holds captive to have some semblance of a life outside these prison tanks," PETA spokeswoman Colleen O'Brien said in a statement.

Manby countered that no captive dolphin or orca has been successfully released into the wild.

SeaWorld is abandoning plans to expand its orca tanks now that the breeding program has ended, the company said. A spokeswoman for the California Coastal Commission praised this, and suggested that SeaWorld drop its lawsuit as well.

Manby said SeaWorld's three marine parks may move closer to the balance of rides, shows and animals found at the company's Busch Gardens parks. They need a mixture of experiences to keep a family at the park all day, he said.

"I do think you have to have more rides," Manby said. "Some of these messages about animal welfare ... You can't hit them with that all day because sometimes it's a heavy message. You have to balance it."

___

Associated Press writer Freida Frisaro in Miami contributed this report.

Very Important Announcements

on World Oceans Day:

# 1 OCEANA: Ted Danson (author, environmental activist and Cheers/CSI actor) was in Canada on World Oceans Day to announce the launch of Oceana Canada. www.Oceana.ca as part of the international organization's work to protect the oceans and feed the world, with scientists working to change fishing policies and practices. Mr. Danson was interviewed by most media and stated "Canada has amongst the worlds top scientists" and he cautioned people not to eat farmed fish. As spokes person for the scientists and Board member at Oceana, Ted Danson was interviewed by The Toronto Star, City TV, CTV, Global TV, The Weather Network and more.

http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1550181/media-aler...

# 2 GOOGLE: According to their News Release, Google chose World Oceans Day to launch 40 underwater ocean cameras to highlight the need to learn about and preserve our oceans.

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/goo...

To see the 40 underwater ocean cameras:

https://www.google.com/maps/views/streetview/ocean...

Harmful Practices of Industrial Aquaculture (Shellfish Farms)

ADIMS is not opposed to sustainable aquaculture but many of the existing industry practices are harmful to the marine environment and not sustainable. These practices destroy habitat for marine birds and other marine life and result in a deterioration and loss of marine areas for other uses and values such as tourism, recreation, other fisheries (both sport and commercial), and safe anchorages. (Volunteers on Denman Island pick up between 3 and 5 tons of plastics every year, most of it from the shell fish farms).

https://adimsblog.wordpress.com/harmful-practices-...

The Weather Network

The Weather Network announces World Oceans Day, June 8th, four times per hour all through the day.

Ban On Captivity of Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises Sought in Canada

Senator Wilfred Moore has introduced a bill to ban the captivity of healthy whales, dolphins and porpoise in Canada, stating the practice is cruel and inhumane and contravenes current animal protection laws; this bill is gaining both political and public support. Keeping the animals cooped up for the sake of entertainment is unjustifiably cruel, said Sen. Wilfred Moore

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/captivity-of-whale...

World Oceans Day: 10 endangered and at-risk marine animals

Monday, June 8, marks World Oceans Day

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/photos/world-oceans-d...

Successful World Oceans Day events in Cape Breton Island encourages volunteers to pursue a Marine Science Centre

http://www.capebretonpost.com/News/Local/2015-06-0...

Trawlers & Technology Killing Our Ocean Fish

As Oceans Become Killing Field, Fish We Eat Dwindle
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/oceans-bec...

Oceans Drowning In Junk

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-141310-...

Retailers/Manufacturers Plan To Stop Using Products Harmful To Waterways & Fish

Loblaws, who also owns Shoppers Drugmart, has pledged to stop selling products with triclosan, phthalates and microbeads by the end of 2018. Loblaws has joined other retailers in a pledge to only sell sustainable fish. (Walmart, Sobeys, Save On Foods, Safeway and Cosco have also pledged to sell only sustainable fish).

Some companies have promised a voluntary phase-out of plastic beads which pollute our lakes/rivers/oceans killing marine life and birds. Others have made no commitments.

Promises to phase-out:

Beiersdorf (by the end of 2015)
Colgate-Palmolive (by end of 2014)
Johnson & Johnson (by end of 2017, phase 1 by the end of 2015)
L’Oreal (by the end of 2017)
Proctor & Gamble (March 2016)
Unilever (January 2015)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/...

http://glslcities.org/initiatives/microplastics/

Step 1: recycle plastics, Step 2: stop using plastics completely

CBC Radio with indepth interviews: we must stop the use of plastic stir sticks, plastic lids, styrofoam cups etc. The oceans are polluted with micro plastics.

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/the-current-for...

World Oceans Day: Rivers & lakes loaded with artificial sweeteners

http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/rivers-lakes-loaded-w...

Plastic Pollution Problems in Great Lakes

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-140988-...

by The Canadian Press | Story: 140988 - May 28, 2015 / 6:45 pm

About 80 per cent of human-made debris found in the Great Lakes is plastic, ranging from tiny micro-beads found in cosmetics and clothing fibers to bottles and plastic wrap, scientists said Thursday during a meeting of Great Lakes scientists being held at the University of Vermont.

While the big pieces can be ugly, the smaller pieces can attract dangerous chemicals, such as pesticides or herbicides, which can then be eaten by plankton, mussels, fish or birds, the scientists said.

"The concern is ... these plastics act as a means to move ... toxic compounds into the food web and into us," said Sherri Mason, a chemist who led a Thursday session on micro-plastics at the 58th Annual Conference on Great Lakes Research.

The danger of plastic pollution in the world's oceans has been around for some time. However, the scientific awareness of the threat to the Great Lakes is relatively new, only coming to the attention of scientists in the last several years, said Mason, who works at the State University of New York at Fredonia.

During the past couple of years, Mason and her colleagues have documented micro-plastic litter — some too small to see with the naked eye — in the Great Lakes. Some of the particles are abrasive beads used in personal care products such as facial and body washes and toothpastes. Others are more traditional litter that don't decompose and only gets broken into smaller pieces.

Some states are making efforts to control the microbeads. Earlier this week, Michigan's two Democratic U.S. Senators, Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, introduced legislation to phase out the manufacture and sale of microbeads found in household products. Similar legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House.

Thursday's sessions were for scientists to bring each other up to speed on what is being done in different parts of the Great Lakes to confront the problem. They heard of efforts to count how much plastic is washing up on beaches in the U.S. and Canada. They also heard of efforts to count plastic pieces floating in the water of the lakes and their tributaries and in the sediment on the bottom.

The meeting also gave the scientists the opportunity to trade techniques and tips as detailed as the size of mesh that's most effective when used to skim for tiny plastics.

"The goal of all of this ... is creating a framework for assessing the risk of these plastics in the environment," said Melissa Duhaime of the University of Michigan. "So (we're) thinking about the risk of exposure to plastics and potentially to toxins, potentially to microbes and what the implications might be."

World Oceans Day; tell politicians climate change matters

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Monday+June+Tell+...

Five Things; Why World Oceans Day should be a big deal

http://blogs.theprovince.com/2015/06/06/five-thing...

Google announces 40 underwater ocean cameras on World Oceans Day

Working with many partners including NOAA, Google has established 40 underwater ocean cameras to help monitor and research our oceans, making the announcement on World Oceans Day.

https://www.google.com/maps/views/streetview/ocean...

Pipelines in focus for World Oceans Day

http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/opinion/columnis...

Ontario Killer Whale Ban Passes

By The Canadian Press

Posted: 05/28/2015 4:53 pm EDT

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/05/28/ontario-pa...

TORONTO - Ontario has passed a bill that prohibits the breeding and acquisition of killer whales as well as other animal protection rules.

The bill, named the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, also includes rules that require animal welfare committees at any facility that has marine mammals.

The bill also includes a requirement for marine parks — there is only one in Ontario — to have qualified veterinarians with marine mammal expertise to oversee preventive and clinical care.

Yasir Naqvi, the minister of community safety and correctional services, says banning the breeding and acquisition of killer whales is something Ontarians expect and the animals deserve.

Kiska, the lone killer whale in Canada that lives at Marineland, a tourist park in Niagara Falls, Ont., is excluded from the bill.

The province says it is also working on developing standards of care for marine mammals as laid out in a report by a University of British Columbia marine biologist.

Plastics in St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes

Learn what industry is doing about it and how you can help!

http://www.glslcities.org/initiatives/microplastic...

Plastic pollution devastating the world's oceans

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/technolo...

We thought the oceans were too big to fail; we were wrong

The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) brought Dr. Sylvia Earle to Ottawa to speak. in May 2015. Dr. Earle stated

Ottawa CPAWS Dr. Sylvia Earle stated "We thought the ocean was too big to fail, but this was wrong".
http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/oceanogra...

This World Oceans Day, June 8 help save 1 million marine animals

http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1551291/this-world...

Little good news about the aweful amount of plastic in the ocean

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/05/ocean-pla...

TVO Oceans Films

http://tvo.org/story/tvo-covers-world-oceans-day

Dalhousie University wants education materials into classrooms earlier

http://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=630962

(Note: Communicating with Education Departments and Teachers across Canada for the past 4 years, World Oceans Day has been successful at reaching students, particularly younger children with our Lessons and Educational Resources)

Holy mackerel: A delicious, cheap, sustainable fish for World Oceans Day

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2015/06/08/holy-mac...

Rehabilitated Turtles Return to the Oceans

http://www.ctvnews.ca/photo-galleries/turtles-retu...

On World Oceans Day Let's Learn to Treat the Seas Better

David Suzuki

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-suzuki/world-oc...

CANADA IS FOUND TO BE SEVERELY LACKING WHEN IT COMES TO PROTECTING ITS OCEAN ECOSYSTEMS

June 1, 2015

A report released today by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society says Canada is doing a poor job protecting its ocean ecosystems from industrial development. It says only 0.11 per cent of Canada's ocean territory is fully closed to what it calls extractive activities such as fishing and oil and gas development. That compares quite poorly to the United States and the United Kingdom where the fully protected area is closer to 10 per cent.

____

Content Provided By Tim Callanan, Canadian Press.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/canada-not-doing-enou...

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/five-stories-news-today-...

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canad...

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-141154-...

Our Oceans In Peril

By Reese Halter May 27, 2015

http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2015/05...

CO2 in our oceans

The Keeling Curve

https://scripps.ucsd.edu/programs/keelingcurve/201...

http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/critical...

June 8th

CTV Vancouver Shore line cleanup

CBC

CBC Vancouver June 8th reviewed movies

CBC National News on June 7, 2013

Duncan McCue

CO2 Marker

Increase Of Carbon Dioxide In Our World Has Reached Critical Level

Duncan McCue

http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/Technology%20and%20S...

Keeling scale; increase of carbon dioxide in the world has reached a critical level

CBC National TV

Rise Of Jellyfish Reveals Sickness Of World’s Oceans

Expert fears jellyfish could take over oceans

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2013/06/07...

CBC

It’s World Oceans Day But The Waters Not Fine

George Stroumboulopoulos

http://www.cbc.ca/strombo/social-issues/its-world-oceans-day-come-on-in-the-waters-not-fine.html

CBC

World Oceans Day Sheds Light On Our Blighted Seas

Bob McDonald

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/quirks-quarks-blog/2013/06/world-oceans-day-sheds-light-on-our-blighted-seas.html

Cities around the world are celebrating our blue planet with World Oceans Day on June 8. Beach cleanups, festivals, lectures, art shows and many other activities will focus on the need to take better care of our most valuable resource. And the oceans desperately need our attention.

CBC

Oceans of Plastic

http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/episode/2013/02/16/februa...

CBC Radio

Thursday June 6, 2013

Sharks! In charge of the Eco-system in our oceans.

Saturday (June 8th) is World Oceans Day, and there is no better way to celebrate than to learn about the King of the Seas. Sharks are fearless predators that troll the oceans for prey.

According to a recent study from the University of British Columbia, there's a lot of money at stake as well. Our shark-loving science columnist, Torah Kachur, has the details.

Eco Tourism; watching sharks in their natural habitat is worth $300,000,000 per year and expected to grow to over $700,000,000 per year. They are worth more alive than dead.

Sharks are in charge of the Eco-system in our oceans. They eat sick fish, encouraging the growth of healthy fish.Sharks have declined 97% in recent years.

http://www.cbc.ca/airplay/

GLOBAL TV

Water not a finite resource mentioned on BC news June 7th

Use Seabirds To Monitor The Oceans

http://globalnews.ca/news/530109/use-seabirds-to-m...

Humpback Whale Resurgence

http://globalnews.ca/news/402723/graphic-monday-bo...

Canada Water magazine

http://watercanada.net/2012/june-8-2013-world-ocea...

AEROPLAN

Send photo or drawing and Aeroplan will donate 1,000 air miles to Ocean Initiative

http://blog.aeroplan.com/beyond-miles/help-support-world-oceans-day-send-us-your-whale-and-aeroplan-will-donate-1000-miles-to-oceans-initiative/

Metro News free newspaper

Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Montreal, Ottawa, Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, Windsor, Winnipeg

Photos and links on the front page of every newspaper on June 7, 2013

EARTH SKY

http://earthsky.org/todays-image/happy-world-oceans-day

CANADA HOME SCHOOL website

http://canadashomeschool.ca/event/surreys-10th-ann...

CANADA FOUNDATION FOR INNOVATION

Canada Rides The Ocean Science Wave

5 projects which help marine research

http://www.innovation.ca/en/ResearchInAction/Impac...

CANADIAN BOREAL INITIATIVE

http://www.borealcanada.ca/research-workshops-e.ph...

EMBASSY NEWS

http://www.embassynews.ca/

CANADIAN TEACHER MAGAZINE

http://www.canadianteachermagazine.com/

THE COVE GUARDIANBook Releases

http://thecoveguardian.blogspot.ca/2013/05/world-ocean-day-book-release.html

30 Days before the World Ocean Day Ebook Launch an Indiegogo Campaign was launched to "Help" this new very informative book that gives Marine Life a Voice

World Ocean Day Book Release!

JUNE 8th - 2013

21st Century - The Age of Protection

Not only a voice for the ocean;

This is a journey of an artist”

Six long years in the making and the book is finally complete!

30 Days before the World Ocean Day Ebook Launch an Indiegogo Campaign was launched to "Help" this new very informative book that gives Marine Life a Voice become a paperback book to be donated to schools and libraries. This book was compiled of facts of marine life slaughters, government actions and non-action, and organizations from grass-roots up doing great work.

'EDUCATE to ACTIVATE' Help '21st Century - The Age Of Protection' Into Schools by joining the campaign

There is an Ocean Crisis that needs to be truthfully told &

Why Not through a Visual Voice!

This book has created a visual voice for thousands of marine life calls for action! From sharks, whales, seals, dolphins, turtles, and mass communities by overfishing. These lives have a story that need to be told in order to stop the attrocities inflicted upon them.

A lot of great action from Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has been documented on a few paintings along with the immediate story on how their actions inspired me to paint them with the whales and seals - Chapters 2 & 3 & 6

Summary from the Book:

"We along with several other species, are being faced with the possibility of extinction. As a result of extensive research, I have drawn the conclusion that sometime within the past 50-60 years, 90% of everything living on the planet has been affected in a devastating manner. As an example, currently only 10% of wild lions, sharks and coral reefs remain. Deforestation is becoming as commonplace as climate change. One thing is for certain: Homo sapiens are directly responsible for these atrocities against nature.

A crucial and urgent choice faces us: we can either continue on this path of extinction or immediately start to protect what we love - LIFE!

I wrote this book in response to the issue of shark finning, initially raised over six years ago with the release of the film, Sharkwater. At that time, my paintings reflected current issues affecting the world’s oceans, and how we, as a species, were literally transforming this biosphere into a world of waste and consumption. I also became better acquainted with the conservation actions of Sea Shepherd and their Antarctic whaling campaigns.

Canadian Association of Science Centres

http://www.canadiansciencecentres.ca/?n=29-59#calendar_21

Elizabeth May, MP

http://www.greenparty.ca/blogs/7/2013-06-05/oceans-risk-never

Oceans At Risk Like Never Before

Acidification is the equally evil twin’ of the climate crisis.

Today, June 5, is World Environment Day, and June 8 is World Oceans Day, with the full week marked in Canada by legislation as Environment Week.

Under other prime ministers, Environment Week was a big deal. When I worked for Tom McMillan, environment minister under former prime minister Brian Mulroney, Environment Canada distributed $1 million in funding to community and environmental groups across Canada for community awareness-raising activities during Environment Week. This effort to give very small grants to groups across Canada for Environment Week continued under prime ministers Chrétien and Martin. No more.

The focus on June 8 on our oceans is a rare time when we actually turn our attention to the source of life on earth. As terrestrial creatures, we tend to forget that life on dry land is not possible without life in our oceans. Our survival is intimately connected to the oceansfor the protein we consume from the fisheries, for the role played by oceans in carbon sequestration and moderating climate, among other essential functions.

The threats to the health of our oceans are growing as never before. As the excellent report from Justice Bruce Cohen on the fate of the wild British Columbia salmon pointed out, the threats are multiple and complex. The Cohen report enumerated the threats to salmon, closely mirroring the threats throughout the oceans: land-based sources of marine pollution, over-fishing, climate change, aquaculture operations, loss of habitat, to name a few. The fact that the federal fisheries minister has still not responded to this landmark report does not bode well.

Warming waters

Among the many threats, as Justice Cohen noted, the growth of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is the greatest threat of all. The impacts of climate change on the ocean are as complex as the myriad interconnected threats from all the other reckless actions of humanity.

Warmer water has immediate negative impacts on some critical ecosystems. In the tropics, warmer water triggers bleaching of coral reefsending the life in those extraordinarily biologically diverse bits of paradise.

In Canada, warmer inland waters, particularly in critical salmon habitat in rivers and streams, essentially eliminate salmon habitat. Salmon are entirely dependent on cool waters for spawning and for the new fry to travel safely out to sea.

And, of course, in our Arctic waters, global warming is causing dramatic and dangerous loss of Arctic ice. The impacts on ecosystems are profound. The loss of ice has local effects, such as threatening the survival of polar bears and the Inuit traditional way of life. It also has global effects, such as driving the climate into new extremes of life-threatening intense storms, heat waves, and droughts.

Ocean acidification

Perhaps the most devastating threat created by our collective failure to effectively limit the growth in greenhouse gas emissions is that of ocean acidification. The increased level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is transferring carbon to our oceans. The gases in the atmosphere and water mix. Carbon moves from atmosphere to ocean. Most of this transfer has been beneficial in playing a critical role in pulling carbon from the atmosphere.

Over the last 200 years, it is estimated that the oceans have absorbed about one-third of all the greenhouse gases released through human activity. Certainly, the climate crisis would be more aggressive and dangerous if the oceans had not been providing this key “netting out” effect.

However, as that carbon loading has continued unabated, the carbon in the ocean is changing the chemistry of ocean water. Generally, ocean water is alkaline (or basic). However, as carbon mixes and changes in its chemistry, it becomes carbonic acid. Over time, the ocean is becoming acidified.

The impact of ocean acidification is already having measurable impacts in weakening the shells of crustaceans. All crustaceans need carbonate in order to build shells, but carbonic acid is corrosive to crustacean shells.

The potential assault on all crustaceans would have a devastating impact on the food chainultimately threatening all life in the ocean. As the head of the NOAA (the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), Jane Lubchenco, told the National Geographic, ocean acidification is the “equally evil twin” of the climate crisis.

As a society, we are failing to confront even those manageable and local impacts of treating the oceans as a resource so abundant that we make the mistake of assuming it to be infinite. As we cannot manage the conventional threats, little wonder we turn a blind eye to the threat posed by our use of the atmosphere as a free dump for fossil fuel pollution to the life in our oceans.

HUFFINGTON POST

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/07/world-oceans-day-2013-june-8_n_3404822.html?utm_hp_ref=green

World Oceans Day 2013: Time To Celebrate, Conserve The Blue Part Of The Planet (PHOTOS)

The Huffington Post | By Nick Visser Posted: 06/07/2013 5:39 pm EDT

Follow:

Climate Change, Oceans, 2013 World Ocean Day, 2013 World Oceans Day, World Oceans Day, Ocean, Ocean Acidification, Ocean Conservation, Ocean Photos, World Ocean Day, World Ocean Day 2013, World Oceans Day 2013, World Oceans Day Photos, Green News

June 8 marks the 21st annual World Oceans Day, a time to commemorate the blue part of the planet while galvanizing support for increasingly threatened aquatic ecosystems.

Celebrate World Oceans Day: Together We Have the Power to Protect the Oceans

Posted: 06/07/2013 9:17 pm

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-dave-randle/celebrate-world-oceans-da_b_3406046.html

Dr. Dave Randle

President & CEO of the WHALE Center

World Oceans Day: Time to Stop the War on Our Oceans

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matthew-spiegl/world-oceans-day_b_3399170.html

Matthew Spiegl, Lawyer, Ocean Advocate

On June 8, we celebrate World Oceans Day, but all is not well with the sea. There is a war on our oceans, and it's a fight we can't afford to lose.

The enemy is within -- it is us -- it is our generation failing the next. It is what we have allowed ourselves and our society to become. It is what we have tolerated and accepted from our representatives in Congress for far too long.

In our apathy, in our absence to speak and our failure to act, we have emboldened and empowered a disengaged fringe group of politicians who are intent on blocking and dismantling vital ocean conservation measures.

On our watch, we have left our youngest, our most innocent and vulnerable, precious children, with an uncertain future on a planet that may not be able to sustain them -- all because we are not holding our government accountable.

As a society, we all share in the blame, as we have mindlessly ignored the warning signs time and time again, and passively watched the systematic destruction of the oceans blue building blocks; the very foundation upon which our planet and the next generation's future depends.

World Ocean Day

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-neill/world-oc...

Peter NeillDirector, World Ocean Observatory

On June 8, we celebrate World Ocean Day, a date designated by the United Nations to recognize our relationship with the ocean through so many different ways of global connection. Around the world, through the World Ocean Network, The Ocean Project, and many other organizations with ocean interests, events will take place to highlight the value of ocean resources. There will be maritime festivals and beach clean-ups, school projects and environmental presentations the world over. What was once a bright idea is now an international event that for one brief moment focuses some part of ephemeral world interest on the ocean and its benefit for all mankind.

Of course, every day is ocean day. And we can claim that with the authority of the headlines that every day point to some ocean issue of import: the catastrophic disaster of a failed drilling rig or shipping accident, piracy in Arabian waters, the trade impact of an expanded Panama Canal, the security implications of the opening of Northern Arctic passages, the decline of fisheries across the world economy, the vast plastic wasteland floating in mid-Pacific, the arrival of Japanese tsunami debris drifting onto American shores, and the continuing, growing evidence of the negative impact of climate change on the ocean and its capacity for supporting all aspects of human survival.

What is Ocean Day meant to do? If all those concerned with ocean issues were to shout at once, there would be a compelling noise, enough to let us know that others around the world also care, enough to give us confidence that our whole is greater by the sum of our individual voices, and perhaps enough to penetrate the consciousness of a political structure that for the most part continues to ignore ocean issues, willfully waiting until it is too late. Sadly, if we hear anything at all, it is either the silence of indifference, or the shrill pitch of denial, or occasionally, the clear prescient voice of science and reality, there, but apparently not yet loud enough to make the necessary difference for the deciders.

A recent survey conducted by The Ocean Project has indicated that public awareness of ocean issues in the United States has not advanced at all over a ten-year period -- no progress despite consistent and continuing efforts by conservation, ocean, and other environmental organizations to inform and educate. What, then, does it take for the will of the people to coalesce around a single issue, to be informed and changed into a voice for change, and to counter the lassitude and cynicism? The analogy that occurs of course is the ocean itself, believed to be infinite in its capacity to dissolve the toxins, absorb the oil, sequester the CO2, cleanse the waste, circulate the protein and fresh water, heal itself along with the poisons of others. Cleaning the beaches on Ocean Day is a reminder of what the ocean cannot assimilate - poly nets and fishing lines, plastic bags and containers, and congealed residue of too much oil spilled or chemicals deposited, fish and birds struggling to recover from polluted, de-oxygenated waters, and disrupted lives of so many worldwide who have for generations made their living from the sea. This detritus, both natural and social, is ample evidence that the ocean has reached its limit and that, if we continue to despoil it, we risk a vast, terrible, irretrievable loss.

When we stand by the sea, or when we imagine it in our minds, we perceive Nature in the reality of its movement, shifting light, and sense of life. When we study the ocean, we understand its contribution to our health and well-being through water, food, energy, and economic, cultural, and spiritual connection. Why would we put such a valuable thing at risk? Why would we subvert a national policy to protect it? Why would we ignore a system of governance and law for the sea to manage it? Why, deliberately, through acts of commission and omission, would we allow such a vital, fecund thing to be compromised, poisoned, and killed? Surely, if on this Ocean Day we can come to the realization that such acts are truly self-destructive, we can then use every other day to spread the word, to act in some overt way to change our behaviors, and to otherwise transform the will of one "citizen of the ocean" to become thousands, to become millions, who demand that the ocean be returned from scarcity to abundance, from conflict to accommodation, from exploitation to sustainability, from ignorance to intelligent action for our future.

The ocean will serve us well, forever, if only we demand, now, to serve it better.

World Oceans Day Means Business

Posted: 06/07/2013 5:08 pm

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/greg-stone/world-oceans-day-means-bu_b_3403526.html

Greg Stone

Chief Scientist for Oceans, Conservation International

For the first time in history, some industries face the real possibility of maxing out the Earth's natural resources in an effort to meet growing consumer demand. Ocean resources are of particular concern.

Our oceans are the single largest asset in the world. In 1997, the oceans were estimated to contribute more than US$ 21 trillion in free materials and services such as food provision and oxygen generation. In comparison, the world's GDP at that time was $US 18 trillion. The importance of healthy productive oceans is hard to overstate.

On World Oceans Day, the World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on Oceans is endorsing two initiatives to guide management of ocean resources for the future: the Ocean Health Index and "seafood traceability"(transparent tracking of seafood from source to consumer).

Today, industry faces one of the biggest shifts in its history. Global spending on goods and services is forecast to grow 43 percent in the next 10 years.

For business, it's not a question of "Will we grow?" but "Can we grow enough? "Will finite resources limit our ability to meet the demand by a fast-growing middle class for high-quality foods and products? Can we feed a population of 9 billion people who will require 70 percent more food than we produce today?

We never thought we could "fish out" the world's oceans. But it's happened.

Canada Government

Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans

http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/media/infocus-alaune/2013...

Did you know?

Ten fun facts that you may not know about the oceans:

1.Many say sturgeons are like “living fossils” because they’ve changed so little since first appearing over 200 million years ago.

2.How many gallons of water are in the world’s oceans? In round numbers an estimate is 300 billion, billion imperial gallons, or in scientific terms 3 x 1020 gallons.

3.There are 40 different species of coral living off of Nova Scotia's coast.

4.Bottlenose whales use “ecolocation” to find food – making a sound and listening to the echoes returning from their dinner.

5.If you cut a starfish in half, each half will grow into 2 separate starfish, like an earthworm!

6.A female oyster can lay up to 100,000,000 eggs a year.

7.Dolphins love to play in the bow waves of ships – this common activity is called bow-riding and can be spotted off the coast of Nova Scotia.

8.There are tens of millions of seabirds in Canada’s marine areas at all times of the year.

9.2-3% of Canada’s fresh water is contained in glaciers and ice caps.

10. A “Smolt” is a teenage salmon heading to the ocean.

ALBERTA

City of Lethbridge

http://www.lethbridge.ca/NewsCentre/Pages/Environm...

Alberta Provincial Government

http://www.assembly.ab.ca/visitor/preview.pdf

The Calgary Zoo

Bow River Shuttles

http://bowrivershuttles.blogspot.ca/2013/06/world-...

Alberta Dept of Environment

http://www.environment.gov.ab.ca/edu/eweek/2008/in...

BRITISH COLUMBIA

CBC Vancouver June 8th reviewed movies

CTV Vancouver

Powell River BC Sun FM 95.7
http://www.957sunfm.ca/

White Rock BChttp://www.whiterockcity.ca

Vancouver Sun

Entertainment section noted WOD events

GOOD LIFE magazine, Vancouver

http://goodlifevancouver.com/vancouver-aquarium-celebrate-world-ocean-day/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=vancouver-aquarium-celebrate-world-ocean-day

Vancouver: Lotus Land Tours

http://www.lotuslandtours.com/world-oceans-day-201...

Victoria Times Colonist

http://www.timescolonist.com/entertainment/go/expl...

Victoria Jack FM,

http://www.1031jackfm.ca/2013/06/07/world-oceans-day-in-victoria/

World Oceans Day in Victoria

If there’s one thing we love here on Vancouver Island — It’s the ocean. We put patios near it, covet houses with a view of it, sit on its beaches, hike on the rocks looking for interesting little critters that live in it.

So this Saturday, June 8th on World Oceans Day (the holiday to raise global awareness on issues about our oceans) — I assume you’ll be taking part in all kinds of oceany activities.

Along with your usual walk at Island View Beach you might want to head to Sidney’s Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre. In addition to stuff in side, they’ve got a free event going on behind the aquarium with booths from Parks Canada, Institute of Ocean Sciences along with kids activities.

The Maritime Museum of BC and Bastion Square are also setting up for World Ocean’s Day. They’ll have a Sea Fare, Kids activities and guest speakers.

And there’s more! (say it like an infomercial) This is what’s going on at World Oceans Day at Fisherman’s Wharf.

Vancouver Island

http://www.thelocalweekly.ca/editorial-opinion-19/

Together we have the power to protect our seas

Posted by: Editor June 5, 2013 in Breaking News, Editorial, News Leave a comment

From Langdale to Egmont, the Sunshine Coast is an ocean playground on all accounts. Whether you like kayaking, swimming, setting crab traps or just watching orcas and seals swim by, the ocean provides an abundance of pleasure, food and employment. It is a defining element of our wonderful lifestyle here on the Coast.

World Oceans Day on June 8 will feature celebratory events around the globe.

The Government of Canada first proposed a World Oceans Day back at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Since then, a day to celebrate oceans has been marked in many countries around the globe, and in 2009 the United Nations officially declared a World Oceans Day. Well done Canada!

The purpose of this day is to have people around the world realize what a precious resource our ocean is, and recognize the changes needed to become better caretakers of our oceans. Truly it is a day to learn, share and generally respect what these great waters provide for all of us.

Last year there were 600 events planned in 55 countries and these numbers are growing. Locally, you can do your part by taking the time to learn some new things about the ocean and its benefits along with just heading out and enjoying it for what it’s worth. It’s also a good time to recognize that cutting down on herbicides and pesticides can help keep these pollutants from running off into the ocean.

World Oceans Day spotlights the need to learn more about protecting ocean wildlife by such simple actions as not disposing of fishing lines or plastic items in the water. Protection measures include being considerate of all sea life including sea birds, mammals and turtles by respecting nesting grounds (especially important to future stocks) and using a high level of care around delicate marine sanctuaries.

Most recently, a pod of orcas appeared in Porpoise Bay, herding and hunting a pod of dolphins or porpoises. While many enjoyed observing these magnificent marine mammals from the shore, boaters in the area buzzed very close to them, harassing and disturbing their hunt. This disruptive behaviour by the boaters was later condemned on Facebook. Most Coast residents recognize and celebrate the great mammals returning to our waters and want to keep them safe, and their numbers growing.

Global pollution and poorly managed fisheries have resulted in dwindling numbers of many marine species. Sunshine Coast resident Jay Ritchlin is a director of the David Suzuki Foundation and says “We’ve seen some positive developments in the way Canada manages its oceans, however many challenges remain and everyone needs to play a part by supporting strong marine conservation and making the right seafood choices at the supermarket.”

The World Oceans Day theme for 2013 is ‘Together we have the power to protect the ocean’. Organizers are asking people to make a promise to change one thing in their lives that will help support the ocean, then upload a photo of yourself with that promise to Facebook or any social media site so that all your friends can see.

Since Sunshine Coast tourism, industry and our overall lives are so heavily influenced by the sea, it is important for us to show our support in whatever way we can so that future generations of Coast residents get to enjoy this wonderful ocean playground.

Jim Dorey, Editor

NEWFOUNDLAND

Ranl news website – sustainable fish

http://www.ranl.ca/news.asp?ID=111

NOVA SCOTIA

The Chronicle Herald

http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/1133871-oceans-day-don-t-waver-in-your-duty-to-take-meaningful-action

Oceans Day: Don’t waver in your duty to take meaningful action

Oceans Day (June 8) is a time to think about the issues facing our oceans and to take collective, meaningful action towards addressing them.

However, current problems in oceans management are diverse and complex, and there is a tendency to focus solely on specific issues without recognizing their interconnectedness. This has often created cross-sector conflicts, which, in turn, become a barrier to constructive dialogue and action to support sustainable ocean management.

Site Content

Media Articles

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Media Articles & TV

News from Oceana

The Ocean Cleanup unveils the first prototype

Oil Spills Again

Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico Again

North Dakota, Saskatchewan added to the long list

Whales - spike in injured and dead

Litter in waters hurts fish, birds dolphins

The Oceans Will Contain More Plastic Than Fish By 2050

Yes, you read that correctly.

Researchers estimate 10,000 metric tons of plastic enter Great Lakes every year

Microplastics at 'alarming levels' in Canadian lakes and rivers

These 50 Fascinating Facts About The Ocean Will Boggle Your Mind

Who knew we had learned so much about an environment we’ve explored so little?

Large Swaths Of The Pacific Ocean May Actually Suffocate In Just 15 Years

Take a wild guess what the culprit is.

Another Spill: Shell Oil Spill Dumps Thousands Of Barrels Of Crude Into Gulf Of Mexico

An oil sheen of 2 miles by 13 miles could be seen off the Louisiana coast.

Listen To The Bizarre Sound Deep Sea Critters Make Each Night

Deadly salmon disease found in B.C. farmed stock, federal scientists say

It is not clear yet if HSMI disease in farmed Atlantic salmon could threaten B.C.'s wild salmon

Good News: Small Brewery Uses Edible 6 Pack Rings Instead of Plastic

Good News: Meet Ooho!, the Edible, Plastic-Free Water Bottle

Good News: Oceana Canada

Good News: Change Is In The Air

Good News: New Research Offers Much-Needed Hope For Our Oceans

“We can have our fish and eat it too.”

Good News: After years of pressure, Sea World to stop breeding orcas

Very Important Announcements

Harmful Practices of Industrial Aquaculture (Shellfish Farms)

The Weather Network

Ban On Captivity of Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises Sought in Canada

World Oceans Day: 10 endangered and at-risk marine animals

Monday, June 8, marks World Oceans Day

Successful World Oceans Day events in Cape Breton Island encourages volunteers to pursue a Marine Science Centre

Trawlers & Technology Killing Our Ocean Fish

Oceans Drowning In Junk

Retailers/Manufacturers Plan To Stop Using Products Harmful To Waterways & Fish

Ocean 'blob' of warm water bringing poor food for BC wild salmon

Our ocean is very cool....literally

Piles of plastic pulled

The Real World Oceans Day story lies beneath the surface

Students Turn Ocean Garbage Into Sculpture

Step 1: recycle plastics, Step 2: stop using plastics completely

World Oceans Day: Rivers & lakes loaded with artificial sweeteners

Plastic Pollution Problems in Great Lakes

World Oceans Day; tell politicians climate change matters

Five Things; Why World Oceans Day should be a big deal

Google announces 40 underwater ocean cameras on World Oceans Day

Pipelines in focus for World Oceans Day

Ontario Killer Whale Ban Passes

Plastics in St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes

Plastic pollution devastating the world's oceans

We thought the oceans were too big to fail; we were wrong

This World Oceans Day, June 8 help save 1 million marine animals

Little good news about the aweful amount of plastic in the ocean

TVO Oceans Films

Dalhousie University wants education materials into classrooms earlier

Holy mackerel: A delicious, cheap, sustainable fish for World Oceans Day

Rehabilitated Turtles Return to the Oceans

On World Oceans Day Let's Learn to Treat the Seas Better

CANADA IS FOUND TO BE SEVERELY LACKING WHEN IT COMES TO PROTECTING ITS OCEAN ECOSYSTEMS

Our Oceans In Peril

CO2 in our oceans

June 8th

CTV Vancouver Shore line cleanup

CBC

CBC Vancouver June 8th reviewed movies

CBC National News on June 7, 2013

Duncan McCue

CO2 Marker

Increase Of Carbon Dioxide In Our World Has Reached Critical Level

Duncan McCue

Keeling scale; increase of carbon dioxide in the world has reached a critical level

CBC National TV

Rise Of Jellyfish Reveals Sickness Of World’s Oceans

Expert fears jellyfish could take over oceans