Ocean Zone News Blog

the Web via YellowBrix
8/18/2009 10:57:35 PM GMT

By Alex Kuffner, The Providence Journal, R.I.

PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND: For months, Rhode Islanders have been hearing sometimes breathless claims from government and business leaders that the Ocean State will have the first offshore wind farm in the nation. Governor Carcieri has led the refrain, repeating his catchphrase, “Spin, baby, spin,” at green energy events across the state.

Despite two crucial developments within four days in June, Deepwater Wind, the startup company selected by the state, still has much to do before it can install more than 100 turbines in the ocean off the Rhode Island coast.

New York Times
KATE GALBRAITH

NEW YORK — Over the past weekend, President Barack Obama took a break from the heat — literal and political — to take his family on a whirlwind tour of two national parks in the western United States.

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Go to Blog » Mr. Obama used his trip to Grand Canyon and Yellowstone to highlight the importance of parks to America’s heritage. (He was heard to pronounce the Old Faithful geyser in Yellowstone “cool.”)

Coastal Zone Management
August 12, 2009 in NOAA, WHOI, environmental management, oceans, policy, public, research

I know it’s not Monday but I just got super excited about an article I found online. It’s my entire summer of research at WHOI in a nutshell!

The new director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Jane Lubchenco, praised Massachusetts for implementing an ocean zoning plan (what I want to do with the rest of my life). Last year’s Oceans Act is “legislation that will require Massachusetts to develop a first-in-the-nation comprehensive plan to manage development in its state waters, balancing natural resource preservation with traditional and new uses, including renewable energy.”

Published on 13 August 2009 (18 reads)

NOAA ships and scientists have returned to Alaska’s Kachemak Bay to kick off year two of Hydropalooza – a NOAA-led project to develop the most detailed seafloor and coastline maps ever generated of the area.

Kachemak Bay, one of south central Alaska’s most productive and ecologically diverse estuaries, supports maritime commerce, ferry transportation, fishing, and recreational boating from the nearby harbors of Homer and Seldovia. Up-to-date NOAA nautical charts, as well as sea bottom, water level, and shoreline information, are needed to ensure safe navigation, manage coastal resources, and support local planning.
“The mapping data that NOAA collects will be used by state and local officials to make better informed decisions related to the coast, its habitats and its people,” said James Hornaday, mayor of Homer. “I welcome our NOAA friends back to Kachemak Bay.”

University World News
09 August 2009
Issue: 0088

An international assessment of fish stocks around the world shows some attempts to reduce over-fishing are starting to work. A two-year study by scientists examined trends in fish abundance, the proportion of fish taken out of the sea, and the ways that managers used to limit fishing and rebuild depleted fish stocks.

They found the steps taken to curb over-fishing were beginning to succeed in five of the 10 large marine ecosystems they examined. The rate of fishing had been reduced in several regions around the world, resulting in some stock recovery and bolstering the case that sound management can contribute to the rebuilding of fisheries.