The ocean gives us life. It gives us oxygen, the rain, food, excitement, wonder, and mystery. The ocean buffers the weather and helps regulate global temperature. It manages vast amounts of our pollutants, contains all kinds of amazing creatures, and supports all life on our planet. But, the ocean is just now beginning to be understood and with that understanding comes the increasing realization that the ocean is in trouble. Marine conservation efforts are outnumbered by the problems. MarineBio is here to call attention to those issues and to provide information to inspire the actions necessary to address them.
posted by netbros on Jul 9, 2008 - 9 comments

Atlantic currents show signs of weakening, according to a new study from the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton. I just hope these findings don't provoke the nightmare scenario of a sequel.
posted by homunculus on Nov 30, 2005 - 32 comments

The Starving Ocean : A large collection of articles by Debbie MacKenzie on the death of the ocean. The idea is that removing most of the fish from the sea might be sort of bad for the marine ecosystem as a whole. Her writing style is a bit kooky, but she has been right on some points (ie. the Grey Seal thing). Oh, and fishing is also responsible for the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
posted by sfenders on Sep 14, 2004 - 10 comments

Microscopic fragments of plastic are a "major pollutant", floating in the ocean, settling on seabeds, and washing up onshore - with unknown consequences for marine ecosystems, according to a new study. "We've found this microscopic plastic material at all of the sites we've examined," [lead researcher] Dr Richard C Thompson [of University of Plymouth, UK] said. "Interestingly, the abundance is reasonably consistent. So, it suggests to us that the problem is really quite ubiquitous."
posted by mcgraw on May 7, 2004 - 15 comments

Guidelines for Low-Impact Tourism Along the Coast of Quintana Roo "Conserving the natural landscape and enhancing the scenic beauty of tourism development contributes to the high quality of coastal habitat, one of the area’s principal attractions." Warning: PDF format!
posted by johnnydark on Jan 3, 2004 - 6 comments

His name is Jean-Michel Cousteau! [dramatic chords] His father's name was Jack something, and like his father, Jean-Michel believes by working on things like Finding Nemo he, "can reach a far larger audience through entertainment in popular media than through innumerable press conferences, summits and reports. That is not to say that prestigious conferences and notable studies are irrelevant. They are critically necessary to validate the condition of the world’s oceans and bring opinion leaders together to share ideas and shape the collective political will." With this new sea-lebrity (haha! get it?), he hopes to help young people change the world. ...Well I just thought that was like totally rad and wanted to share with the virtual blue.
posted by ZachsMind on Nov 15, 2003 - 7 comments