Creating an Oceanscape
A new, multinational initiative aims to protect 38.5 million sq. km. of Pacific ocean — larger than the areas of United States, Canada and Mexico combined. From Conservation International:
Across the globe, the world’s ocean is in crisis, threatened by massive overfishing, climate change and a myriad of other forces. Although the Pacific Islands Forum counts some of the world’s smallest countries as its members, the group has just made one of the boldest agreements for collaborative, integrated and adaptive ocean management yet: the launch of the Pacific Oceanscape.
“The new Pacific Oceanscape will help us build resilience in ocean ecosystems so that marine life has the best chance of adapting. Only by doing this can there be some assurance that the oceans, and millions of people who depend on them directly for their livelihood and well-being, will survive the onslaught of global climate change.” – President Anote Tong of Kiribati
Confused by Environmental Assessments from the BP Gulf Oil Leak?
There could be a reason for that, from Newsweek:
The program designed to assess the environmental effects of the BP spill may be skewed by the legal process, say scientists struggling to get funding for independent research.
Sun Storm to Hit with ‘Force of 100M Bombs’
For the record, Ecology Today doesn’t subscribe to 2012 end-of-the-world scenarios (see NASA scientist’s Q&A on the subject) nor do we usually fall for sensationalist headlines such as the one above. Still, there is a real possibility that violent disruptions on the Sun could have devastating effects on what we consider to be modern civilization here on Earth.
250-Megawatt Solar Thermal Facility Approved for California
>CNet has the story:
California’s energy regulatory agency on Wednesday approved plans to build a 250-megawatt solar thermal farm near the Mojave Desert.
The Beacon Solar Energy thermal solar plant would be built at the western edge of the Mojave Desert, roughly 15 miles north of the town of Mojave itself. It would cover about 2,012 acres in Kern County, Calif., according to the California Energy Commission.
And it may just be the first of many to be approved by the CEC before the end of this year.
Job Losses Over Drilling Ban Fail to Materialize
In the wake of the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon and subsequent leaking of 4.1 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, the Obama administration imposed a temporary moratorium on deep water drilling pending a review of safety procedures. Conservatives, along with Gulf locals and oil company executives went apoplectic, claiming that the moratorium would lead to thousands of lost jobs and millions in lost revenue. Not so, reports the NY Times.
Americans Using Less Energy, More Renewables
The United States used significantly less coal and petroleum in 2009 than in 2008, and significantly more wind power. There also was a decline in natural gas use and increases in solar, hydro and geothermal power according to the most recent energy flow charts released by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
