oceans

US Navy Plots Arctic Push

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 11:14:32 -0500

by Ian MacLeod

The U.S. navy is planning a massive push into the Arctic to defend national security, potential undersea riches and other maritime interests.

An "Arctic roadmap" by the Department of the Navy details a five-year strategic plan to expand fleet operations into the North in anticipation that the frozen Arctic Ocean will be open water in summer by 2030.

Rising CO2 Will Cause Catastrophic Sea Level Rise Finds Antarctic Study

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:38:23 -0500

by Louise Gray, Environment Correspondent

The British Antarctic Survey found that during past periods of high carbon dioxide, temperatures in Antarctica were up to 6C above current levels. This could cause a sea level rise of up six metres, threatening coastal cities like London, New York and San Francisco.

Great Barrier Reef 'Will Die' Unless Carbon Emissions Slashed

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:58:26 -0500

by Bonnie Malkin in Sydney

Professor Terry Hughes and representatives of the Federation of Australian Scientific and Technological Societies told a meeting at the Canberra parliament that the future of the reef, and a large chunk of Australia's tourist industry, was under grave threat from rising sea temperatures.

Just a small increase in average temperatures could cause massive coral bleaching on the reef, he said.

"We've seen the evidence with our own eyes. Climate change is already impacting the Great Barrier Reef," said Prof Hughes, of James Cook University in Queensland.

Leaking Oil Rig in Timor Sea Catches Fire

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:31:02 -0500

by Bonnie Malkin in Sydney

No one was injured in the blaze and all non-essential staff have been airlifted from the West Atlas rig, operators PTTEP said.

The fire, which started during an attempt to plug the leak, comes as environmental campaigners criticised PTTEP and the Australian government over their handling of the crisis.

An estimated 400 barrels of oil a day have escaped from the rig since Aug. 21.

Officials now plan to pour mud into the leak hoping to remove the source of fuel from the fire, which was sending huge plumes of smoke into the sky.

Island Nations Frustrated at Climate Talks

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:12:41 -0400

BANGKOK, Oct 5 - Up to half a million people in the Pacific will lose their homes and their countries to rising sea levels because small island nations cannot persuade the rest of the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions sufficiently, campaigners say.

The Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) is calling for a significant reduction in global emissions so the world's temperature does not rise more than 1.5 degrees centigrade above pre-industrial levels.

Arctic Seas Turn to Acid, Putting Vital Food Chain at Risk

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:03:25 -0400

by Robin McKie

Carbon-dioxide emissions are turning the waters of the Arctic Ocean into acid at an unprecedented rate, scientists have discovered. Research carried out in the archipelago of Svalbard has shown in many regions around the north pole seawater is likely to reach corrosive levels within 10 years. The water will then start to dissolve the shells of mussels and other shellfish and cause major disruption to the food chain. By the end of the century, the entire Arctic Ocean will be corrosively acidic.

Navy Set to Pollute Ocean With McCain's ship

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 05:04:36 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 27, 2009

Basel Action Network

The toxic waste watchdog organization Basel Action Network (BAN) today slammed the government's plans to scuttle the former aircraft carrier FORRESTAL[1] in deep water as an "artificial reef" instead of having the ship safely recycled at one of the half-dozen active ship dismantling yards in the U.S. The FORRESTAL is a non-nuclear supercarrier now moored in an aging pier on the Naval Station at Newport, R.I. Due to deterioration of the facili

BP Records Show One of World’s Largest Oil and Gas Platforms Lacks Documents Needed for Safe Operation and Maintenance

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:41:54 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 8, 2009

Food & Water Watch

Today Food & Water Watch, a national consumer advocacy organization, urged the U.S. Department of the Interior and Minerals Management Service (MMS) to immediately suspend production on the largest moored floating dual oil- and gas-production facility in the world pending further investigation of documents critical to the project's safe operation and maintenance.

Whaling Commission Faced With Quotas Schism

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 11:09:18 -0400

by Thomas Cabral

FUNCHAL, Portugal - The organisation that regulates world whaling opened a crucial conference with leaders seeking to avoid a disastrous split over hunting the marine mammals.

The International Whaling Commission (IWC) conference on the Portuguese island of Madeira faces demands to resume the hunting of whales, protected by a moratorium dating back to 1986 with some exceptions limited by quota.

World Oceans Day: Setting Sail to Keep Oceans in Public Hands

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:39:32 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 8, 2009

Food & Water Watch

"We have our oceans to thank for making life possible. Their waters cover nearly three quarters - more than 130 million square miles - of the planet's surface. They host a vast array of life and power climactic cycles that support and sustain everyone and everything on Earth. Indeed, one could make the case that without the oceans all life here would dry up and die out.