Links to environmental news & research.
“GIMME SHELTER, SAYS YOUR NEW NEIGHBOR, THE URBAN OCTOPUS” Anthropocene With more human-made debris on the sea floor in deep water near human-occupied coasts, octopuses are more common in urban waters than off less developed stretches of shoreline, a study conducted in Puget Sound determined.
“DESIGNING MARINE PROTECTED AREAS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE” Hakai
Magazine With climate change creating so many unknowns for conservation efforts, focusing on biodiversity is key, researchers say.
“KELP FARMS AND MAMMOTH WINDMILLS ARE JUST TWO OF THE GOVERNMENT’S LONG-SHOT ENERGY BETS” The New York Times Visionaries – or maybe dreamers – are proposing using giant kelp to create a carbon-neutral biofuel.
“NORTHERN CALIFORNIA DIVERS BATTLE TO SAVE ABALONE — WITH A GIANT SEA-URCHIN VACUUM” San Francisco Chronicle Out-of-control purple sea urchin populations are laying waste to kelp forests that abalone and other marine life rely on. Divers, conservation groups and other organizations are dealing with them by vacuuming them up.
“HOPE FOR REEFS” California Academy of Sciences The prestigious organization leads a global project to intensely study coral reef biology and develop new conservation solutions and eucational programs.
“CORALS ARE DISSOLVING AWAY” Scientific American Rising ocean temperatures aren’t the only enemy corals are facing. Acidification doesn’t just impede their ability to build calcium carbonate structures, it helps them dissolve away.