Ocean Policy News

November 22, 2024

Top Headlines

Fewer Than 7% of Global Hotspots for Whale-Ship Collisions Have Protection Measures in Place

Nov. 21, 2024 — A new study has quantified the risk for whale-ship collisions worldwide for four geographically widespread ocean giants that are threatened by shipping: blue, fin, humpback and sperm whales. ...

Climate-Driven Hazards Increases Risk for Millions of Coastal Residents, Study Finds

Nov. 21, 2024 — A new study estimates that a 1-meter sea level rise by 2100 would affect over 14 million people and $1 trillion worth of property along the Southeast Atlantic ...

Design and Imagination as Essential Tools During the Climate Crisis

Nov. 21, 2024 — Researchers advocate the use of imagination in tackling the climate crisis. They focus specifically on urbanizing river deltas, which are of great social and economic importance and highly vulnerable to climate ...

Decline in West African Coastal Fish Stocks Threatens Food Security and Livelihoods

Nov. 16, 2024 — Fish stocks along the West African coast have declined significantly over the past five decades, threatening food security and the livelihoods of the fishing communities that depend on them, ...

Latest Headlines

updated 6:29pm EST

Research Highlights the Pressures Human Activities Place on Tropical Marine Ecosystems

Nov. 20, 2024 — The tropical coastlines of Southeast Asia are home to some of the most important and biodiverse marine ecosystems on the planet. But as well as being ...

Resilience Index Needed to Keep Us Within Planet's 'Safe Operating Space'

Nov. 15, 2024 — Researchers are calling for a 'resilience index' to be used as an indicator of policy success instead of the current focus on GDP. They say that GDP ignores the wider implications of development and ...

Four Global Policies Could Eliminate More Than 90% of Plastic Waste and 30% of Linked Carbon Emissions by 2050

Nov. 14, 2024 — A new study determines that just four policies can reduce mismanaged plastic waste -- plastic that isn't recycled or properly disposed of and ends up ...

Some of the World's Least Polluting Populations Are at Much Greater Risk of Flooding Fueled by Climate Change

Nov. 7, 2024 — A new study has exposed for the first time how inhabitants of the smallest countries globally, contributing least to climate change, already bear the ...

Pioneering Planetary Boundaries Science as Key to Mitigating Rising Planetary Risks

Nov. 8, 2024 — The Planetary Boundaries framework is a pivotal tool for tackling the climate crisis and safeguarding humanity's future on Earth. For the first time, ...

Scientists Examine How Wastewater Practices in Florida Keys Impact Water Quality

Nov. 1, 2024 — Wastewater contains nutrients that can overfeed algae, leading to harmful algal blooms and pollution issues in the ocean and other waterways. A new ...

Biodiversity Law That Forces Builders to Compensate for Nature Loss Could Be Twice as Effective, Experts Claim

Oct. 31, 2024 — Recent rules that require all new building and road projects in England to address and offset their impact on nature are excellent in principle but ...

When Is a Heat Wave Just a Heat Wave, and When Is It Climate Change?

Oct. 28, 2024 — A new study used the 2023 heat wave in Texas and Louisiana as a test case for establishing processes that tease out whether particular weather events are climate change ...

Are We Missing the Mark on Biodiversity? 90% of Countries Ignore Key Behavior Changes

Oct. 28, 2024 — There is a yawning gap between national policies to enhance biodiversity and the individual and small group behavioral changes that are critical to ...

Curbing Air Pollution Control Devices Would Cost Thousands of Lives and Billions of Dollars

Oct. 25, 2024 — A new commentary found that power plants' use of these devices saved up to 9,100 lives and up to $100 billion in health costs in 2023. These ...

Land-Use Policy Rethink Vital to Hit Net Zero

Nov. 14, 2024 — Changing how land-use subsidies are implemented would give UK taxpayers better value for money and improve chances of meeting environmental targets such as Net ...

Dolphins Sense Military Sonar at Much Lower Levels Than Regulators Predict

Oct. 23, 2024 — Scientists have directly measured the behavioral responses of some of the most common marine mammals to military sonar. And the finding that surprised them most was that these animals were sensitive ...

Ethical Framework Aims to Counter Risks of Geoengineering Research

Oct. 23, 2024 — A new report says any research into large-scale interventions in Earth's climate system must be grounded in sound ethical principles so society can make informed choices about whether to deploy ...

Smaller, More Specific Academic Journals Have More Sway Over Policy

Oct. 18, 2024 — Journals focused on ferns, clams, or coral reefs had proportionally more of their articles cited by the federal government when protecting species than more prominent, higher-impact journals. The ...

Environmental Law Reform Needed to Protect Endangered Marine Species

Oct. 8, 2024 — Researchers are calling for reforms to Australia's environmental laws, as threatened fish species continue to be legally ...

Green Education Can Create New Generation of Eco-Leaders

Oct. 8, 2024 — Countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region can overcome major shared environmental challenges such as water scarcity and air pollution by harnessing the power of 'green ...

Climate Report Warns of Escalating Crisis, Urges Immediate Action as UN Summit Nears

Oct. 8, 2024 — An international coalition of scientists concludes that the Earth's worsening vital signs indicate a 'critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis' and that ...

Plenty More Fish in the Sea? Environmental Protections Account for Around 10 Percent of Fish Stocks on Coral Reefs

Oct. 7, 2024 — New research shows that international conservation efforts account for approximately 10 percent of fish stocks on coral ...

Environmental Quality of Life Benefits Women Worldwide

Oct. 2, 2024 — Global evidence has revealed that women's environmental quality of life is key to their overall quality of life and health, according to a new ...

Where Flood Policy Helps Most -- And Where It Could Do More

Sep. 30, 2024 — A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program provides important flood insurance relief, researchers say. But due to its design, it's used more in communities with greater means to ...

Coral Reef Destruction a Threat to Human Rights

Sep. 30, 2024 — A human rights-based approach to coral reef protection could ensure governments are held to account for safeguarding marine ...

Citizen Scientists Help Discover Microplastics Along the Entire German Coastline

Sep. 25, 2024 — The AWI's citizen science project 'Microplastic Detectives' has analyzed 2.2 tons of sand from German coasts for ...

Leading Scientists Redefine 'Sustainability' to Save the Ocean and Feed a Hungry and Warming Planet

Sep. 23, 2024 — Top ocean experts have published a report that redefines the concept of 'sustainable fishing' and proposes 11 'golden rules' that radically challenge the flawed approach that ...

Scientists Say We Have Enough Evidence to Agree Global Action on Microplastics

Sep. 19, 2024 — An international group of researchers says two decades of research have generated sufficient knowledge about the sources and effects of microplastics to allow world leaders to agree measures to ...

'Marine Identity' Can Help Restore the Ocean

Sep. 17, 2024 — People's deep connection with the ocean -- their 'marine identity' -- can help us reset society's relationship with the seas, new research ...

Dams Built to Prevent Coastal Flooding Can Worsen It

Sep. 13, 2024 — The common practice of building dams to prevent flooding can actually contribute to more intense coastal flood events, according to a new study. By analyzing data and measurements from Charleston ...

New Discovery About Ice Layer Formation in Ice Sheets Can Improve Sea Level Rise Predictions

Sep. 12, 2024 — A newly discovered mechanism for the flow and freezing of ice sheet meltwater could improve estimates of sea level rise around the globe. Researchers have found a new mechanism that explains the ...

Protecting Just 0.7% of World's Land Could Help Save a Third of Most Unique and Endangered Species

Sep. 6, 2024 — Conservation efforts directed towards just 0.7% of the world's land mass could help protect one third of the world's threatened and unique tetrapod (four-limbed vertebrate) ...

Reef Tourism Encourages Climate Action

Sep. 3, 2024 — New research has revealed that informing tourists visiting the Great Barrier Reef about climate impact doesn't negatively affect their experience and can help encourage climate ...

Coastal Cities Must Adapt Faster to Climate Change

Aug. 27, 2024 — Coastal cities play a key role in the global economy and have important functions for society at large. At the same time, they are severely affected by the impact of climate change. That is why their ...