Tag: marine environment

The latest Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) competition was launched at the NOC in Southampton - making £1.5 million available to UK businesses to develop novel adaptive autonomous ocean sampling network (AOSN) management systems. The competition, run by the Natural Environment Research Council, in partnership with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and Innovate UK, will see funds made available to assess and develop novel adaptive autonomous ocean sampling network (AAOSN) management systems. These systems will need to be capable of coordinating a suite of marine autonomous systems, enable the gathering of data from the ocean over periods of several months and have the ability to track and sample dynamic features. The competition will run in two phases: phase one opened on 2 September for feasibility studies, with contracts to be awarded, for those selected, in mid-December and completed by 31 March 2015. Up to five phase one studies will be funded up to a cost including VAT of £50,000 each. After a review of the outcomes of the phase one studies, selected participants will be invited to apply for phase two for the development of prototypes, which would be capable of undertaking demonstration missions at sea. It is ...

BSR's Clean Cargo Working Group's 2014 "Global Maritime Trade Lane Emissions Factors" report-which provides data from more than 2,900 ships, representing around 85 percent of global ocean container capacity-indicates that average carbon-dioxide emissions for global ocean container transport have declined year on year, and by nearly 8 percent between 2012 and 2013. While changes in carrier representation or global trade conditions may account for part of the emissions reductions described in the report, the continued performance improvement is also attributed to carrier fleet efficiency and year-on-year improvements in data quality. The report, which includes data from 23 of the world's leading ocean container carriers, helps global ocean transport providers and their shipping customers to measure, evaluate, and report on environmental performance data. Additionally, for the first time, the report includes aggregated average utilization factors for each trade lane. Users can include this data in carbon-footprint calculations as a more accurate approach to calculating shipment-level transport performance. The analysis of the data over the two-year period assessed show that the average utilization across all the largest trade lanes is close to 70 percent, with some variation from year to year. "By reporting using a standardized methodology, the ocean container sector is ...

The wealth of knowledge gathered over the past five years under the Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change (PACC) Project is now being shared through a range of newly launched resources. The regional project is the first major adaptation initiative covering three components including mainstreaming climate change, a demonstration project and the development and communication of knowledge products. Fourteen Pacific island countries are participant to the project, which targets food production and security, water resource and management as well as coastal management. All that was learnt over the past five years in carrying out this project, both at national and regional level, is now being made available so future projects can build on these. "Australia sees the experiences and knowledge gained from the PACC project as a major body of new knowledge for the region" stated Ms. Ilisapeci Masivesi at the launch of the products. She is the Program Manager Environment and Development of Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade - Suva Post, Government of Australia. "Climate change adaptation will continue to be an ongoing challenge and therefore the knowledge management products are important to ensure that the lessons learnt are remembered and used in the years to come." The products ...

NOAA- and EPA-supported scientists have mapped the Gulf of Mexico dead zone, an area with low oxygen water, measuring 5,052 square miles this summer - approximately the size of Connecticut. The measurements were taken during the 30th annual hypoxia survey cruise from July 27 to August 2. This area falls within the predicted range of 4,633 to 5,708 square miles forecast by a suite of NOAA-sponsored models and confirms the accuracy of the models and their utility for guiding management of nutrients in the Mississippi River watershed. The size is smaller than the 5,840 square miles recorded last year but still greater than the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient (Hypoxia) Task Force target of less than 1,900 square miles - meaning nutrients from the Mississippi River watershed are continuing to affect the nation's coastal resources and habitats in the Gulf. The task force consists of five federal agencies, 12 states and the tribes within the Mississippi/ Atchafalaya River Basin, and was established in 1997 to reduce and control hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. The largest Gulf dead zone ever recorded occurred in 2002, encompassing 8,481 square miles. The smallest recorded dead zone measured 15 square miles in 1988. ...

International Maritime Organization (IMO) Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu has welcomed the recently-published report of the Global Ocean Commission (GOC), From Decline to Recovery: A Rescue Package for the Global Ocean, and its call for enhanced action at all levels to mitigate the threats to the global oceans described in the report. In a letter​ to the co-chairs of the Global Ocean Commission (Mr. José María Figueres, Mr. Trevor Manuel and Mr. David Miliband), Mr. Sekimizu noted that, as the United Nations specialized agency dedicated to sustainable uses of the world's oceans through safe, secure, clean ships, IMO plays a key role in advancing the critically important agenda carried forward in the report and has adopted key treaties addressing several of the outlined threats. Mr. Sekimizu highlighted IMO's active role in addressing many of the issues raised in the GOC report, noting also that IMO is working actively through several existing coordination mechanisms - such as UN Oceans, the Global Partnership for Oceans, and the Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP) - to ensure that joint efforts are maximized and duplication reduced. "In my view, thoughtful development of ocean regulations, coupled with early entry into force, ...

Thome Ship Management has been awarded a Green Environmental Achievement Award by the Port of Long Beach, California, for high standards in performance during 2013. Yatin Gangla, Chief Operating Officer Bulk Division said: "This award is presented to operators whose vessels call at the Port of Long Beach and who have demonstrated that 90% or more of the vessels have complied with the Voluntary Vessel Speed Reduction Programme. In recognition of this achievement, Thome has received a green flag and a 25% discount on the dockage dues payable by all our managed vessels to the Port of Long Beach during 2014. Announcing Thome's award, Donald B Snyder, Director of Trade Development at the City of Long Beach Harbor Department, said: "Thank you for your commitment to reducing air pollution in Southern California." The Port's Green Flag Program is a voluntary vessel speed reduction program which rewards vessel operators for slowing down to 12 knots or less within 40 nautical miles (nm) of Point Fermin, near the entrance to the Harbor. The Port says that because ships emit less when they travel more slowly, the program has been highly successful in reducing smog-forming emissions and diesel particulates from ships. Vessels that dock at the Port of Long ...

As the Arctic warms and sea ice retreats, oil and gas exploration is underway in Canada's Beaufort Sea, with all the benefits and risks this development entails. To better understand these risks, particularly those of proposed shipping and exploration, WWF has taken a milestone step in answering these big questions by leading groundbreaking research to map possible oil spills in the Beaufort Sea. This study looks at four types of oil spills under different conditions, resulting in 22 different scenarios. Explore some of the key findings by clicking at the WWF's interactive map below , which WWF is making available to help advance discussions about balancing conservation and development in the Canadian Arctic. The results from the study give northern residents and decision-makers scientific evidence they need to make choices about the risks they face. The project involved the analysis of multiple types of oil spill scenarios that could occur in the Beaufort Sea. The goal was to assess the transport, fates, and effects of oil on nearby surface water and shorelines from potential crude, heavy fuel, and light fuel oil spills. Modelling investigated both surface and subsea releases. Four different generalized "spill analyses" were evaluated for this study: a shipping spill analysis in ...

The Antwerp port area one of the most important habitats of animal and plant species that are threatened at European level. Large parts of it are designated as "Special  Protection Areas under the terms of the European Bird and Habitat Directive" (Natura 2000). The Port of Antwerp is living proof that economy and ecology can co-exist in a sustainable manner. A sustainable port policy enables any further expansion of economic activity to go hand in hand with the conservation, reinforcement and even further development of the beautiful natural environment in and around the Antwerp port area. A balancing act between ecology and economy that is not always simple. Now, more than ever, this is an "and/and" story.  And more than ever, it is important that the boundaries of the port area be laid down once and for all, so that residential, nature and economic areas are clearly delineated, allowing all parties involved to develop a sustainable long-term vision. The Port of Antwerp has received the bronze Environment Award at the meeting of the International Association of Ports and Harbours in Los Angeles. Furthermore, the port was awarded the prestigious Environmental World Ports Award 2013 in Abu Dhabi for its remarkable ...

A few spaces remain for representatives from shipping, fisheries, offshore oil and gas, tourism, coastal development, and other ocean industries to participte in the workshop on “Enhancing Maritime Resource Security: Cross-sectoral Dialogue for the Gulf of Thailand” (Singapore, 12-14 August 2014). Leadership companies or industry groups from these sectors are invited join their peers already confirmed to be at the workshop. Industry participants will be meeting with senior officials from the maritime law enforcement, environmental, fisheries, coastal development, trade and transport agencies of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Malaysia, with the goal of enhancing understanding and cooperation between industry and these agencies. The workshop is organized by the World Ocean Council (WOC) and the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS) to bring together private sector representatives and subject experts to advance marine resource and environment security cooperation in the region. The day before the workshop, the WOC will hold a “Briefing Seminar” for companies interested in learning more about the WOC and meeting WOC Members (Singapore, 11 August 2014). Source: World Ocean Council In the start, I was forthright with you propecia before and after has changed my life. It has become much more fun, and now I have to run. ...

A multi-disciplinary team of scientists launched the second expedition in the Gulf of Mexico to examine the effects of Deepwater Horizon spill-related oil and dispersant exposure on deepwater shipwrecks and their microbial communities. The study is part of the National Oceanographic Partnership Program that is sponsored by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), and George Mason University (Mason). The expedition will return to five shipwrecks examined by the team in March 2014, and plans to investigate up to five additional shipwrecks. Sites are located both within and outside of the spill area, and will be comparatively analyzed to determine if resident microbial communities' exposure to hydrocarbons and dispersant affects the natural process of wood degradation and metal corrosion in the deepwater marine environment. Using a Remotely Operated Vehicle, the scientists will collect high-resolution video and photos; sediment, water, biological, and other samples; and retrieve short-term microbiological experiments deployed near the five shipwrecks when they were previously visited. Experiments will also be deployed at the new sites for long-term monitoring purposes. BOEM's Environmental Studies Program provides the information needed to predict, assess, and manage impacts from ...