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In new research, scientists from the Wageningen University & Research have confirmed regular activity by sharks and rays at offshore wind farms around the Netherlands. The team was able to confirm the presence of these elasmobranchs through traces of environmental DNA, or eDNA, in the waters around Dutch wind farms. The researchers collected 436 seawater […]
The post Are Sharks and Rays Using Offshore Wind Farms as Habitats? appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreEach year since 2009, United Nations World Oceans Day (UN WOD) has celebrated the vast life-sustaining world that covers 70 percent of our planet, more than 90 percent of which remains unexplored.
The theme of this year’s UN WOD is “Wonder: Sustaining what sustains us,” in celebration of the watery world that produces at least half of Earth’s oxygen, is the home of most of the biodiversity on the planet and is the primary source of protein for over one billion people.
The post 2025 UN World Oceans Day Highlights ‘Wonder’ of the Deep Blue Sea appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreDuring the recent United Nations Ocean Conference, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu governments announced plans to establish the world’s first Indigenous-led multinational ocean reserve, the Melanesian Ocean Reserve. The planned reserve will span the Solomon Islands’, Vanuatu’s and Papua New Guinea’s national waters and connect to the Exclusive Economic Zone of New Caledonia, another protected […]
The post Pacific Island Nations Announce Plans for Indigenous-Led Melanesian Ocean Reserve, a World First appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe United Kingdom has announced a plan to ban destructive activities like bottom trawling in 41 of the country’s offshore marine protected areas (MPAs), with a focus on vulnerable seabeds and ecologically sensitive habitats. When added to existing bans on bottom trawling, the total area would equal more than 18,500 square miles, reported The Guardian. […]
The post UK Plans to Ban Destructive Activities Like Bottom Trawling in Marine Protected Areas appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreDuring the United Nations Ocean Conference this week in Nice, France, French Polynesian President Moetai Brotherson announced that the country will establish a marine protected area (MPA) spanning 4.8 million square kilometers. The newly established MPA will surpass the U.S. Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in the Pacific Ocean, which spans 1.5 million square kilometers and […]
The post French Polynesia Announces World’s Largest Marine Protected Area at UN Ocean Conference appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) — a system of ocean currents that pulls warm water from the Southern Hemisphere and the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere — could put some parts of the globe in a “deep freeze,” according to a new study by researchers from the Netherlands. The findings suggest […]
The post Collapse of AMOC Could Bring ‘Profound Cooling’ to Northern Europe: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe world’s ocean has become dangerously polluted — not just by plastics, chemicals and sewage, but by noise. At the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) in Nice on Tuesday, a coalition of ministers from 37 countries — led by Panama and Canada — launched an effort to reduce the underwater noise pollution that harms marine […]
The post 37 Countries Commit to Tackling ‘Invisible Yet Powerful Threat’ of Ocean Noise Pollution appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreOn the first day of the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) in Nice, France, on Monday, 18 new countries ratified the High Seas Treaty for a total of 49 — just 11 shy of the 60 needed for the agreement to be enforced. The swell of support added momentum to what could end up being […]
The post 18 New Countries Ratify High Seas Treaty at 2025 UN Ocean Conference appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreAs a testament to the exquisiteness of the ocean and the art of photography, the winners of the 2025 United Nations World Oceans Day Photo Competition were selected from thousands of submissions from around the world, inspired by this year’s theme, “Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us.”
The post Meet the Winners of the 12th Annual UN World Oceans Day Photo Competition appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreOn the first day of the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, France, the findings of a new study have revealed that ocean acidification (OA) — which damages ecosystems like coral reefs — is not only getting worse, but crossed its “planetary boundary” roughly five years ago. The findings came as a surprise, as scientists […]
The post ‘Ticking Time Bomb’ of Ocean Acidification Has Already Crossed Planetary Boundary, Threatening Marine Ecosystems: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreWhile the Paris Agreement targets no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius of global warming compared to pre-industrial levels in order to curb the worst impacts of climate change, a new study warns that the amount of sea level rise that will come with that amount of warming could still lead to “catastrophic” inland migration. In […]
The post Sea Level Rise Could Drive ‘Catastrophic’ Inland Migration Even if Warming Is Limited to 1.5°C, Study Says appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreAccording to a new study, about one-fifth of the world’s oceans, spanning around 75 million square kilometers, has been getting darker over the past 20 years. The study, published in the journal Global Change Biology, explored changes to the oceans’ photic zones. As the authors explained, these photic zones are where ecological interactions depend upon […]
The post Oceans Are Getting Darker, Shrinking the Livable Space for Marine Life, Study Finds appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreScientists once believed that humpback whales only gave birth in the warmth and safety of specific breeding grounds in tropical waters, where they spent half the year. However, new research has revealed that humpbacks around Tasmania and New Zealand can birth calves much further south than expected, and can do so during their epic migrations. […]
The post Humpback Whales Give Birth During Epic Migrations and Continue Traveling: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s outlook for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season — June 1 to November 30 — predicts a 60 percent chance of it being “above normal,” a 30 percent chance of it being near normal and a 10 percent chance that it will be below normal. The agency […]
The post NOAA: 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season Predicted to Be Above Normal With 13 to 19 Named Storms appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe world’s seagrass meadows capture and store enormous amounts of carbon, but they must be protected if the incredible work they do for our climate is to continue. A new global study predicts that protecting seagrass meadows that are “at-risk” could avert climate damages of more than $200 billion by stopping the release of over […]
The post Protecting the World’s Seagrass Meadows Could Prevent Billions in Damages, New Research Suggests appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe 10th annual Our Ocean Conference (OOC) took place from April 28 through April 30 in Busan, South Korea. As a result of the conference, which was the first that the U.S. government did not join, countries committed to investing a total of $9.1 billion toward ocean conservation and restoration efforts. The 2025 conference, titled […]
The post 10th Our Ocean Conference, and First Without U.S. Government, Leads to $9.1B for Ocean Conservation appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreWhat once were hundred-year extreme storms in Bangladesh could now strike the country once a decade or more due to climate change, a recent study from MIT shows. Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated places on Earth, with more than 170 million people living in an area about the size of New York […]
The post 100-Year Storms Now Expected at Least Once a Decade in Bangladesh, Study Finds appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreA 426-foot-long electric ship — the largest of its kind in the world — launched from Tasmania this week, marking a milestone in the clean energy transition for maritime shipping. The Hull 096 boat, called China Zorrilla after the famous actress from Uruguay, was made by Incat Tasmania for operation by Buquebus. According to Incat, […]
The post World’s Largest Electric Ship Sets Sail From Tasmania appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read more“If we save the sea, we save our world” — Sir David Attenborough, Ocean with David Attenborough Almost every country in the world has signed on to safeguard a minimum of 30 percent of the world’s ocean by 2030, yet just eight percent is currently being protected. The rate of new marine protected area (MPA) […]
The post Revive Our Ocean Initiative Aims to Increase Marine Protected Areas to Cover 30% of World’s Oceans by 2030 appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreThe Trump administration plans to eliminate the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s research arm, close climate and weather labs and slash the budgets of several NOAA offices, internal documents said. If Congress approves the plan, funding for NOAA’s Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) office would be drastically reduced from $485 million to $171 million, […]
The post White House Budget Would Slash Funding for NOAA Climate Research appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreAfter nearly a decade of negotiations, nations have come to a “landmark” global shipping agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The new International Maritime Organization (IMO) Framework introduced a carbon pricing mechanism that will require ships with high emissions to pay for the excess pollution they release, reported UN News. It also sets mandatory fuel […]
The post ‘Landmark’ Global Shipping Agreement Reached After Nearly 10 Years of Talks appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreNew research has found that the amount of plastic waste being recycled globally has remained “stagnant” at nine percent, with most new plastic continuing to be made from fossil fuels. The plastic recycling rate in the United States is even lower at just five percent. “Plastics are one of the most ubiquitous materials [on] our […]
The post Global Plastic Recycling Rate ‘Stagnant’ at 9%: Study appeared first on EcoWatch.
Read moreDozens of gopher tortoises survived a harrowing sea crossing after last year’s deadly and destructive Hurricane Helene swept them two miles from their native home. The tortoises found themselves swimming — and possibly floating — for their lives from Egmont Key national wildlife refuge to Fort De Soto County Park on a remote part of […]
The post Gopher Tortoises Displaced by Hurricane Helene Find New Home on Protected Florida Beach appeared first on EcoWatch.
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