Fish & Fisheries

"Abandoned coal mines had left waterways acidic and rusty orange. Local residents are cleaning them up, and recovering rare earths in the process."

"Roughly 1.1 million gallons of crude oil spilled from a pipeline into the Gulf of Mexico in November 2023 because operators failed to shut it down for nearly 13 hours after their data first hinted at a problem, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday."

"The UN Ocean Conference in the southern French city of Nice concludes this Friday with countries taking steps towards marine protection and declaring a battle over deep sea-mining, but slammed for leaving fossil fuels off the agenda – the key driver of ocean warming. Nations hoping for new financial pledges to help with battling rising sea levels and overfishing were also left disappointed."

"The Chesapeake Bay’s health has taken a downturn, according to a new report card, with the estuary relegated from a “C+” to a “C” as climate extremes and runaway pollution limit restoration efforts."

"President Donald Trump declared Thursday that the federal government must pull out of a settlement agreement that had halted the long-running legal battle over 14 dams in the Pacific Northwest, reopening a fight over the future of fish populations in the Columbia River Basin."

"Eighteen countries ratified the High Seas Treaty on Monday, bringing the total to 49 — just 11 short of the 60 needed for the ocean agreement to enter into force. The surge in support, occurring during the U.N. Ocean Conference in Nice, France, adds momentum to what could become a historic shift in how the world governs the open ocean."

"Less than a year after four dams were removed from the river, life has blossomed along its banks, presenting new challenges and joys of recovery"

"In seas around the world pH levels are falling – and scientists are increasingly frustrated that the problem is not being taken seriously enough"

"Sea surface temperatures in 2024 broke records and about a quarter of the world’s oceans are experiencing temperatures that qualify as a marine heat wave." 

"World leaders, scientists and officials gathered on Monday to open the third United Nations Ocean Conference and launch a global appeal to save the world's oceans, which scientists say are in bad health." "Glaringly absent are U.S. scientific agencies like NASA and NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Their scientists weren't allowed to attend the summit, say organizers."