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☆ Maldives luxury resort takes fresh approach to waste with new ‘Sustainability Lab’
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Karla Cripps | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

But do tourists actually care about a resort’s sustainability cred? As the luxury resort’s sustainability manager, he oversees all of the 120-villa property’s eco-inspired initiatives, from protecting the 9-kilometer-long house reef to implementing cutting-edge energy-saving strategies. The predominant color is blue thanks to an abundance of plastic water bottle tops. The structure was designed to kind of replicate a hard substrate of a coral reef. Children can learn more about the resort’s conservation efforts by joining its new Generation Sea program, which includes visits to both the Sustainability Lab and the Coralarium.

Persons: Samuel Dixon, “, CNN Dixon, Dixon, ”, There’s, nontoxic, it’s, “ We’ve Organizations: CNN, Maldives CNN, Sustainability Locations: Maldives, Fairmont Maldives, ”

☆ Flesh-eating bacteria on beaches: What to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Out of more than 100 Vibrio species, about 12 — the most common in the US being Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio alginolyticus — can cause a human illness known as vibriosis. Vibrio vulnificus is the species that can cause flesh-eating infections, known as necrotizing fasciitis. Vibrio bacteria can enter through even minor wounds, including cuts, scrapes, scratches, recent piercings, new tattoos or surgical incisions. Even though the risk of a Vibrio vulnificus infection is low, if contracted the effects can be severe. Around 1 in 5 people infected with Vibrio vulnificus die, sometimes within a day or two of getting sick.

Persons: Daniel Slim, Vibrio, vulnificus, it’s, ”, Jae Williams, wasn’t, Tracy Mincer, “, Linda Amaral, Williams, “ It’s, ” Williams, parahaemolyticus, Hurricane Ian, Vibrio vulnificus, Don’t Organizations: CNN, Research, Florida Atlantic University, US Centers for Disease Control, CDC, Florida Department of Health, Florida, Branch Oceanographic Institute, University of Amsterdam Locations: Florida, United States, Africa, Gulf of Mexico, Cancun, AFP, Caribbean, Hurricane, sargassum

☆ An electric cruise ship with gigantic solar sails is set to launch in 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Adventure cruise company Hurtigruten Norway today revealed plans for a zero-emissions electric cruise ship with retractable sails covered in solar panels, which is due to set sail in 2030. The zero-emissions ship's sails will retract so that the ship can pass under bridges, as shown here in a rendering. This has led to a new wave of designs for eco-friendly sailing vessels, from the transatlantic car carrier Oceanbird and various cargo ships with retractable sails, to Oceanco’s Black Pearl superyacht and Chantiers de Atlanique’s cruise ship with folding solid sails. Hurtigruten Norway has long touted sustainable shipping. In 2019, it launched the world’s first hybrid, battery-supported cruise ship and is currently in the process of converting the rest of its expedition fleet to hybrid battery power.

Persons: Hedda Felin, ”, Gerry Larsson, Fedde, Larsson, Pearl superyacht Organizations: CNN, Hurtigruten, International Maritime Organization, UN Locations: Norway, Norwegian, Oslo, Hurtigruten Norway, “

☆ The US has the second-highest number of endangered species. California, Florida, and Arizona lead the nation in threatened creatures.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The US is second behind Indonesia for the number of endangered species, according to a new report. Among US states, California, Florida, and Arizona have the most threatened species. The report draws its data from a conservation group's Red List of Threatened Species. California, Florida, and Arizona held the top spots in the US for most endangered species: The Golden State had 18, followed by 13 in the Sunshine State, and seven in the Grand Canyon State. The US total of 1,178 endangered species includes 43 mammals and 284 types of fish.

Persons: —, Jane Smart, Smart Organizations: Service, State, Sunshine State, International Union for Conservation of, International Union for Conservation, IUCN's Centre for Science, Associated Press, AP Locations: Indonesia, , California, Florida, Arizona, California , Florida, Nations

☆ An Auction of Prosthetics, Mermaids and Creepy Dolls to Benefit Sea Turtles
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Remy Tumin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

When Jace Tunnell spotted what appeared to be a leg on the Gulf of Mexico shoreline in Texas, he thought that his greatest fear — a body washing up on the beach — was coming true. It’s happening,’” said Mr. Tunnell, who is director of the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve in Port Aransas, Texas. The leg, after all, was wearing pants. But when Mr. Tunnell went to lift it up, the leg turned out to be a prosthetic, one of the many items of flotsam and jetsam that come ashore along the Texas coastline each year. The prosthetic leg will be up for auction on Saturday, along with other curious pieces salvaged from among the more than 500 tons of marine debris that, according to the reserve, wash up on the beaches of Texas every year.

☆ I lived and worked in Antarctica for 5 months without WiFi or running water. Here's what surprised me.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Lucy Bruzzone is one of several women who spent the last five months working in Antarctica. I've always been fascinated by ice and the polar regions and I'd been exploring opportunities to visit Antarctica for many years. At the same time, changes in Antarctica affect our lives at home, destabilizing systems we depend on for food, water, and security. Lucy Bruzzone spent five months in Antarctica. Work was more physical day-to-day, but I still spent a lot of time working at a laptop for someone in Antarctica!

☆ How ‘The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald’ Defied Top 40 Logic
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Mike Ives | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Mr. Lightfoot read the article. 2, one notch behind Mr. Lightfoot’s only No. Yet unlike songs that use a real-life story as the basis for embellishment, Mr. Lightfoot’s ballad hewed precisely to the real-life details. The weight of the ore, for example — “26,000 tons more than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty” — was accurate. Decades later, Mr. Lightfoot changed the lyrics slightly after investigations into the accident revealed that waves, not crew error, had led to the shipwreck.

To curb Moscow's oil revenues following the Ukraine war, the Group of Seven Nations, the European Union and Australia imposed price caps on Russian crude and oil products from December and February, respectively. Lars Lange, secretary general of the International Union of Marine Insurance said: "We are definitely not able to assess the oil prices of shipments." "I get an attestation, which is a compliance with the price cap, but I know actually that something different is happening in the background...and this is something where no law can prepare you for these particular cases." HEIGHTENED SAFETY RISKSIn addition to risks of violating sanctions, the growing "shadow or dark fleet" - tankers purchased by states to deliver Russian oil - has increased safety risks for the shipping sector, the executives said. "I don't have a solution regarding the shadow fleet.

☆ Ocean census aims to discover 100,000 marine species
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Researchers have embarked on an ambitious global initiative to discover and record marine life hidden in the world’s oceans. Ocean Census aims to identify 100,000 unknown species in the next 10 years, allowing scientists to better understand and protect the deep-sea ecosystem. The initiative builds on past projects such as the Census of Marine Life, which concluded in 2010 and identified 6,000 potential new ocean species. Ocean Census will also help to identify how marine ecosystems are responding to the climate crisis, and assess how marine life could adapt to a warmer climate. The project is being led by Nekton, a UK-based marine science and conservation institute, and funded by The Nippon Foundation, a nonprofit foundation based in Japan.

☆ Ocean acidification is destroying coral reefs. Here's how 2 scientists are using bone research to protect them against climate change.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

It's becoming more acidic — hitting marine ecosystems and causing coral reefs to crumble. Increased acidity could devastate marine ecosystems, which are built upon coral reefs, and in turn, affect the fish and seafood humans eat. Ocean acidification: Lophelia pertusa coral in noncorrosive water off the Southern California Bight. The research began in January and will run for one year, with data collected in monthly intervals to help understand coral responses to ocean acidification and timescales. That's not just ocean acidification, but carbon-dioxide emissions, deforestation near coral reefs, and fishing practices like trawling, he said.

☆ Environmental hero’s mission to save the most over-fished sea in the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Wiping out marine life has damaged the livelihoods of local fishers. Local fishing communities are benefiting from the marine protected area as fish stocks bounce back. He trained local fishers as marine rangers who could monitor the waters for illegal fishing and send alerts to the Turkish Coast Guard. “We became a fishmonger,” says Kizilkaya, adding that the AKD continues to sell “tasty, cheap” lionfish caught by local fishers to restaurants. Kizilkaya hopes that the Goldman Environmental Prize will add momentum to his mission.

☆ They found a hole in the ocean near Mexico, and you could fit all of Bank of America's skyscraper HQ into it — but don't do that because it's an ecological marvel
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Nicholas Carlson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

There's a 900-foot deep hole, now called The Taam ja' Blue Hole, off the Eastern coast of Mexico. The deepest is the Sansha Yongle Blue Hole near China. The Taam ja' Blue Hole is full of marine life. The deepest is the Sansha Yongle Blue Hole near China. The Taam ja' Blue Hole is 900 feet deep, a new study found.

☆ To my son, born in the climate crisis: I see signs of hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Bill Weir | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The first looked at the twin crises of Covid and climate change as River was born; the second introduced him to Earth Day and what he could do. Watch Weir investigate “How to Unscrew a Planet,” on CNN’s “The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper,” Sunday at 8 p.m. Energy from clean sources, like this windmill in Texas, is heating and cooling more homes in America than ever before. “We call it climate intervention,” Kelly Wanser told me as we sat under bluebird skies and the Washington Monument. So far, it feels like your future will be marked in new stories to frame our wants and needs, and new tools to build Life As We Know It Could Be.

☆ Elephant seals amaze scientists with their ability to sleep 1,200 feet deep under the ocean to avoid predators
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Elephant seals drift downwards in a "sleep spiral" when deep diving in the ocean, a new study found. Sleeping while deep diving allows the seals to avoid predators, scientists believe. The seals fall into sleep during deep dives of up to 377 meters, which is around 1,235 feet, to avoid predators. "This is not light sleep but real paralytic, deep sleep that would have humans snoring. The recordings showed the diving seals going into a sleep stage known as "slow-wave sleep" before transitioning into REM sleep, which leads to a kind of "sleep spiral" or sleep paralysis, experts found.

☆ Sudan's paramilitary announces 72-hour ceasefire ahead of Eid al-Fitr
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced the ceasefire in a statement on Twitter early Friday morning local time. The ceasefire is due to begin at 6 a.m., the statement added. The ceasefire comes just ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. “The truce coincides with the blessed Eid al-Fitr … to open humanitarian corridors to evacuate citizens and give them the opportunity to greet their families,” the RSF said. The rival Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) have yet to comment on the announcement.

☆ Elephant seals enter 'sleep spiral' during ocean dives
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The researchers refer to this as a “sleep spiral.”The research marked the first time scientists recorded brain activity in free-ranging wild marine mammals, capturing data from 104 sleep dives. Then she attached them to 13 juvenile female elephant seals that are part of a colony at Año Nuevo State Park in Pescadero, California. In shallow waters, the elephant seals even reached the seafloor, where they would rest. During REM sleep, elephant seals enter a "sleep spiral." Elephant seals sleep the most along the coast and near their foraging grounds, and that data could be used to see how shipping traffic could affect the seals.

☆ Those Seaweed Blobs Headed for Florida? See How Big They Are.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Elena Shao | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

Scientists say they spotted more than 13 million tons of Sargassum, a yellowish-brown seaweed, drifting in the Atlantic Ocean last month — a record for the month of March. NORTH AMERICA March 2023 Atlantic Ocean The Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt grew to an estimated 13.5 million metric tons of seaweed this spring. Tangles of the goopy, leafy seaweed have already begun to wash ashore beaches in southern Florida and Mexico. Floating mats of seaweed accumulate in the central Atlantic Ocean for much of the year. But during the spring and summer, patches of it are carried by ocean currents toward the Caribbean, eastern Florida and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast.

☆ New box jellyfish species found in Hong Kong's waters -study
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, April 19 (Reuters) - A Hong Kong university team said it has discovered a new species of box jellyfish in the city's Mai Po Nature Reserve, the first discovery of the venomous species in China's waters. Baptist University (HKBU) together with WWF-Hong Kong, Ocean Park Hong Kong and University of Manchester said on Tuesday that the team collected jellyfish samples from a brackish shrimp pond over 2020-2022 and found they contained a new species. Box jellyfish "are poorly known in Chinese marine waters. Our discovery of Tripedalia maipoensis in Mai Po - a relatively well-studied area in Hong Kong - highlights the rich diversity of marine life in Hong Kong and even the whole of China," he said. Box jellyfish, scientifically known as class Cubozoa, includes some of the highly venomous marine animals that are widely known in tropical waters, the study said.

☆ The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is actually a unique ocean ecosystem teeming with sea creatures that cling to the plastic trash
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Great Pacific Ocean Patch refers to a big swirling soup of plastic in the ocean. The findings challenged the assumption that coastal species couldn't survive in the open ocean. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch typically refers to an area of the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii in which floating trash concentrates due to factors like wind and currents. The findings also contradicted the assumption that coastal species could not survive in areas of open ocean. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch refers to areas of marine debris concentration in the North Pacific Ocean.

☆ From black to green: How an oil-and-gas company pivoted to embrace wind energy — and is now raking in billions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Freya Graham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Like Sykes, it made a transition from black to green — and in doing so, it demonstrated it's possible for big energy companies to pivot to clean energy. To limit the influence of climate change, those emissions need to rapidly decrease — which means that big energy companies need to change their operations. A 2022 study found that 51% of the world's biggest publicly listed energy companies had not set out a strategy to reduce their emissions. Shell, for example, says it has about 50 gigawatts of renewable energy in operation, under construction, or in development. "If we could do the energy transition without them, I wouldn't be doing this," van Baal added.

☆ Macron bypassed parliament and angered French citizens. Setting the far-right up for a bounce
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

French President Emmanuel Macron. Shahin Vallée senior research fellow, German Council on Foreign RelationsMacron's popularity rating has worsened in the wake of the pension reforms. The proposed legislation pushes the retirement age up from 62 to 64, and for Macron, and his government, it's a necessity in order to balance the public finances. "Macron is not grooming anyone and that's part of the problem," Vallée said, adding that "Renaissance [party] is a one man party." Macron is serving his second mandate as president and the French constitution prevents him from running again for the job in 2027.

☆ Deepest-ever fish caught and filmed off Japan by scientists
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, April 3 (Reuters) - Fish have been caught more than 5 miles (8 kilometres) under the surface of the ocean for the first time ever - and filmed even deeper - by a joint Japanese-Australian scientific expedition. The snailfish, of the Pseudoliparis belyaevi species, are the first to be caught below 8,000 metres, the expedition said. It wasn't immediately clear how big the fish were, but the species has been recorded as reaching a length of close to 11 centimetres (4.3 inches). "The Japanese trenches were incredible places to explore; they are so rich in life, even all the way at the bottom," said Jamieson, founder of the Minderoo-UWA Deep Sea Research Centre. "We tell people from the very early ages, as young as two or three, that the deep sea is a horrible scary place that you shouldn't go and that grows with you with time," said Jamieson.

☆ The High Seas Treaty, Explained
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Haphazard Authority On Ocean Resources | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +12 min

Global News Changing Tides The first international agreement to protect the world's oceans aims to create “international parks” in the high seas. The high seas represent 95% of the world’s total habitat by volume, but the nautical world remains largely unexplored. “A sentiment we often encountered was that there’s not much in terms of biodiversity out there in the high seas,” he said. MPAs that already exist mostly occupy exclusive economic zones and only make up about 3% of the high seas. A 2016 Pew study on mapping governance in the high seas showed 19 governing bodies with a high seas mandate.

☆ A 5,000-mile blanket of seaweed that can be seen from space threatens the beaches of Florida
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

This year's seaweed bloom of 'Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt' is one of the largest on record. It is the largest seaweed bloom in the world — weighing approximately 20 million tons — and is visible from outer space. "It's incredible," Brian LaPointe, a research professor at Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, told NBC News. Workers who were hired by residents remove sargassum seaweed from the Bay of Soliman, north of Tulum, Quintana Roo state, Mexico, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022. "I think I've replaced my climate change anxiety with sargassum anxiety," Patricia Estridge, CEO of Seaweed Generation, told The Guardian.

☆ Philippines beefs up efforts to contain oil leak from sunken tanker
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An aerial view shows the oil spill from the sunken fuel tanker MT Princess Empress on the shores of Pola, in Oriental Mindoro province, Philippines, March 8, 2023. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez/File PhotoMANILA, March 14 (Reuters) - Philippine authorities have increased efforts to contain an oil spill from a sunken fuel tanker that has affected coastal towns and was still spreading, the environment ministry said on Tuesday, as the country grapples with cleanup challenges. The vessel was carrying about 800,000 litres (211,338 gallons) of industrial fuel oil when it sank, according to the coast guard. Resorts in Oriental Mindoro, also known for world-class beaches and dive spots, have already been reeling from the impact of the oil spill, as tourists cancel reservations during what is supposed to be peak season. They also raised concerns about whether the tanker owner could file insurance claims despite questions about the ship's permit to operate.

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