As climate change hits the Turkish coast, more marine reserves are needed (commentary)
Growing up, I lived in Ankara, far away from the coast, but the best time of year for me was always the summer months when I would travel to the…
On Jakarta’s vanishing shoreline, climate change seen abetting child marriages
JAKARTA — Every morning, sisters Janah and Jaroh rise early on the diminishing coastline of Indonesia’s capital city and pray for calm weather and good fortune. At around 9 a.m.,…
From rat-ridden to reserve, Redonda is an island restoration role model
Seven years ago, Redonda, a volcanic island in the Caribbean Sea, resembled the moon's surface: a dusty, debris-covered, barren terrain. The island, which is part of Antigua and Barbuda, had…
Seventy-plus nations sign historic high seas treaty, paving way for ratification
Seventy-six countries and the European Union have now signed the high seas treaty, signaling interest in ratifying the agreement designed to protect marine biodiversity in international waters. The signing of…
First Nation and scientists partner to revive climate-saving eelgrass
MALIKO’MIJK, Canada — Decades ago, the sea around Maliko’mijk Island was an expansive green carpet of eelgrass, the meadows so thick that members of the Pictou Landing First Nation had…
Fisherwomen fight plan for coastal salt farms on Indonesia’s Madura Island
SUMENEP, Indonesia — Fisherwomen on Indonesia’s Madura Island are at the forefront of a protest against a plan to convert a stretch of their coast into salt farming in their…
‘Totally unsustainable’ sand mining harms marine environments, new data suggest
New data suggest that the extraction of sand from marine environments — known as “sand mining” — is happening at an unsustainable rate across the world. However, experts say there…
For the oceans, global community must fund Sustainable Development Goal 14 (commentary)
When the sustainable development community gathers in New York on September 18-19 it would do well to answer an important call. Our ocean is calling for our help — and…
A Philippines NGO project aimed to protect villages from typhoons: What went wrong?
CONCEPCION, Philippines — The skies were overcast but intense heat from the sun permeated the salty air one June afternoon on Bagongon, a central Philippines island. As the tide receded,…
In Indonesia, ‘opportunistic’ whale shark fishery shows gap in species protection
JAKARTA — In early September, a whale shark washed up on a beach in the Indonesian province of West Java. Within hours, locals had chopped up the 7-meter (23-foot) fish…
Sensing tech used in oil pipelines can also track Arctic sea ice, study shows
Andres Peña Castro and his team didn’t set out to track sea ice. Their original plan was to quantify the interactions between ocean, earth and atmosphere to be able to…
Study finds old pear trees make for surprisingly rich reef habitats
Riding his bike to work in the Netherlands’ Zeeland province, Tjeerd Bouma passed fields of pear and apple trees. His mind wandered. As a coastal ecologist at the Royal Netherlands…
Small-scale fishers in Indonesian isles flag use of banned net by outsiders
SUMENEP, Indonesia — Small-scale fishers in Indonesia’s Masalembu Islands have filed a petition to the government calling for the establishment of an exclusive fishing zone off-limits to larger trawlers that…
Pacific alliance adopts moratorium on deep-sea mining, halting resurgent PNG project
PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea — A moratorium on deep-sea mining established by a group of Pacific island nations has struck a blow to the Solwara 1 project in Papua…
International outcry as Iceland lifts ban on what could be last whale hunt
The Icelandic government has announced that commercial whaling can resume after the activity was suspended for more than two months. In June, Svandís Svavarsdóttir, the country’s minister of food, agriculture…
For South Africa’s small fishers, co-ops prove a necessary, but bumpy, step up
STEENBERG’S COVE, South Africa — For more than 40 years, the sea has been Anthony Stofberg’s livelihood. Stofberg, 62, is a fisherman, just like his father, his grandfather and his…
Hope, but no free pass, as Pacific corals show tolerance to warming oceans
As climate change raises global sea temperatures, coral bleaching events are becoming more frequent and intense around the world. Yet researchers say some coral reefs may have found a way…
Indonesia, Singapore to work more closely against lobster larvae smugglers
BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities have called on their counterparts in neighboring Singapore to crack down on the illegal lobster larvae trade, given that the city-state is a key hub…
Expected ship traffic to LNG Canada port could see whale deaths also rise
In September 2022, researchers at BC Whales, a Canadian research nonprofit studying cetaceans in the north of British Columbia province, gasped when they saw a drone image of a humpback…
Deep-sea mining project in PNG resurfaces despite community opposition
KAVIENG, Papua New Guinea — Papua New Guinea’s minister for mining confirmed in early August that a deep-sea mining company would once again be looking to mine the seafloor under…
Offshore drilling faces backlash in Argentina after skirting environmental regulations
Argentina has spent the last several years expanding its investments into offshore drilling. But critics say weak regulations and a lack of oversight in the industry are raising concerns that…
‘All will be well’: Q&A with Kenyan fisher turned coral gardener Katana Ngala
KURUWITU, Kenya — Six days a week, Katana Ngala reports to his workplace, a rudimentary open-air workshop by the beach. Neat and well-shaded under huge palm trees, his workshop is…
Indonesian fishers not biting at new policy perceived as undermining them
JAKARTA — A quota-based fisheries management system that the Indonesian government introduced earlier this year has already run up against opposition for undermining the role of local authorities and fishing…
As Bangladesh’s crab fishery booms, its wild stocks suffer the fallout
DHAKA — Abdus Sobur is a small fisherman with a simple formula for success: “Catch those mud crabs, both male and female, and sell them to the local dealer at…
To protect the oceans, we must map them (commentary)
How had we missed this until now? An undersea mountain as tall as three Eiffel Towers. DDT contamination spread across an area of the seabed as large as San Francisco.…
Kenyan fishers put new twists on an age-old marine conservation system
KWALE and KILIFI COUNTIES, Kenya — One June afternoon at the Mwanamia fish landing site on Kenya’s north coast, Garama Karisa was busy mending his gear for an afternoon fishing…
Video: Rio de Janeiro’s defender of mangroves
Guanabara Bay, the historic gateway to Rio de Janeiro, is both a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most polluted coastal ecosystems in the world. It sees 18,000…
Indonesian illegal shark and ray exports remain rampant amid poor monitoring
LAMONGAN, Indonesia — The Brondong Fisheries Port in Indonesia’s East Java province was busy on a Friday morning in February as workers worked as swiftly as possible to unload the…
Madagascar signs new ‘sustainable’ tuna deal with the EU
Foreign tuna fishing companies, mostly from Asia, have been exploiting Madagascar’s waters since the 1950s. The bloc that is now the European Union joined the hunt in 1986 and didn’t…
Prickly babies: A Jamaican nursery aims to restore sea urchins felled by disease
ORACABESSA BAY, Jamaica — An encounter with a long-spined sea urchin is fairly rare in the Caribbean these days, but not for Jaye James who is currently feeding chunks of…
