ScienceDaily (Apr. 25, 2012) — While working on a research sailboat gliding over glassy seas in the Pacific Ocean, oceanographer Giora Proskurowski noticed something new: The water was littered with confetti-size pieces of plastic debris, until the moment the wind picked up and most of the particles disappeared.
Pieces of plastic debris found in the oceans are smaller than many people think. Most are measured in millimeters. (Credit: Sea Education Association)
After taking samples of water at a depth of 16 feet (5 meters), Proskurowski, a researcher at the University of Washington, discovered that wind was pushing the lightweight plastic particles below the surface. That meant that decades of research into how much plastic litters the ocean, conducted by skimming only the surface, may in some cases vastly underestimate the true amount of plastic debris in the oceans, Proskurowski said.
Reporting in the journal Geophysical Research Letters this month, Proskurowski and co-lead author Tobias Kukulka, University of Delaware, said that data collected from just the surface of the water commonly underestimates the total amount of plastic in the water by an average factor of 2.5. In high winds the volume of plastic could be underestimated by a factor of 27.
“That really puts a lot of error into the compilation of the data set,” Proskurowski said. The paper also detailed a new model that researchers and environmental groups can use to collect more accurate data in the future. Read more at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120425192843.htm
By DAN JOLING, Associated Press. Thursday, April 19, 2012
Three environmental groups are taking aim at how federal agencies approve dispersants to break up oil spills in marine waters.
The groups on Wednesday sued the Environmental Protection Agency and the Coast Guard, claiming the agencies have failed to make sure they know how chemicals in dispersants, and the reconstituted oil they target, affect endangered species.
“If chemical dispersants are going to be used after an oil spill, we have to know whether they’ll hurt or kill whales, sea turtles and other wildlife. So far, the EPA has no idea,” said Deirdre McDonnell, an attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, in announcing the lawsuit filed in San Francisco. “Unprecedented amounts of dispersants were dumped into the sea during the Deepwater Horizon disaster, and they’re likely still affecting the Gulf of Mexico, where dead dolphins continue to wash ashore.”
A dispersant approved for the Gulf of Mexico, she said by phone, may have a far different effect on a polar bear off the coast of Alaska.
Wildlife and Wetlands Two Years into the Gulf Oil Disaster
National Wildlife Federation
04-10-2012 // Jaclyn McDougal
As the two-year mark of the Deepwater Horizon blowout approaches, the National Wildlife Federation issued a new report today examining the health of the Gulf’s wildlife and wetlands. Impacts from the Gulf oil disaster will be unfolding for years, if not decades, and many species of wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico will need the combined efforts of scientists, policymakers and regulators to recover.
A Degraded Gulf Of Mexico: Wildlife and Wetlands Two Years into the Gulf Oil Disaster (pdf) was written by National Wildlife Federation Senior Scientist Dr. Doug Inkley. The report is also available as an interactive graphic at www.nwf.org/OilSpill
Major highlights include:
The poor health in dolphins in the most heavily oiled areas and the spike in dolphin deaths suggest possible ecosystem-wide effects of the oil.
The Gulf’s already-endangered sea turtle population has been dealt a severe blow by the oil disaster. Already strained bluefin tuna, deep sea coral, Gulf wetlands and coastal habitats were also impacted.
“It’s important to remember what we don’t yet know. Previous catastrophes like the Exxon Valdez have shown that impacts of oil disasters last many years or even decades,” Inkley said. “Little action has been taken to address the long-term species threats and wetlands habitat degradation exacerbated by the oil disaster. Much more needs to be done to ensure a complete recovery.”
Other oil disasters have taken years to reveal their full effects, and often recovery remains incomplete after decades.
“It will be critical to monitor these key species in the months and years ahead, especially given the unknown impacts of weathered and ‘dispersed’ oil remaining in the Gulf,” said Dr. George Crozier, retired director of Dauphin Island Sea Lab. “This disaster hit an ecosystem already weakened by years of wetlands degradation, including coastal areas around the Mississippi River Delta losing a football field worth of land every hour.”
The April 20, 2010 blowout on the Deepwater Horizon rig killed 11 workers and the Macondo well would eventually release nearly 206 million gallons of oil, providing a new setback to a Gulf ecosystem already struggling with years of wetlands degradation and the destructive power of Hurricane Katrina.
“It is essential for Congress to pass the RESTORE Act to reinvest penalties and fines to restoring the Gulf,” said David Muth, state director of NWF’s Mississippi River Delta program. “Without legislation to direct fines and penalties from the oil disaster to restoring the Gulf Coast’s wetlands and coastal ecosystems and a comprehensive Gulf Coast restoration program, the outlook for Gulf recovery will remain uncertain.”
ScienceDaily (Mar. 28, 2012) — As corals continue to decline in abundance around the world, researchers are turning their attention to a possible cause that’s almost totally unexplored — viral disease.
The white tips on this coral are a reflection of "bleaching" and declining coral health. (Credit: Photo courtesy of Oregon State University)
It appears the corals that form such important parts of marine ecosystems harbor many different viruses — particularly herpes. And although they don’t get runny noses or stomach upset, corals also are home to the adenoviruses and other viral families that can cause human colds and gastrointestinal disease.
In a research review published in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, scientists point out that coral declines are reaching crisis proportions but little has been done so far to explore viral disease as one of the mechanisms for this problem. Read the full article at the ScienceDaily
By Associated Press, Published: March 21
NOAA article
Aug 2011: Veterinarians collect samples from a Barataria Bay dolphin.
Bottlenose dolphins in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, are showing signs of severe ill health, according to NOAA marine mammal biologists and their local, state, federal and other research partners.
Barataria Bay, located in the northern Gulf of Mexico, received heavy and prolonged exposure to oil during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Based on comprehensive physicals of 32 live dolphins from Barataria Bay in the summer of 2011, preliminary results show that many of the dolphins in the study are underweight, anemic, have low blood sugar and/or some symptoms of liver and lung disease. Nearly half also have abnormally low levels of the hormones that help with stress response, metabolism and immune function.
Researchers fear that some of the study dolphins are in such poor health that they will not survive. One of these dolphins, which was last observed and studied in late 2011, was found dead in January 2012.
NOAA and its local, state and federal partners started the Barataria Bay dolphin study in 2011 as part of the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA), the process for studying the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Read more at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/2012/03/study-shows-some-gulf-dolphins-severely-ill/
Stock Island Marina Village Cleanup
Some of the 44 cleanup volunteers
On Saturday March 10th Reef Relief was joined by 44 volunteers for a mangrove cleanup of Shrimp Road on Stock Island. Volunteers removed a whopping 1652 pounds of marine debris from the mangroves. Among items removed were: a message table, plastic bags, tires, a motorcycle frame, and a damaged no dumping sign. Thanks to Stock Island Marina Village for hosting the cleanup and post cleanup BBQ celebration, all the volunteers and Key West’s own Con Leche for providing island sound for this community event.
If you know of a good spot for a marine debris cleanup please contact Reef Relief at reefrelief@gmail.com or 305-294-3100.
By Harry R. Weber and Michael Kunzelman, Associated Press
March 4, 2012
New Orleans — BP’s settlement with plaintiffs suing the company over the 2010 oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico may address harm to individuals and businesses, but there is nothing in it that compensates the public for damage to its natural resources and environment, the Justice Department said Saturday.
That’s a potentially critical issue because a separate victims’ claims fund that was set up months after the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion was also meant to cover environmental damages, but it’s now expected to be used to cover the BP settlement with plaintiffs. BP said it expects to pay out $7.8 billion in the settlement with the plaintiffs that was announced Friday.
It’s not clear whether environmental claims will now have to be addressed separately between BP and the U.S. government, or whether it will be rolled up into their ongoing discussions over settling the fines and penalties that the British company faces. Both issues also could be resolved at an eventual civil trial, which has now been postponed indefinitely.
The Justice Department noted that the settlement doesn’t address “significant damages” to natural resources and the environment.
Senate Bill 724, Domestic Wastewater Discharged Through Ocean Outfalls
We need your help, please forward this action alert
DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN 
This years attempt by the Florida legislature to never let a good deed go unpunished is a renewed attack on the 2008 ocean outfall bill that outlaws the archaic practice of dumping 396,000,000 gallons a day of inadequately treated sewage into the coastal waters of southeast Florida.
Last year Tallahassee heard your voices and the attempt to delay the implementation of the outfall law was never brought to a vote in the Senate.
This year more of the same. This 2012 version is seeking to derail the outfall law by extending the compliance deadline by two years.
Delaying reporting and other parts of the bill simply rewards counties who have done nothing since the bills passage, said DeeVon Quirolo founder and retired executive director of Key West based Reef Relief. Adding nothing has changed to justify weakening the original bill whereas the over-riding need for improving water quality for coral reefs has increased with every year.
This bill has just passed the FL House and is headed to the FL Senate.
BUT, THERE IS STILL TIME TO STOP IT!
We are asking for your help:
First:
Email the Florida Senate Committee on Rules and tell Chairman Senator John Thrasher you are opposed to the Miguel Diaz de la Portilla Senate Bill 724 (Domestic Wastewater Discharged Through Ocean Outfalls) and request the Committee on Rules not schedule SB 724 for a vote before the Senate.
Second:
If you live in Florida email your FL Senator and tell them you oppose Senate Bill 724 and if the bill comes before the Senate ask them to vote against it. (Click here to find your Senator).
If you do not live in Florida you can still help, Tell VISIT FLORIDA®, the states official tourism marketing corporation you do not want to visit Florida to swim in the sewage polluted ocean: http://www.visitflorida.com/feedback/
Looking for a Spring Break destination tell VISIT FLORIDA® how you feel about swimming in sewage.
Below is a letter sent to the Florida Senate from environmental and industry organizations.
February 23, 2012
Re: Senate Bill 724, Domestic Wastewater Discharged Through Ocean Outfalls
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Dear Senator:
We, the undersigned ocean advocacy, industry and conservation organizations, on behalf of our tens of thousands of members and supporters strongly urge you not to support Senate Bill 724 (Domestic Wastewater Discharged Through Ocean Outfalls). SB 724 is intended to delay implementation of the 2008 Florida Ocean Outfall legislation which was enacted to phase out the archaic practice of discharging inadequately treated sewage into southeast Florida’s coastal coral reef ecosystem.
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According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, 239,000 acres of coral reefs and associated reef resources lie within the four-county area affected by SB 724. This northern portion of the Florida Reef Tract stretches more than100 miles from the northern boundary of Biscayne National Park in Miami-Dade County to the St. Lucie Inlet in Martin County. These reefs are part of the third longest reef system in the world which annually sustains more than 71,000 jobs and generates $6.3 billion dollars in sales and income for Florida. (http://www.dep.state.fl.us/secretary/news/2009/02/files/0212_02.pdf)
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Floridas corals are dying at an alarming rate; between 1996 and 2001 the Keys experienced a 40 percent decrease in coral cover. Since the 1980s, 97% of Floridas Staghorn and Elkhorn reef building corals have died prompting the federal government to elevate these species to threatened status under the Endangered Species Act. Recent studies have linked Elkhorn coral white pox disease with Serratia marcescens, a human pathogen found in sewage, (Sutherland KP, Shaban S, Joyner JL, Porter JW, Lipp EK (2011) Human Pathogen Shown to Cause Disease in the Threatened Eklhorn Coral Acropora palmata. PLoS ONE 6(8): e23468. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0023468).
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Along with the mix of nutrient pollution and pathogens spewing from south Florida’s ocean outfalls, EPA reports Personal Care Products and Pharmaceuticals (PCPPs) now represent and ever increasing threat to the environment. Recent studies have found Prozac in fish organs and disrupted sexual development in fish cause by estrogen.
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The 2008 Florida Ocean Outfall legislation was not all about saving coral reefs. A key driver of the legislation was the need to conserve water in south Florida. Water needed for agriculture, population growth and Everglades restoration. The southeast counties have one of the lowest water reclamation and reuse records in Florida. Everyday 396,000,000 gallons of wastewater is discharged into the coastal waters of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties. The 2008 legislation mandates that 60% of this wastewater be allocated for reuse.
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We strongly urge you not to turn back the clock; time is running out for Florida’s coral reefs. Please vote no on SB 724.
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Sincerely,
Clean Water Network of Florida
Linda Young, Director
Cry-of-the-Water
Dan Clark, President
Eastern Surfing Association National Head Quarters
Eastern Surfing Association South Florida District
Eastern Surfing Association Palm Beach County District
Eastern Surfing Association Palm Beach County District
Tom Warnke, Chairman of the Board
Global Coral Reef Alliance
Thomas J. Goreau, PhD, President
Greater Fort Lauderdale Diving Association
Jeff Torode, President
Nature Travelers Club, Delray Beach
Hope Fox, President
Ocean Rehab Initiative Inc.
William Djubin, President
Palm Beach County Dive Industry Association
Van Blakeman, Director
Palm Beach County Reef Rescue
Ed Tichenor, Director
PEER, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility
Jerry Phillips, Director Florida Chapter
Surfrider Foundation
Miami Chapter
Broward Chapter
Treasure Coast Chapter
Sebastian Inlet Chapter
Cocoa Beach Chapter
Volusia Flagler Chapter
First Coast Chapter
Suncoast Chapter
Central Florida Chapter
Emerald Coast Chapter
Ericka Canales, Florida Regional Manager
Surfrider Foundation Palm Beach County Chapter
Todd Remmel, Chapter Chair
Reef Relief
Peter Anderson, Chairman & President
Reef Relief Founders
Craig & DeeVon Quirolo
