Sea Notes

Seawater Synergy

Now here's a brilliant idea:

Pipe seawater into the Sahara Desert, use solar energy to create freshwater via evaporation, then use the water to grow greenhouse crops that will feed a hungry world. And, as a bonus, build enough solar capacity to ship surplus energy from the Sahara to Europe.

It's still a dream, but there are demonstration projects in Tenerife, Oman and the United Arab Emirates -- and a lot of buzz today about the Sahara Forest Project, Check it out.....

As if that weren't enough, the Japanese are dreaming big, too. The Times of London reports on a vision for offshore "eco-rigs" that would generate energy from the sun and waves, and use some of the energy for aquaculture farms to raise seaweed, fish and plankton.

Green Energy Update

As scientists get new tools to track the impact of global warming on the ocean, and oil companies eye the prospect of tapping nearly 90 billion barrels of  Arctic oil (a three-year supply at current consumption levels), there are new developments on the green energy front.

First, researchers from Stanford University and the Carnegie Institution for Science believe there's potential to use abandoned agricultural land to  grow crops for conversion into biofuel -- easing the energy crunch without worsening the world food shortage or contributing to global warming.

Second, the high price of oil means that alternative sources for auto fuel -- like converting garbage to gasoline -- now make economic sense.

Finally, check the reports from Wired.com blogger Chuck Squatriglia for the buzz about 100 MPG plug-in hybrid cars coming out of San Jose this week, where the Plug-In 2008 convention drew crowds.

In a week when Nobel Prize-winner Al Gore issued a challenge for the United States to to convert 100 percent of its energy production to green sources within a decade, these were all positive signs.

And that's good news for the future of the oceans.

The Perils of Penguins

Penguins have had a good run in the popular media over the past few years, from March of the Penguins to Madagascar to Happy Feet.

Outside of movie theaters, the story's not as great. Penguins in temperate regions already faced a are in decline because of a quadruple whammy:  mining of guano, egg harvesting, commercial fishing and oil spills.

Now comes a new study indicating that climate change is adding new stresses, as penguins are forced to swim farther from shore to find food. The loss of sea ice and icebergs means fewer places where their prey species can aggregate.

No polar bears in the Southern Ocean, no penguins in the Arctic, but these ice-dependent creatures face similar threats.

Dee Boersma of the University of Washington spells out the details in a paper just published in Bioscience.

There's a lot we can do as individuals to reduce our carbon footprint. And we can take ownership of the overfishing issue by using a Seafood Watch pocket guide when buying seafood, or becoming a Seafood Watch Advocate and encouraging businesses to change their seafood buying practices.

It won't happen overnight, but our incremental changes will make a different -- for polar bears and penguins.

A bright idea

With many people adopting the "twisty" compact fluroscent (CFL) bulb these days, we were really in need of a good source for disposal and recycling.

This week, Home Depot announced that all it's nearly 2,000 stores, nationwide, would be accepting expired CFL's. IKEA has also been offering this for some time.

In a related move, Home Depot also plans to convert all its incandescent lighting to CFL by fall this year. Good news for the enviroment, and not bad for the pocket book of Home Depot either, with estimated annual savings of $16 million!

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has a great new summer deck show this year "Watt a Waste". If you are planning a visit, be sure to check out the show and find out about the energy monster living in your home!

We also have a free deck show available to all, on Hovden Way between the Aquarium's two buildings, where a mini musical will inform and entertain about what you might do with your trash this summer!

An Ich-y Situation

Just when you thought the state of Pacific salmon in 2008 couldn't get any worse, come two more pieces of bad news: one environmental, one political.

First, Ken Weiss, the Pulitzer Prize-winning oceans writer for the Los Angeles Times, reports that Alaska salmon -- up til now in such good shape that they're certified by the Marine Stewardship Council as sustainable and a Best Choice of our Seafood Watch program -- may be in trouble because of global warming.

The rivers in which they spawn are warming. Warmer water is more hospitable to diseases and parasites, including "white spot disease" from a parasite called ich for short (pronounced "ick") that renders Yukon River salmon unfit for anything but sled dogs or the garbage.

That's an environmental wake-up call.

On the political front, U.S. senators and members of Congress from the West Coast are fuming because the Bush Administration is proposing to cut $70 million from the $180 million disaster appropriation to aid the salmon fleet idled by the cancellation of this year's salmon season because of the California salmon population.

The money would be redirected to help pay for the 2010 federal census.

In a letter to the President, the bipartisan coalition asserts:

“This proposal is especially egregious when you consider that your administration’s water policies on all of the Pacific Northwest’s major salmon rivers are the reason this disaster funding is needed in the first place.”

And that was their reaction BEFORE he proposed reopening U.S. waters to offshore oil and gas development.

Friday's Featured Film: Wingless Flight

When your goal is a future with healthy oceans, you have to keep a sharp eye on the land. That's because the impact we humans are having on planetary ecosystems don't stop at the shoreline.

With that in mind, and with gasoline prices in my neighborhood soaring toward $4.75 a gallon for regular, I was delighted to discover this small car company that plans to bring a sleek all-electric car with a 120 mile cruising range and a top speed of 85 miles per hour to market before the end of the year.

Called the Aptera and built in Carlsbad, California, it will retail for less than $30,000; carry two passengers, an infant/toddler car seat, and quite a bit of cargo ("15 bags of groceries, two full-size golf club bags or even a couple of seven-foot surfboards"); and is flat-out gorgeous, in a futuristic way.

By 2010 they intend to produce and sell a gas-electric hybrid that gets 120 miles PER GALLON of gas. The only bad news: Initially, it will only be be available here in California.

Check it out in this Popular Mechanics test drive:

Happy World Ocean Day

Today, is officially, the unofficial day we celebrate our oceans. Although aquaria and conservation organizations across the world will recognize today as "World Ocean Day", in reality, there has only been one world ocean day, and that was in 1992, at the first ever Earth summit.

"Earth Day" of course, is officially recognized every year, and there's no doubt that the oceans are celebrated in those festivities. But, as we all know, our ocean planet is 70% water, and those that live both in our oceans and on the land not only depend on water, but are composed of water. The human brain is 70% water, which may explain a lot!

Our oceans provide a major source of protein for much of the world's population. Our oceans drive our climate, provide us with a large percentage of the oxygen we breathe, and are absorbing ever increasing amounts of carbon dioxide, which we are all producing each year.

Is it a lot to ask to dedicate a day in honor of our oceans?

For many years, Oceana has been petitioning the UN to make this day a permanent tribute.

But at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, every day is Ocean Day. Every day we seek to inspire our guests to find new ways to tread lightly on our planet and to take responsibility for our footprint - whether that be through the seafood choices we make, or through the way we get engaged in local, state and national ocean policy issues.

Thank you for caring about our oceans. Together we can make a difference.

Monday's Photo: Narwhals

They're called the unicorns of the sea. Narwhals are Arctic dwellers, related to belugas and unique because the left tooth of male narwhals grows into a twisted tusk.

Now, researchers tell us, they may become the poster child for endangered Arctic wildlife.

The March 2008 issue of the journal Ecological Applications is devoted entirely to the topic of "Arctic Marine Mammals and Climate Change." Narwhals are considered the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change on northern ecosystems.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Stanford University biologist Terry Root (who wasn't part of the study) said the analysis published in the journal reinforces her concern that the narwhal "is going to be one of the first to go extinct" from climate change despite a relatively healthy population today.

"There could a bazillion of them, but if the habitat or the things that they need are not going to be around, they're not going to make it," Root told AP science writer Seth Borenstein.

While polar bears can adapt somewhat to the changing Arctic climate, narwhals can't, Root said.

The journal, published by the Ecological Society of America, evaluated the status of 11 Arctic marine mammals. In addition to narwhals, other species at greatest risk include polar bears, hooded seals, bowhead whales and walruses.

There's a lot we can do -- individually and as a society -- to tackle the growing volume of carbon dioxide we're putting into the atmosphere. It's the challenge of our lifetime, and well worth the effort -- for the narwhals and ourselves.

Monday's Photo: Return of the Turtles

A visitor favorite, and certainly one of mine, are the black sea turtles in our Outer Bay exhibit. Back from a hiatus in their outdoor pool, they are once again gracing the waters with their open ocean cohorts, the tuna, mola and sharks. As the photo shows, the fascination for other species goes both ways!

Sea turtles, it turns out, are the new "canaries in the coalmine" in helping us understand the impacts of global climate change on our oceans.  WWF has launched a new website, Adaptation to Climate Change in Marine Turtles (ACT).

Turtles are a really good way to study climate change because they depend on healthy beaches as well as mangroves, sea grass beds, coral reefs and deep ocean ecosystems to live”, said Dr. Lucy Hawkes, coordinator of an initiative to develop adaptation strategies for climate change impacts to turtles.

“Understanding of how climate change may affect the beaches, the reef and the open ocean will not only benefit endangered sea turtle populations, but also the millions of people who live along the coastlines of the world and depend upon marine resources and environmental services."

Look for our canaries via the Outer Bay webcam, or come visit them in person for an encounter that will stay with you for life.

Walrus Wanderings

In the tale of The Walrus and the Carpenter in Lewis Carroll' sequel to "Alice in Wonderland", the walrus is to be found strolling across a sandy beach. Of course, in our world, walrus favor the cold ice floes of the Arctic. This great new animation from the United States Geological Service (USGS) let's you watch the movements of these tusked wonders around the frigid waters of the Bering Sea. Despite their size, it is not easy to monitor the movements of these creatures, as they spend 80% of their time underwater, foraging for surprisingly small prey items such as snails and clams. These walrus are carrying satellite transmitters which report on their location each hour and will help scientists understand more about where the food seems to be concentrated.

Much is told of the plight of the polar bear due to global climate change, but these changes likewise impact the habitat and ecosystem of many marine mammals who live or dine in the polar regions. Scientists are working hard to understand the changes in the Bering Sea, where they're already seeing the disappearance of some crab species as well as other anomalies. These and other factors have led to the Center for Biological Diversity filing a petition with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the Pacific walrus under the federal Endangered Species Act, due to threats from global warming and growing oil and gas development throughout its range.