Marine Life & Conservation
Resolutions for an ocean and planet-friendly 2022
With concern for the climate crisis and health of the planet at an all-time high, the Marine Conservation Society suggests resolutions for an ocean and planet-friendly 2022.
Four in 10 people said climate, environment and pollution were a major issue for Britain in a recent poll* – the highest ever score for the topic since it was included in Ipsos MORI’s issues index in October 1988.
Take action to help clean up the ocean
With 62% of respondents in a recent survey saying they were very or extremely concerned about plastic pollution in the UK**, it’s understandable that people want to play their part in fighting it.
The Marine Conservation Society’s beach cleaning programme operates year-round, with beach cleans available to join as a volunteer, or organise for friends, family or colleagues.
Joining a beach clean with the charity also supports the Marine Conservation Society’s campaigning work. Volunteers collect litter and record what they find, feeding into more than 25 years of data.
To make a real difference to the state of the UK’s seas, make a resolution to help clear up the coast with the Marine Conservation Society. Find more details, and a beach clean near you, here.
Go ‘climatarian’
Looking carefully at where your food comes from and choosing sustainable options, is an impactful way to reduce your impact on the environment.
In Waitrose and Partners’ Food and Drink Report 20021-22 the supermarket identified climatarianism as a trend for 2022.
If you are buying seafood (or meat or dairy), be sure to shop mindfully. Consider how it was caught or farmed and where.
The Good Fish Guide is an easy-to-use resource to search for the most sustainable seafood options; choose seafood rated green on the Guide to minimise your impact on the marine environment and help protect blue carbon stores.
The Guide is downloadable from www.mcsuk.org/goodfishguide, and available offline.
Some low carbon seafood options include:
– UK farmed shellfish such as mussels
– Handline-caught mackerel (from southwest UK)
– Anchovies from northern Spain
Become a citizen scientist
Getting involved in projects which provide data and insight to scientists is a fantastic way to proactively help protect the ocean and planet. Everyone can become a citizen scientist, and the Marine Conservation Society has various different projects to get involved with:
– Big Seaweed Search: seaweed tells scientists a lot about the state of the sea. By learning what species of seaweed can be found where around the UK coast, scientists can better understand things like ocean warming and acidification. Simply download the survey form, head to the coast and identify what seaweed you see.
– Wildlife sightings: amazing wildlife is regularly spotted around the UK, and identifying what animals are coming to our shores really helps scientists understand the impacts of climate change on wildlife. If you see jellyfish or turtles when at the coast, let the Marine Conservation Society know via this sightings page.
– Beach cleaning: the charity’s year-round beach cleaning programme asks volunteers to clear and survey the UK’s beaches of litter. Support by arranging your own beach clean, or find one near you.
What’s more, research has shown that time by the sea brings real benefits for people’s health and wellbeing. Spending more time by the sea, or looking after it, is a resolution that not only supports the fight against the climate crisis, but also supports physical and mental wellbeing.
Explore the Marine Conservation Society’s Our Blue Heart project, and find ways to get involved at the coast on the charity’s website.
Join a community of ocean optimists
By supporting the Marine Conservation Society, members help the charity fight for the future of the ocean.
The charity’s campaigns, supported by members, have had real results on the health of the ocean. Thanks to data gathered by volunteers, and policies campaigned for by members, there’s been a 55% drop in plastic bags on UK beaches since charges were introduced in 2011.
Learn more about becoming a Marine Conservation Society member on the charity’s website.
Dive (or snorkel) in
The Marine Conservation Society’s Seasearch programme works with volunteer divers and snorkellers in UK and Irish seas and offers an exciting way to learn about marine life while playing a part in protecting and restoring the ocean.
Volunteers collect information about habitats, plants and animals underwater, and help track the health of the ocean.
Seasearch offers training at different levels, from absolute beginners to experts so anyone can get started or extend their skills. This training provides the skills to be a biological recorder (Seasearch is not a dive school). Once trained, volunteers can collect records independently or on organized trips.
To learn more about Seasearch, please visit www.seasearch.org.uk
The Ocean Cleanup, the global non-profit project, has removed a verified all-time total of ten million kilograms (22 million lbs.) of trash from oceans and rivers around the world – approximately the same weight as the Eiffel Tower.
To complete its mission of ridding the oceans of plastic, The Ocean Cleanup uses a dual strategy: cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) to remove the plastic already afloat in the oceans, while stopping the flow of plastic from the world’s most polluting rivers.
Through cleaning operations in the GPGP and in rivers in eight countries, the cumulative total of trash removed has now surpassed ten million kilograms. This milestone demonstrates the acceleration of The Ocean Cleanup’s impact, while underlining the astonishing scale of the plastic pollution problem and the need for continued support and action.
While encouraging for the mission, this milestone is only a staging point: millions more tons of plastic still pollute our oceans and The Ocean Cleanup intends to continue learning, improving and innovating to solve this global catastrophe.
This announcement comes as governments from around the world meet to continue negotiations to develop a new legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution at INC4 in Ottawa, Canada. Representatives of The Ocean Cleanup will be in attendance and the organization will be urging decision-makers to collaborate towards a comprehensive and ambitious global treaty which addresses plastic at all stages of its life cycle and in all marine environments worldwide, including in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
It is encouraging to see that the need for remediation is reflected in the various options for potential treaty provisions. It is essential that the final treaty contains clear targets for the remediation of legacy plastic pollution, and reduction of riverine plastic emissions.
Tackling plastic pollution requires innovative and impactful solutions. The treaty should therefore incentivize the innovation ecosystem by fostering innovations that make maximal use of data, technology and scientific knowledge – such as those designed and deployed by The Ocean Cleanup.
‘After many tough years of trial and error, it’s amazing to see our work is starting to pay off – and I am proud of the team who has brought us to this point.’ said Boyan Slat, Founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup. ‘While we still have a long way to go, our recent successes fill us with renewed confidence that the oceans can be cleaned.’
The Ocean Cleanup was founded in 2013 and captured its first plastic in 2019, with the first confirmed catch in the GPGP coming soon after the deployment of Interceptor 001 in Jakarta, Indonesia. After surpassing one million kilograms of trash removed in early 2022, the non-profit project has since progressed to the third iteration of its GPGP cleaning solution, known as System 03, and a network of Interceptors currently covering rivers in eight countries, with more deployments set for 2024.
About The Ocean Cleanup
The Ocean Cleanup is an international non-profit organization that develops and scales technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic. They aim to achieve this goal through a dual strategy: stemming the inflow via rivers and cleaning up the legacy plastic that has already accumulated in the ocean. For the latter, The Ocean Cleanup develops large-scale systems to efficiently concentrate the plastic for periodic removal. This plastic is tracked and traced through DNV’s chain of custody model to certify claims of origin when recycling it into new products. To curb the tide via rivers, The Ocean Cleanup has developed Interceptor™ solutions to halt and extract riverine plastic before it reaches the ocean. Founded in 2013 by Boyan Slat, The Ocean Cleanup now employs a broadly multi-disciplined team of approximately 140. The foundation is headquartered in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
For more information, visit: theoceancleanup.com and follow @theoceancleanup on social media.
Marine Life & Conservation
Steve Backshall to headline Shark Trust’s flagship event: For the Love of Sharks
Join a host of amazing, shark loving, speakers including Steve Backshall and the Shark Trust team for an evening celebrating shark conservation at the Royal Geographical Society in London this November.
Date: 29th November 2024
Time: 6-10pm
Location: Royal Geographical Society, London
Tickets: https://www.sharktrust.org/Event/flos24
The event will be a celebration of all things shark. Those lucky enough to get hold of tickets will hear from engaging guest speakers with a passion for sharks.
The line-up includes (*subject to change if unforeseen circumstances arise)
Steve Backshall: One of television’s busiest presenters, BAFTA award-winning wildlife expert Steve has been passionate about the wild world ever since he was young.
Steve’s impressive TV career has taken him all around the world, investigating a wide array of species and environments. Steve has filmed over 100 hours of children’s wildlife programmes with the BAFTA award winning Deadly 60 franchise and recently, with Sky Nature, for his new series ‘Whale with Steve Backshall’. He has been a patron for the Shark Trust for 10 years.
Simon Rogerson: is a photojournalist specialising in natural history, diving and the sea.
He is editor of SCUBA magazine, the official journal of the British Sub-Aqua Club. Simon started his career as a crime reporter but gravitated towards his ‘less depressing’ interest in underwater exploration, joining the staff of DIVE magazine in 1999. In 2005 he was named ‘Editor of the Year’ in the PPA’s Independent Publishing Awards. Simon also works as a freelance writer, contributing frequently to the Sunday Times and Telegraph, in addition to BBC Wildlife, Esquire, and a host of international diving magazines. He is the author of a book, Dive Red Sea, published by Ultimate Sports. Now based in Berkshire, Simon has been a Patron of the Shark Trust for 20 years.
More speakers to be announced soon. Head to the Shark Trust website to learn more.
The evening will also allow guests the final chance to see the Oceanic 31, shark art exhibition. Some of the artwork will be auctioned/raffled at the event, while the rest will be auctioned online to raise money for the Shark Trust Oceanic Programme.
For the Love of Sharks is an evening with something for everyone who is interested and fascinated by sharks. Join the Shark Trust, their Patrons, Trustees and Staff, along with a host of supporters for this celebration of shark conservation.
For more information or to buy a ticket: https://www.sharktrust.org/Event/flos24
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