Introduction While only 10% of the United States is considered coastal, 40% of the US population lives in coastal areas. In fact, if these coastal communities were joined into their own nation, it would rank third in world GDP -surpassed only by China and the USA as a whole. The importance of coastal communities to our national economy, culture, and …

July saw some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded, with a “marine heat wave” in Florida making national headlines by recording ocean water temperatures exceeding 100℉. Climate change – exacerbated by astounding levels of corporate greed – continues to push the Earth’s life support systems and ability to maintain balance to the limits. And often, the ocean bears the brunt …

Offshore fish farm lobbyists are putting their profits above the wellbeing of coastal communities and the oceans by infiltrating the Congressional Appropriations process and the Senate Committee in charge of allocating federal money for various programs. Their influence is obvious in the Senate Subcommittee language that advises how the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) should spend its money. In …

Offshore finfish farming (OFF) is the mass cultivation of finfish in marine waters, in underwater or floating net pens, pods, and cages. One of the many perils of eating industrially produced farmed finfish is that we never know the full suite of drugs and chemicals applied in the growing process. For over 20 years, the salmon fish farming industry has …

According to CBS News, hundreds of sea lions and dolphins are turning up dead along the southern California coast. Experts believe that a harmful algal bloom is to blame, as the particular algae strain – Pseudo-nitzschia – creates a neurotoxin known as domoic acid.