Ocean Stories
Anthropocene brings some of the best minds to bear on tough questions about the future of the Earth’s largest ecosystems: Should nations farm their EEZs—and how can they do it ecologically? Are there economically viable ways to harvest plastic waste? Can we cultivate acid- and heat-resilient coral reefs?
Is plastic trash in the middle of the ocean becoming a new kind of island habitat?
Giant patches of plastic floating in the ocean have become home to an experiment in a new hybrid ecosystem, made up of stowaway species from coastal environments and organisms that dwell in the middle of the Pacific. Meet the "neopelagic" world.
Saltwater Aquaculture Moves Inland
Improved technology could give fish farms a sustainable foothold far from the ocean
How many fish are in the sea?
Researchers are getting closer to an answer—and improved management—by identifying the DNA traces that fish leave behind in seawater
Letting the big fish get away could be an unexpected climate solution
Big fish sinking to the bottom of the sea could sequester millions of tons of carbon
Eyes on the High Seas
Illegal fishing is getting harder, thanks to public surveillance from space
The case for co-locating offshore wind parks and nature reserves
Wind parks could benefit the natural world—in ways beyond the generation of zero-carbon energy.
If at first you don’t succeed, flush flush again.
After decades of failure, the tide has finally turned in the battle against invasive species in the Great Lakes. Scientists say the main reason is mandatory saltwater flushing of ship ballast tanks.
Which countries are the wealthiest, when blue carbon is the currency?
Researchers calculated that mangroves, salt marshes and seagrass meadows store roughly the equivalent of the annual carbon emissions of France—with an estimated value of $190 billion per year.
The most comprehensive study ever reveals which are the greenest ‘blue foods’
The lowest-impact label went to farmed bivalves and seaweeds; but there were also some surprises—e.g., wild and farmed salmon have the same footprint
Can marine reserves work if they still allow fishing? One UK bay suggests “Yes.”
On the southwest coast of the England, near the town of Lyme Regis, scientists found that fish populations boomed when reefs were protected, even though some kinds of fishing continued.
