Quick Dips
Curated topical articles on the Blue Economy

Why Isn’t Kelp Catching On?

Hannah Selinger, The New York Times Fisheries & Aquaculture

It’s a superfood and good for the environment. So, what’s the problem?

Read more → (5 minute read)


NOAA to issue analysis of COVID-19's early impact on seafood industry: January 15

NOAA Fisheries & Aquaculture

On Friday, January 15, NOAA Fisheries will hold a media teleconference to discuss findings from a new report detailing the COVID-19 pandemic's early economic impact on the U.S. fishing and seafood sector.

Read more → (2 minute read)


As the oceans become more acidic, threat to sealife and industry grows, new study finds

Gal Tziperman Lotan, Boston Globe Fisheries & Aquaculture

The ocean’s growing acidity, which goes hand in hand with climate change and other human-driven factors, could have a devastating effect on the state’s coastal waters and the shellfish industries that rely on their ecosystems, according to a new report.

Read more → (3 minute read)


This Seagrass Traps Marine Plastic

Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine Fisheries & Aquaculture Plastics & Pollution

Researchers find the Mediterranean species of seagrass collects plastics in fibrous balls that form from its fallen leaves.

Read more → (3 minute read)


What does the Biden presidency hold for ocean sustainability?

World Ocean Initiative, The Economist Group Energy Solutions Fisheries & Aquaculture Plastics & Pollution

A major drive to promote offshore renewable energy, sustainable aquaculture and coastal restoration while redoubling international commitments is likely.

Read more → (6 minute read)


Marine waste turned into beach cleaning equipment

Charley Adams, BBC News Plastics & Pollution

A charity dedicated to clearing the planet of rubbish two minutes at a time has created a beach cleaning station made out of marine litter.

Read more → (2 minute read)


New Post-Consumer Plastic Waste Recycling Plant from TOMRA and Borealis

Ben Messenger, Waste Management World Plastics & Pollution

TOMRA and Borealis have begun operations of start of their advanced mechanical recycling demo plant in Lahnstein, Germany.

Read more → (4 minute read)


Webinar: The Path to a Sustainable Ocean Economy: U.S. Launch of the Ocean Panel Transformations and Report

World Resources Institute

As the world looks to recover from COVID-19 and the economic fallout, a sustainable ocean economy can help solve global challenges and make communities stronger.

Read more → (2 minute read)


Seagrass 'Neptune balls’ sieve millions of plastic particles from water, study finds

Agence France-Presse, The Guardian Plastics & Pollution

Underwater seagrass in coastal areas appear to trap plastic pollution in natural bundles of fibre known as “Neptune balls”, researchers have found.

Read more → (3 minute read)


First-Ever U.S.-Accredited, Grid-Connected Wave Energy Test Site Makes Critical Advances Toward 2022 Commissioning

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Energy Solutions

Oregon State University (OSU) has completed the design phase of PacWave South, the first accredited, grid-connected, prepermitted wave energy test facility in the United States, and will soon initiate procurement and construction.

Read more → (4 minute read)


‘Ocean 100’: Small Group of Companies Dominates Ocean Economy

Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University

Most of the revenues extracted from use of the world’s oceans is concentrated among 100 transnational corporations, which have been identified for the first time by researchers at Duke University and the Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University.

Read more → (4 minute read)


Women in aquaculture: Emily Selinger

Bonnie Waycott, The Fish Site Fisheries & Aquaculture

Born in Freeport, Maine, Emily Selinger quickly fell in love with working on the water. After getting a captain’s licence and working on schooners along the East Coast, she returned to Freeport and set up her own oyster farm, Emily’s Oysters.

Read more → (12 minute read)


Help UK seas recover to deliver £50bn in benefits, report urges

Emily Beament, Yahoo! Finance Energy Solutions Fisheries & Aquaculture Plastics & Pollution Shipping & Ports Tourism

Restoring the UK’s seas from their damaged state could give a £50 billion boost to the economy, create thousands of new jobs and help the climate crisis, a report says.

Read more → (4 minute read)


Will 2021 Be the Year Offshore Wind Power Finally Takes Off?

Tara Lohan, The Revelator Energy Solutions

A presidential administration ready to tackle climate change may help — but it’s the years of planning that could really pay off.

Read more → (11 minute read)


MSC: World Missing Out on Nutrition for 72 Million Due to Overfishing

Perishable News Fisheries & Aquaculture

The Marine Stewardship Council says the world is missing out on enough protein to meet the yearly needs of 72 million people, because not all fisheries have been sustainably managed.

Read more → (3 minute read)


Clothes washing linked to ‘pervasive’ plastic pollution in the Arctic

Damian Carrington, The Guardian Plastics & Pollution

The Arctic is “pervasively” polluted by microplastic fibres that most likely come from the washing of synthetic clothes by people in Europe and North America, research has found.

Read more → (4 minute read)


More than 50 countries commit to protection of 30% of Earth's land and oceans

Patrick Greenfield and Fiona Harvey, The Guardian Energy Solutions Fisheries & Aquaculture Plastics & Pollution Shipping & Ports Tourism

A coalition of more than 50 countries has committed to protect almost a third of the planet by 2030 to halt the destruction of the natural world and slow extinctions of wildlife.

Read more → (5 minute read)


How to map the seabed from the sky

The Economist

A new type of sonar promises better oceanic cartography.

Read more → (4 minute read)


Seaweed could unlock entirely new industry in the Bay of Plenty

Shannon Redstall, Newshub Fisheries & Aquaculture

A state-of-the-art aquaculture facility at Waikato University is breeding seaweed to help researchers harness its full potential.

Read more → (2 minute read)


Ørsted, Siemens Gamesa Kickstart Offshore Wind to Hydrogen Project

Adnan Durakovic, Offshore Wind Biz Energy Solutions

Ørsted, Siemens Gamesa, ITM Power, and Element Energy have been awarded EUR 5 million in funding to demonstrate and investigate a combined wind turbine and electrolyser system designed for operation in marine environments.

Read more → (3 minute read)