Cleanup in EarthShare New Jersey: An Innovative Solution for Waterway Restoration

Introduction
Water pollution is a pressing global issue that threatens ecosystems and human health. As pollution levels continue to rise, innovative technologies are being developed to combat this problem. One such technology is the RanMarine WasteShark, an aquatic drone designed to cleanup and remove floating debris from waterways.

How the WasteShark Operates
The WasteShark aquadrone, developed by RanMarine Technology, operates akin to a water-based Roomba vacuum cleaner. With a capture basket capacity of 42 gallons, this coffee table-sized robotic drone demonstrates its remarkable capabilities by efficiently collecting and removing up to 1100 pounds of waste on a daily basis from diverse aquatic environments such as harbors, marinas, estuaries, and lakes. It excels in accessing small, hard-to-reach areas, ensuring that debris is effectively tackled in critical chokeholds. Whether operated manually through remote control or autonomously following a pre-programmed route using an online dashboard, the WasteShark’s adaptability guarantees highly effective and efficient cleaning operations.

Types of Debris Removed
The WasteShark is designed to combat various types of debris polluting our waterways. It targets floating debris or trash and even small plastic pollution, which poses a significant threat to marine life and water quality. Additionally, the WasteShark can remove unwanted biomass vegetation from the water surface. Harmful algal blooms release toxins that contaminate drinking water, causing illnesses for animals and humans.

Global Impact
The global impact of water pollution around the world can be greatly addressed by solutions like the WasteShark. Researchers estimate that 10,000 metric tonnes of waste enter the Great Lakes alone each year, with a significant portion being plastic. By efficiently removing this waste, WasteShark helps mitigate the harmful effects of anthropogenic debris on wildlife, drinking water, and public enjoyment of water resources. Its contribution to cleaner waterways positively impacts ecosystems and human well-being on a global scale.

Organizations Utilizing the WasteShark
One notable organization utilizing the WasteShark is PortsToronto. In partnership with RanMarine Technology, PortsToronto has launched a pilot program that introduced two WasteShark aquadrones, named Ebb and Flow, to the Toronto Harbour. As part of PortsToronto’s Trash Trapping Program, Ebb and Flow join the network of Seabins deployed to capture floating debris and small plastic pollution. This program is supported by a grant initiative from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, aligning with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

PortsToronto’s Trash Trapping Program, in collaboration with the University of Toronto Trash Team and the International Trash Trap Network, recognizes the invaluable contribution of the WasteShark aquadrones in collecting vital data on the type, amount, and sources of debris in the Toronto Harbour and Lake Ontario. By utilizing the WasteSharks, PortsToronto can significantly enhance its trash-trapping capabilities and expand research efforts to gain a deeper understanding of plastic pollution and its effective mitigation strategies.

Conclusion
The RanMarine WasteShark represents an innovative solution for combating water pollution and the accumulation of debris in aquatic environments. Its ability to collect floating debris, small plastic pollution, and biomass has a significant global impact by improving water quality, preserving ecosystems, and safeguarding public health. Through the efforts of organizations such as PortsToronto, WasteShark contributes to data collection, research, and collaboration necessary to address water pollution on a larger scale. As the demand for sustainable and efficient cleaning technologies continues to grow, WasteShark offers hope in creating cleaner waterways worldwide.

Original article: https://www.earthsharenj.org/the-ranmarine-wasteshark-an-innovative-solution-for-waterway-cleanup/

IoT: Pioneering the Future of Aquatic Conservation in Partnership with Deutsche Telekom [Video]

VIDEO LINK> Explore the synergy between RanMarine and Deutsche Telekom IoT in our exclusive insight into the collaborative efforts reshaping the future of aquatic conservation. Discover how this innovative partnership merges RanMarine’s cutting-edge autonomous aquatic drones with Deutsche Telekom’s advanced technology solutions. Gain a behind-the-scenes look at the impactful initiatives driving sustainable change, tackling global water pollution, and preserving aquatic ecosystems. Join us in unveiling the transformative power of technology and environmental stewardship as we dive into the dialogue between two visionary forces shaping a cleaner, healthier world.

A Trash-Eating Sea Monster Appears in the Hudson!

A team of scientists and environmentalists tests out the WasteShark, an unmanned watercraft that vacuums up soda cans and potato-chip bags.

WasteShark is not a shark. It is an unmanned watercraft that its creators named for a shark, owing to similarities between how WasteShark collects its prey and the feeding habits of the Rhincodon typus, or whale shark. Cruising slowly, the whale shark takes in water and filters it for plankton and krill; WasteShark, meanwhile, filters urban waters for trash. But, whereas the whale shark can grow to the length of a subway car, WasteShark is only five feet long, three and a half feet wide, and a foot and a half thick. As the bright-orange fibreglass craft floated on the Hudson River recently, off Pier 40—collecting trash at or near the surface in its wire-basket-like interior—it looked less like a fish than like something accidentally dropped from a cruise liner. “I thought it was somebody’s luggage,” a member of the Village Community Boathouse said, after WasteShark whisked past.

When full, WasteShark’s hold is emptied by its minders—in this case, Carrie Roble, a scientist who is in charge of research and education at Hudson River Park, and Siddhartha Hayes, who oversees the park’s environmental monitoring. Hayes grew up jumping into swimming holes in the Catskills, while Roble swam in metropolitan Detroit, affording her insight into a still widely held view of urban rivers. “I used to swim in the Detroit River, and people would see me and say, ‘I can’t wait to see your third arm,’ ” she said.

WasteShark, which costs twenty thousand dollars, is joining the park’s scientific team more as mascot than as player. Roble hopes that it will generate interest among passersby and among “field assistants” (interns), who will pilot the trash-eating drone this summer. “We see WasteShark as a tool,” she said.

WasteShark’s latest test run in the Hudson happened to take place on the very day that forest fires in Quebec turned New York into a Mars-scape, adding a sense of urgency to WasteShark’s mission. As Roble and Hayes wheeled it out on a dolly from Pier 40’s Wetlab, the park’s aquarium and field station, they donned N95 masks and life jackets, and were joined by two interns: Vivian Chavez, a student at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, and Stefan Valdez, from Lehman College, in the Bronx.

They lugged WasteShark down a gangway to a dock floating in a cove bounded by Pier 40 and the pier leading to the Holland Tunnel ventilation shaft—discharging carbon monoxide and pulling in what was passing that day for fresh air. A wake caused by a ferry buffeted the dock, sending an observer to his knees. Hayes knelt by WasteShark, touching its stern. “O.K., so these are the thrusters,” he said, pressing the start button. “I’m holding it until it’s blue.”

Roble detailed WasteShark’s features—a camera, sensors for measuring depth and temperature—while managing expectations. In 2020, Roble and Hayes published, in the Marine Pollution Bulletin, a comprehensive analysis of the lower Hudson estuary’s high levels of microplastics, against which WasteShark is powerless. WasteShark is the robotic assistant to a volunteer shoreline trash pickup. “For that plastic water bottle that is just out of reach,” Roble explained.

They lowered WasteShark off the edge and, with a handheld controller, turned on the thrusters, which propelled the craft quietly. Chavez took the controls. “It kind of feels like you’re walking your pet,” Roble told her, “ ’cause we end up following it along.”

As the skies darkened, Chavez smiled and set a course for some rejectamenta. Roble mused about potential attachments, including one that resembles an Arctic fox, to deter congregating Canada geese, which are a threat to passenger jets. “Or maybe googly eyes,” she said.

Chavez attributed her immediate proficiency to her gaming skills, recently honed via the latest Legend of Zelda game, Tears of the Kingdom. She handed the controller to Valdez, who steered WasteShark toward the West Street shore. “I think it handles well,” he said.

“They are the guinea pigs, and they are basically loving it,” Roble said, pleased.

A waft of trash came up from under the pier, and a gaggle of high schoolers walked out onto the pier to take pictures of the orange sky. “It’s the end of the world,” one of them shouted—then he spotted WasteShark. “Wait, are you guys monitoring something?”

After an hour, WasteShark was heaved onto the dock, and Roble and Hayes, wearing surgical gloves, picked through its haul: a baseball, bits of wood, a Diet Coke can, a water chestnut, a cigar wrapper, a toy-A.T.V. part (“Always a lot of toys,” Roble said), an amphipod, a glop of gray mush not immediately identifiable, a bag of Utz barbecue-flavored Ripples, bladder wrack, seaweed (“Good adaptation,” Hayes said), a Canada-goose gosling (deceased), a coffee-cup lid, and an Amazon bag.

By Robert Sullivan July 24, 2023 See article on link

Defeating blue-green algae: Meet the advanced MegaShark

SUSTAINABILITY – RanMarine’s aqua drones help clean the water by combating plastics and (blue-green) algae, which plague Dutch waters every summer.

Nothing beats a dip in natural swimming water during a hot summer day, right? But every year, the same question arises again: Is the water safe for swimming, or will these awful blue-green algae prevent us from entering the water? With the WasteShark and MegaShark, RanMarine not only removes plastic waste and unwanted algae. “We are now working hard on developing an advanced MegaShark that can target the harmful and annoying blue-green algae as well,” says Richard Hardiman, CEO of the Rotterdam-based company.

In the ongoing battle against water pollution, RanMarine is making waves with its innovative water drone technology. The company is tackling the global issue of water pollution with the WasteShark and the Mega Shark: high-tech devices that glide through the water, collecting pollutants. “You can compare it to an autonomous vacuum cleaner, but instead of vacuuming your lounge, they vacuum the top thirty centimeters of waterways”, explains Hardiman. The drones are equipped with sensors and cameras and can navigate complex waterways.

The MegaShark
Natural waters face a big problem nowadays: algal blooms. The consequences of excessive algae range from unattractive appearance and unpleasant odors – bad for tourism and overall well-being – to severe disruptions in aquatic ecosystems by depleting oxygen levels and blocking sunlight, damaging plants, and harming the fish. “The blooms are fueled by excessive nutrient runoff of farmer lands and profit from climate change. As temperatures rise and the population grows, we must feed more people. That means more farming and more fertilizers. I foresee that algae will become a huge problem in the future”, Hardiman explains.

Ranmarine technology teams up with aqua libra and canary wharf

RANMARINE TECHNOLOGY TEAMS UP WITH AQUA LIBRA AND CANARY WHARF GROUP TO LAUNCH LONDON’S FIRST WASTESHARK TO ELIMINATE WASTE FROM WATERWAYS AHEAD OF GLOBAL RECYCLING DAY

RanMarine Technology teams up with businesses to restore clean water in London

London, England, 17 March 2023 – RanMarine Technology teamed up with the Canary Wharf Group (CWG), Britvic, and Aqua Libra; the company best known for its infused sparkling waters, to launch the first WasteShark in London. The plastic-gobbling robot was launched into the Middle Dock at Canary Wharf just ahead of Global Recycling Day, 18 March 2023.

The WasteShark is the world’s leading aquatic robot designed to remove floating waste and collect water quality data from waterways. The WasteShark is battery powered and can navigate up to 5km of water and collects up to 500 kg of plastic and pollutants per day, emits zero emissions without producing any noise or light pollution as it roams the canals. Once waste is collected, it is then recycled to live on again where possible.

RanMarine is excited to partner with business and smart property holdings to help remove pollution from urban waters. The launch of the WasteShark into Canary Wharf is a first for RanMarine in many ways- a first in London and a first partnership with a developer and corporate sponsor. This proof-of-concept connects like-minded stakeholders with a synergetic goal of removing plastic and restoring clean water, it is a win-win outcome for all involved.

About RanMarine Technology

RanMarine Technology is an autonomous robotics scale-up specialising in the autonomy of vessels/Aqua-drones on water and headquartered in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Our primary product, using the company’s proprietary autonomy and robotics software, is the WasteShark aqua-drone; designed to harvest plastic and biomass waste from waterways in smart cities, ports, harbours or leisure waters. Additionally, the aqua-drone can be fitted with sensors to collect water quality data, temperature and depth measurements for informed water management actions.

Into the depths

CONSERVATION SCIENTISTS HAVE UNLOCKED THE MYSTERIES OF HOW SHARK AND RAY SPECIES MOVE UP AND DOWN THE OCEAN WATER COLUMN, IN EFFORTS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THEM AND SECURE THEIR FUTURE.

While we start to understand some of the migration patterns of certain shark species and have begun to pinpoint some of their meeting spots, the mysterious lives of sharks and rays in the deeper ocean columns has not been extensively studied – until now. From some of the most mysterious deep-diving species, to those that spend more time in shallower water, a new study, led by ZSL’s Institute of Zoology and Hopkins Marine Station at Stanford University, is the first ever global analysis of shark diving behaviour. A collaborative research team shows how the elasmobranch community which includes sharks, skates and rays use the vertical dimension of the ocean.

Using data from 989 biotelemetry tags – tags which allow remote measurements of behavioural activity – the global team of 171 researchers from 135 institutions analysed 38 species of elasmobranchs from the North Pacific to the Indian Ocean, and the Arctic to the Caribbean. The researchers hope that this new information on shark diving behaviour will help improve the knowledge about sharks’ ecological roles and foster conservation management plans that were previously hindered by lack of data for certain species.

Thirteen species were found to dive to depths greater than one kilometre beneath the surface. Whale sharks were found to dive to a staggering 1,896m while great white sharks were recorded diving deeper than 1,200m, providing new and important insights into the behaviour of these ocean giants.

“Knowing just how deep some species dive (or don’t dive), will help us to inform much needed conservation plans for these species and their relatives – for example, more widespread use of bycatch avoidance strategies. It will also help us understand how these animals are likely to respond to the predicted climate induced changes to our oceans,” explains Dr David Curnick, research fellow at the ZSL Institute of Zoology and co-lead author of the paper.

WHALE SHARKS WERE FOUND TO DIVE TO A STAGGERING 1,896M WHILE GREAT WHITE SHARKS WERE RECORDED DIVING DEEPER THAN 1,200M

The data on shark diving behaviour also revealed how some species vary their depth in different parts of the world. It showed how this changes between night and daytime periods as the predators move up and down in the water to hunt their prey and, in some cases, avoid being hunted themselves. Although the reasons why species usually known to frequent shallower waters were recorded diving into deep, dark waters is not confirmed, the study suggests it is likely a combination of seeking food sources, body temperature regulation, reproduction, and predator avoidance.

The team found that although many species can and will undertake deep dives, 26 of 38 species including the oceanic whitetip shark, tiger shark, scalloped hammerhead, and silky shark spent more than 95% of their time in the top 250m of the water column, depths where they are most likely to interact with fishing gears.

INVESTIGATING HOW ELASMOBRANCHS USE THE VERTICAL DIMENSIONS OF THEIR HABITAT IS KEY IN UNDERSTANDING THE WAY THEY LIVE.

Dr Curnick says: “The way that large marine animals use the horizontal space in our ocean has been well studied. However, until now, comparative studies in the vertical planes have been limited, despite the ocean being an average 3.5km deep and elasmobranchs occupying all levels within this dynamic environment.

“Investigating how elasmobranchs use the vertical dimensions of their habitat is key in understanding the way they live, but also how anthropogenic stressors are impacting them. This helps us to find ways to better protect them through more informed monitoring strategies for example. By looking at a wide range of elasmobranch species in this study, we demonstrate how they face overlapping risks, such as targeted fisheries and getting caught in nets, also known as ‘bycatch’.”

More than one third of all sharks and rays are threatened with extinction, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Having a three-dimensional map of how elasmobranchs use the ocean is vital in understanding the roles they play in wider ecosystems and to determine their individual exposure to threats.

“This massive dataset provides new insights into the vertical movement patterns of sharks and rays on a global scale for the first time. This is an important step for both understanding which sharks and rays are most likely to face threats, but also to consider how changing temperature and oxygen levels may influence their vertical distributions,” comments Stanford Postdoctoral Research Fellow and co-lead author of the paper, Dr Samantha Andrzejaczek.

MORE THAN ONE THIRD OF ALL SHARKS AND RAYS ARE THREATENED WITH EXTINCTION.

As the world warms due to climate change, it is predicted that the structure of the ocean is also going to change. With many areas suffering oxygen depletion and shifts in ocean chemistry, many species have already been driven into unfamiliar territory and habitats. However, a better understanding of their fundamental ecology can inform predictions on how reduced oxygen availability at certain depths could limit shark, ray and skate vertical movements and help to predict the wider implications of climate change.

“I’ve seen for myself the terrible threats that shark populations face around the world and how they have been decimated in recent decades. I hope that this incredible research will help scientists, conservationists and fisheries managers better protect these astonishing – and hugely important – species in the future so that they can retain their rightful place in the ocean,” concludes Ernesto Bertarelli of the Bertarelli Foundation.

Read article on Oceanographic Magazine

Written by NANE STEINHOFF

Photographs by BYRYAN DALY

Additional photographs by Alex Kydd, Guy Stevens (Manta Trust), Mark Royer, and Uli Kunz.

5 Innovative Technologies Saving Our Oceans

Solutions for the seas.

Planetary Technologies’ Ocean-Based Carbon Removal

Planetary Technologies is the first climate technology to remove carbon from the atmosphere by using direct ocean capture. Planetary’s proprietary technology safely purifies mine waste into a mild, nontoxic antacid that is released into the ocean. This antacid rapidly enhances and speeds up the ocean’s natural ability to draw out and permanently sequester carbon from the atmosphere. The additional alkalinity in the ocean also restores damage caused by increased acidification.

Additionally, the purification of mining rock produces clean, green hydrogen as a byproduct, which can be used as a zero-carbon fuel source to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. If all of this wasn’t enough, Planetary’s three-pronged process also involves extracting metals from mining waste, which can be used in batteries. This is essential in promoting an electric-powered future.

In 2022, the company was awarded $1 million from Elon Musk’s XPRIZE Carbon Removal Milestone Award, which it plans on using to achieve a full-scale demonstration of its technology. As Planetary’s CEO Mike Kelland said,

“The global community agrees that we need a three-pronged approach to stop the harmful effects of climate change – adapt, reduce emissions and remove carbon – and Planetary’s process does all three, the most critical being our ability to remove carbon dioxide form the air”

Clearbot’s Trash Clean Up and Data Collection

An estimated 11 million pounds of waste are put into our oceans each year. Clearbot is attempting to lower this number with its Clearbot boats. These electric-powered, AI-enabled, and autonomous boats tackle the challenges of plastics, flood debris, and biomass in waterways.

For example, the three-meter-long Clearbot Neo autonomously collects floating garbage by systematically moving up and down designated sections of water. It skims the surface to scoop up floating trash onto its onboard conveyor belt and uses AI to recognize and log the types of trash collected. The trash is then properly disposed of based on its category. With 4 hours of battery life, Clearbot Neo allows a one-man team to deploy and capture hazardous and pollutant waste of up to 1-ton per day. See video on https://youtu.be/u2bApYIbCmw

Using its two-camera detection system, Neo also collects valuable data. One camera surveys the water’s surface to avoid marine life, navigational hazards, and other vessels. The second camera photographs each piece of trash that lands on the conveyor belt and transmits its image and location to the company’s data compliance system, hosted by Microsoft’s Azure platform. When the data from these two cameras are merged with other information like sea current and tide, the trash’s source and the water’s quality are more easily identifiable.

Saildrone’s Autonomous Vessels

Saildrone’s fleet of autonomous wind and solar-powered vessels collect real-time, high-quality data throughout the ocean. This data can be used to inform sustainable fisheries management, detect oil spills, conserve threatened species, map the seafloor, and help scientists understand how the climate is changing ocean ecosystems like coral reefs.

The company’s wing technology enables a mission duration of up to 12 months; its wind propulsion system allows the vehicles to travel at an average speed between two to six knots under wind power. To date, Saildrone’s vehicles have sailed over 800,000 miles with over 18,000 days at sea with little to no carbon footprint.

Saildrone's Saildrone Surveyor innovative technology saving the oceans — Photo Credit: Saildrone

One of Saildrone’s vessels is the Saildrone Surveyor, which autonomously set sail in July 2021 from San Francisco to Honolulu. The Saildrone Surveyor was created for ocean mapping; its sensors look at underwater ecosystems and map the seafloor to a depth of 23,000 feet. Saildrone intends to map the entirety of Earth’s oceans in 10 years—80 percent of which is currently unmapped. Mapping the Earth’s oceans will help scientists understand climate change processes, the path and strength of tsunamis, and more.

SafetyNet Technologies’ Selective Fishing Light

Over 9 million tonnes of bycatch are caught globally every year, negatively impacting fishermen, the marine ecosystem, marine biodiversity, and fish stock. In an attempt to lower this number, SafetyNet Technologies created Pisces, a kit of 10 LED lights that fit fishing gear to allow more precise fishing. As a result, users can adapt to regulations, avoid fines, and fish more sustainably. See video on https://youtu.be/mcbNv_OhFkA

Pisces can be adapted in numerous ways depending on what color, intensity, and flash rate are used, allowing Pisces to work in multiple different fisheries. Its LED lights also significantly reduce bycatch by attracting some species of fish and scaring others away. As a result, Pisces can be adjusted to help catch more of your target species while reducing bycatch.

SafetyNet Technologies also created Catc hCam, a robust underwater camera that allows users to see their gear in action under the ocean. This gives users insights into how fish behave in nets and if their bycatch mitigation methods, like square mesh panels, are working.

RanMarine’s WasteShark

Created by RanMarine Technology, a robotic autonomy technology company, WasteShark is a small robotic device that removes floating waste, plastics, and harmful algae from the surface of the water. This autonomous surface vessel is emission-free and reduces the effects of plastic pollution on the Earth’s oceans. As WasteShark’s founder, Richard Hardiman told Tomorrow’s World Today,

“Our purpose is to develop technology to make our world a more livable place and ease the pressure humans are adding to our fragile water resources and ecosystems.”

The robot has 180 liters (47.5 gallons) of capacity, an 8-hour runtime, and can remove 1100 pounds of waste a day. Ran Marine’s DataShark can also collect live data to measure accurate water health quality. This vessel can monitor temperature, depth, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, blue-green algae, crude, refined oils, and more to identify potential contaminants early to minimize their impact on the environment.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in 2022, RanMarine also introduced the SharkPod, which is the world’s first autonomous floating docking station for waste-clearing drones. This tool will be able to deploy, dock, and charge up to five WasteShark drones at one time, allowing for a twenty-four-hour autonomous solution to remove waste from the water. Together with WasteSharks, the SharkPod would be able to remove up to 100 tons of debris and waste per month.

For more information on the world’s oceans, check out how Earth’s oceans have reached record acidity, temperature, and sea levels, Tomorrow’s World Today’s interview with a National Geographic artist about ocean conservation, NFT’s helping coral reefs, and coral reefs around the world.

To read the article by Tomorrows World Today see this link

Sailing drones to clean plastic in the Lauwersoog port

From now on, five sailing drones will be used to fish plastic waste from the port of Lauwersoog. Initiators GPBO and Ran Marine have received a subsidy of almost one million for the Wadden Fund project.

Drones have to clean up plastic in Lauwerseach harbor:

In total, the project will cost almost one and a half million euros and it does not stop at the collection of floating waste. It is also the intention that companies in the port hand in their waste plastic before it can end up in the water.

Salinization of agricultural land tackled

In total, 3720 tons of plastic must be processed sustainably every year. In the future, these types of installations can go to other ports for the same purpose. Because the plastic is reused and incinerated, it also reduces CO2 emissions.

Dianne van Essen of The Great Plastic Bake Off with a piece of plastic from the harbor

Photo: Omrop Fryslân, Remco de Vries

In total, the Wadden Fund announced an investment of four million euros on Wednesday. This also involved a plastic and textile recycling project in the Eemshaven and a project to tackle the consequences of salinization of agricultural land.

See full article and video by Omrop Fryslân on link

Rare coral reef discovered near Tahiti

A scientific research mission supported by UNESCO has discovered one of the largest coral reefs in the world off the coast of Tahiti. The pristine condition of, and extensive area covered by, the rose-shaped corals make this a highly valuable discovery.

” To date, we know the surface of the moon better than the deep ocean. Only 20% of the entire seabed has been mapped. This remarkable discovery in Tahiti demonstrates the incredible work of scientists who, with the support of UNESCO, further the extent of our knowledge about what lies beneath. ” Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Director-General

Highly unusual discovery

The reef is located at depths of between 30 and 65 metres. It is approximately 3km in length and between 30m and 60/65m wide, which makes it one of the most extensive healthy coral reefs on record. The giant rose-shaped corals are up to 2 metres in diameter.

This is highly unusual because, up to now, the vast majority of the world’s known coral reefs sit at depths of up to 25m. So this discovery suggests that there are many more large reefs out there, at depths of more than 30 metres, in what is known as the ocean’s ‘twilight zone’, which we simply do not know about.

” It was magical to witness giant, beautiful rose corals which stretch for as far as the eye can see. It was like a work of art.” Alexis Rosenfeld, French photographer and founder of the 1 Ocean campaign

A step forward for science

This expedition is part of UNESCO’s global approach to mapping the ocean. Coral reefs are an important food source for other organisms so locating them can aid research around biodiversity. The organisms that live on reefs can be important for medicinal research and reefs can also provide protection from coastal erosion and even tsunamis.

“French Polynesia suffered a significant bleaching event back in 2019 however this reef does not appear to have been significantly affected. The discovery of this reef in such a pristine condition is good news and can inspire future conservation. We think that deeper reefs may be better protected from global warming.” Dr. Laetitia Hedouin, France’s National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS)

Read full article by Ocean Decade on this link

Could algae be the sustainable food of the future?

Is now the time to get on board with eating the vegetables of the ocean, asks Lauren Taylor

Figuring out how we can eat more sustainably is going to be an ongoing issue as the world becomes more populated and the climate crisis intensifies. And, from munching on protein-packed insects to lab-grown meat, greener (and animal welfare-conscious) alternatives are being explored – the latest being algae.

It should be no surprise, really, that as we’ve well and truly exploited what’s on land, we were destined to delve further into the sea. But with environmentalists warning of the devastating impacts of overfishing, one expert suggests we need to eat the food from the bottom of the ocean, rather than the top.

Patricia Harvey, professor of biochemistry and head of bioenergy research at the University of Greenwich, says: “We’ve learned on land to eat the vegetables, we haven’t yet learned with regards to the ocean how to eat the vegetables – the algae.”

What is ‘ocean flexitarianism’?

It’s a new concept which asks that – like “flexitarianism” or “casual vegetarianism” where people eat a mostly plant-based diet with some meat occasionally – we eat more vegetables from the ocean than fish.

Algae is the umbrella term for a huge, diverse group of aquatic organisms, found in both fresh and seawater, that conduct photosynthesis to generate oxygen. One form of algae most people are familiar with is seaweeds, such as nori and kelp, and Japanese diets in particular include several types. But Harvey believes the untapped potential in sustainable food sources in the ocean is huge.

Why is eating algae sustainable?

“We know we’ve got to feed a lot more people by 2050, the population is growing, and we also know that if we keep on putting intensive agriculture on the land, we’re going to completely screw up the biodiversity,” says Harvey. But we can’t simply turn to the ocean as we are, because we typically eat carnivorous fish like tuna and cod.

“About 70 per cent of the Earth is covered in water and about 97 per cent of that water is ocean. If we just dive into the ocean to feed all those people, if we then turn to the ocean to [only] eat the carnivores, we’ll then mess up the ocean. That’s why it’s incredibly important to get more people to grips with eating algae, the vegetables, at the bottom of the ocean. So we can get a sustainable exploitation of the ocean to feed more people.”

Read full article Independent.co.uk

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