Closed Containment Thaw

Living Oceans and our partners in CAAR achieved a major breakthrough this month in our efforts to transition open net-cage salmon farms into closed containment systems. Our dialogue with Marine Harvest Canada, B.C.’s biggest farmed salmon producer, has led to the Norwegian-owned corporation formally requesting federal government help to launch a closed containment pilot project in 2010.

Closed containment technology protects wild salmon.

MHC has publicly stated  that its commercial scale pilot project will be carried out in association with the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform
Closed tanks are technically feasible ways to grow fish and are currently in use for commercial scale production of several species including tilapia and barramundi. Small scale closed systems are already used to raise salmon and pilot projects are needed to demonstrate the economic viability of these systems at larger scales. The concept of closed tanks is simple: keep farmed fish away from wild salmon and the marine environment.

According to an article in the Campbell River Courier-Islander, MHC says it is looking for either the federal or provincial government to cover 30 to 40 percent of the research and development cost of the pilot project.

An investment in the development of new, green technology by both levels of government could lead to solutions for both the industry and the environment. Closed containment would protect our wild salmon from the impacts of sea lice and alleviate the myriad negative effects of open net-cages on the marine environment. At the same time, it could ensure a future for the fish farming industry in our coastal communities and the jobs dependent on it.

Marine Harvest’s plans should be supported by both our provincial and federal governments. The Pacific Salmon Forum, chaired by the esteemed John Fraser (former federal fisheries minister) recommended closed containment pilot projects in their final report. Now the world’s largest salmon farming corporation is on board. It’s time for our elected officials to act.

New Finding Coral Video

See the Finding Coral Expedition on Google Earth/Ocean

The folks at Google have been working with people from around the world to put as much information about the ocean on to Google Earth as possible. Living Oceans Society has been a part of this effort and we have worked with Google to ensure they have the most up to date bathymetry (seafloor terrain) and footage of the Finding Coral Expedition. Follow the simple instructions below and take a dive with Living Oceans and Google. CLICK HERE to download Google Earth (FREE) Install Google Earth on your computer CLICK HERE to download the Finding Coral Expedition files SAVE the kmz file to your computer in a place you can find it Open the file - Google Earth will open to the North Coast of British Columbia showing the dive sites Click on the pushpins marking the dive sites and watch undersea video of the Finding Coral Expedition If you want to swim under the sea surface, turn on the "terrain" layer (the bottom layer in the layers panel - see image of the Google Earth sidebar panel at right) and use the arrows surrounding the eye symbol in the top right corner of the map For more about Google Earth CLICK HERE for a user's guide.

Protect coastal habitats to fight climate change CLICK HERE to send an e-mail to federal Fisheries Minister Gail Shea urging her to immediately protect those coastal habitats that work to combat climate change.

Scientists of the United Nations Environment Program recommended to the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference that 80 percent of the world’s remaining seagrass and salt marsh habitat be protected as an important step among the range of strategies necessary to combat global climate change.

The best way to protect coastal ecosystems is to set aside marine protected areas (MPAs) and regulate their use through marine planning and ecosystem-based fisheries management. As the nation with the longest coastline in the world, protecting these ecosystems is part of the action Canada should take to combat climate change.

The Government of Canada has already committed to creating a national network of MPAs but has not adequately prioritized that commitment nor considered identifying carbon sequestering habitats as part of the network. Now is the time to act.
In order to combat climate change we need to both reduce the amount of fossil fuel we burn and ensure that natural processes for removing carbon from the atmosphere are able to proceed effectively and efficiently.

Natural carbon sequestration is the storage of carbon in a stable solid form. Some terrestrial and marine plants sequester or fix carbon into the soil or sediments around their roots in mineral form, storing it for thousands of years or more. These carbon sequestering plants are extremely important for reducing the amount of carbon circulating in the atmosphere and oceans, and play an important role in combating climate change and ocean acidification which are caused by increased CO₂ in the atmosphere.

Seventy percent of the marine plants that naturally sequester carbon are found in coastal areas such as seagrass meadows and salt marshes. Much of these areas have been lost since the 1940s due to coastal development, and have been damaged by run off from agricultural and industrial activities. These coastal ecosystems are more effective than terrestrial ones when measuring climate change mitigation effectiveness. Half a kilogram of marine plant material can sequester as much as 1,000 kgs of plant material on land due to unique chemical processes within marine sediments.

For more information:

• IUCN: The Management of Natural Coastal Carbon Sinks
• UNEP: Blue Carbon Report

Oceans on Acid?

When CO2 from the atmosphere combines with sea water it creates carbonic acid, making the water more acidic.

Ocean acidification emerged as one of the most immediate and urgent concerns when Living Oceans Society brought together leading climate and oceans scientists and environmental organizations for a Think Tank on the critical impacts of climate change on our seas. The science is frighteningly clear: ocean acidification is happening now, and its effects will potentially devastate marine ecosystems worldwide.

Ocean acidification is the ugly twin of climate change. We have known for years that atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) from burning fossil fuels is causing climate change, but it is also causing the chemistry of the ocean to change in a process known as ocean acidification.

The ocean naturally absorbs CO₂ from the atmosphere. When the CO₂ mixes with ocean water, it forms carbonic acid which increases the acidity of the water. Since the Industrial Revolution the ocean has absorbed over 500 billion tonnes of atmospheric CO₂. As a result, the average ocean acidity has increased 30 percent!

This is a serious problem because rising acidity in the ocean reduces the availability of carbonate, a naturally occurring mineral used by thousands of marine species to form shells and skeletons—features essential to life. As a result, it is becoming increasingly difficult for organisms like coral and shellfish to build their homes and sources of protection. If ocean acidity continues to increase, shells may actually begin to dissolve.

Many of the smallest organisms in the ocean food web make their shells out of carbonate. If their numbers are reduced because they cannot form their shells, it ripples through the entire food web, eventually impacting the largest organisms including whales and humans. If the fish we consume have nothing to eat, we won’t either.

Ocean acidification is also expected to have dire effects on coral reefs and fisheries worldwide. Coral reefs provide homes and breeding grounds for millions of marine creatures, offer storm protection for coastal communities, and support booming tourism industries. The breakdown of these reefs will have serious consequences.

The only way to help stop ocean acidification is to decrease the amount of CO₂ being released into the atmosphere. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change—the leading body of climate change scientists in the world—says we need to reduce our CO₂ emissions by 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Our government needs to implement strong emissions reduction policies and practices to achieve this level, and society as a whole needs to move toward a low-carbon economy.

Ecosystems will be better able to adapt to the changing chemistry if they have healthy fish populations and intact food webs. Marine protected areas and sustainable fishing practices can therefore help ecosystems adapt. A healthy ecosystem is a more resilient ecosystem!

How We Fish Continues to Have an Impact

John Driscoll on the Cape Flattery in Mitchell Bay during the Finding Coral Expedition. CLICK HERE to download How We Fish.

Government is increasingly recognizing the scientific value of the work of conservation organizations. This was recently demonstrated when Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) invited the authors of How We Fish Matters to present the report in Ottawa during a review of the science of the ecological impacts of Canadian fishing gears.

John Driscoll, Sustainable Fisheries Campaign Manager for Living Oceans Society, presented the report on behalf of the authors. When John got back to Sointula he said he was particularly happy to see the work of conservation organizations included in science discussions at the national level.

"Scientific research like How We Fish Matters and our Finding Coral Expedition, show once again that conservation organizations have a valuable contribution to make to our scientific understanding of oceans issues," John said.

How We Fish Matters used an innovative approach to identify and rank the ecological impacts of Canadian fishing gears. The report was conducted by authors from Living Oceans Society, Ecology Action Centre, and Marine Conservation Biology Institute.