SOS! Save our Seas
“If we save the sea, we save our world”
Be inspired to action by Sir David Attenborough’s latest documentary – a movie called Ocean. The movie has been released ahead of the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) to be held in France this June.
At the conference, governments, businesses and non-government organisations aim to make an Ocean Action Plan focusing on sustainable use of our oceans and using marine science knowledge to make better policy (guidelines and laws) for protecting the environment.
Attenborough’s message in Ocean is that “the most important place on Earth is not on land but at sea”.
Take a look at the trailer or watch the full movie at a cinema or on a streaming service:
Did you know …?
- There are 1.5 million, million, million molecules of water (H₂O) in a single drop of water.
- It’s estimated that the oldest water in the world fell as rain more than 1.6 billion years ago.
Watch a video about the water cycle and find out what happens when you scoop a bucket of water out of the ocean:
Progress on plastic pollution
Recent research by the CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, has found the overall amount of coastal “debris” or rubbish has reduced by about 40% in the last 10 years at urban survey sites across Australia, including Newcastle in NSW.
The study sought to measure a national baseline of debris in the environment through surveys across 6 metropolitan regions covering inland, riverine and coastal habitats.
Though reduced, debris levels are still a big problem for our environment. And most of the debris is plastic … with common items including food wrappers, cigarette butts, bottle lid/caps, and polystyrene. On average, nearly 3 million tonnes of plastic waste is generated in Australia — that’s over 100kg per person!
The CSIRO researchers hope their work will inform government policy and action by everyone to reduce waste: “Everyone needs to address how we produce, use and dispose of plastic for a cleaner and healthier planet.”
Learn more about plastic use and recycling:
https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/education/plastic-solutions
Tech + Science Knowledge = Power
Migratory Connectivity in the Ocean (MiCO) is a new online tool that shows the movements of more than 100 species that migrate across the Earth’s oceans.
Drawing on animal tracking data from research around the world, MiCO aims to support worldwide conservation efforts for migratory species and the oceans they depend on.
Find out more about this amazing project and the species it focuses on: