sand – Southern Fried Science

A shark for all floods, Crowdfunding scams, old fish, bold fish, and more! Monday Morning Salvage: September 18, 2017

Weekly Salvage

Fog Horn (A Call to Action)

The fight for our Marine National Monuments isn’t over. We finally know *some* of the contents of Zincke’s monument review memo, and it’s not great. The DOI wants to see commercial fishing return to the Pacific Remote Islands and Rose Atoll Marine National Monuments. Longline fishing in these regions has historically been conducted by foreign fishing fleets which have been documented using slave labor. Many ecologists believe that maintaining these protected zones serve as a refuge that boost populations of many important commercial fish and improve the overall health of the fishery.
Here’s the good news: Any change to monuments created under the Antiquities Act must be approved by congress. You’ve got a lot of reason to call you representatives this week, so why not add “I opposed the reintroduction of ecologically and economically destructive commercial fishing to the Pacific Remote Islands and Rose Atoll Marine National Monument.” to your script?

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

Hero Shark, the shark who shows up to every flood, ostensibly to save us all from our own hubris, has a long a fascinating history. “Shark in flooded street” wasn’t even the first time that photo was used for fake news.

NOAA’s New Weather Satellite Captured Stunning Images of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. These are amazing and terrifying.

Rick MacPherson and I made a bot that generates random ocean conservation solutions from a massive archive of policy jargon. Follow @OceanCon_Bot. It is good.

Weekly Salvage

Fog Horn (A Call to Action)

Protect the Outer Continental Shelf! Last week, the president announced a plan to open up significant portions of the outer continental shelf for oil and gas exploration. Call you representative! The public comment period opens today and runs through August 17. We’ll have a template script prepped for your use by the end of the week.

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

Can deep-sea mining avoid the environmental mistakes of mining on land? As an industry, probably not.
Experts Warn that Seabed Mining Will Lead to ‘Unavoidable’ Loss of Biodiversity. And check below for the primary source, co-authored by several leaders in deep ocean science.

Weekly Salvage

Fog Horn (A Call to Action)

27 National Monuments are under review by the Department of the Interior. Our Nation Monuments are our National Treasures. Don’t let them be sold to the highest bidder! Submit formal public comments on the DOI Monument Review and make your voice heard.

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

Sand. Over the weekend I asked Twitter if they were into sand, and Twitter said yes. So now I’m trapped in an endless cycle of ‘likes’ and facts about sand. it’s a sandstorm!

Jetsam (what we’re enjoying from around the web)

Japan’s famous fish market, where the world’s most expensive tuna are sold, is closing down to relocate from it’s historic home: Visit Tsukiji, a ‘Great Wonder of the World,’ While You Still Can.