Coastal & Marine Conservation

Approximately 95 percent of global fishing is conducted in small-scale boats, often unequipped with AIS (Automated Identification System) technology. As a result, most small-scale fishing activity goes untracked. Transparency in fishing behavior provides both benefits to the environment and economic advantages for fishermen and communities that depend on fish resources.

Increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere put shallow, warm-water coral reef ecosystems, and the people who depend upon them at risk from two key global environmental stresses: 1) elevated sea surface temperature that can cause coral bleaching and related mortality, and 2) ocean acidification. These rising CO2 levels may affect most of the world’s coral reefs and the populations which depend on them by 2050, according to this study in the journal PLOS ONE.

A University of Maine researcher studying the decline of soft-shell clams in Casco Bay has found an effective way to protect clam populations, but is struggling to capture the attention of diggers. Brian Beal, a professor of marine ecology at the University of Maine at Machias, is going from town to town along Casco Bay presenting research, insights and strategies into the ways that clammers can protect and restore soft-shell clam populations.

In October 2016, the Northeast Regional Planning body submitted the revised Northeast Ocean Plan to the National Ocean Council for its review and certification. In December 2016, the National Ocean Council announced its certification of the plan. The Plan was developed following several years of public engagement, scientific study and data analysis, and collaboration — along with significant feedback from the general public and stakeholders interested in the future of New England’s ocean and its resources.

Fellow Sarah Hameed discusses the Marine Conservation Institute's proposed Global Ocean Refuge System (GLORES) to address the growing threats to life in sea. It will be a strategic network of strongly protected marine areas awarded designation according to science-based standards.

Fellow Marissa McMahan is working with Maine locals and Venetian fishermen to turn the invasive green crab into a gourmet dish known in Italy as moleche.

Great white sharks eat fish when they are young, but after the first few years they grow new teeth and start eating marine mammals, notably fatty seals and sea lions. The sharks need the rich calories from the mammals' blubber to keep their bodies warm. Sea otters are mostly muscle, skin, bones, and luxurious fur.

Coastal gray infrastructure – roads, bridges, buildings, ports, and everything else we build along coastlines – is clearly critical for keeping our society functioning, and we invest significantly in it. Coastal green infrastructure, such as wetlands and reefs, is critical to us too as it provides many services and benefits including coastal defense. But just how much money do we ‘allocate’ to gray and green infrastructure? Just like any good investor, we should occasionally assess our portfolio and think about our allocations.

Earlier this spring, COMPASS led a policy communications training for the Switzer Fellows in Washington, D.C. that included practicing communication skills and learning about the world of policymakers, and was capped by meetings with policymakers on Capitol Hill. Marissa McMahan, a graduate student at Northeastern University who is studying the northern range expansion of black sea bass and how that affects both human and ecological systems in the Gulf of Maine, talks more about her experience in D.C.