Ocean Conservation News

Maersk and The Ocean Cleanup Forge Ahead in Plastic Capture

Offshore vessel owner Maersk Supply Service, A.P. Moller – Maersk,  and The Ocean Cleanup have agreed to extend their collaboration to complete the validation of the system by The Ocean Cleanup which is said to be able to consistently capture significant quantities of plastic from the ocean. The Ocean Cleanup, which has established the plastic capture system said the next step for The Ocean Cleanup is to validate the system from an engineering and ecological perspective, allowing it to demonstrate to governments…

Oil Companies Sue Over Lease Changes Made to Protect Whales

An oil and gas industry trade group, the state of Louisiana and Chevron on Thursday sued the Biden administration over its decision to withdraw acreage from an upcoming oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico to protect an endangered whale.The suit is the latest dispute between the oil and gas industry and the administration of President Joe Biden over leasing federal lands and waters for energy development.Biden paused federal drilling auctions shortly after taking office in 2021 as part of his climate change agenda…

United Nations Adopts High Seas Treaty

The UN’s 193 Member States have adopted a legally binding marine biodiversity agreement, the High Seas Treaty, following nearly two decades of fierce negotiations.Adopted by the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), the “high seas” treaty aims at taking stewardship of the ocean on behalf of present and future generations, in line with the Convention on the Law of the Sea.The new agreement contains 75 articles that aim at protecting…