An Altered Ocean

(3 pm. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Caught this report earlier on the PBS News Hour site and then went searching for the report, given yesterday at the National Press Club. The press club still doesn’t have anything but the announcement for up at their site, but I did catch the report and it page with plenty of backlinks as well as audio to the press club presentation.

Another scathing report we’d better pay attention to and start what should have already been a couple of decades old advancing this country towards the innovations, we were once envied for, needed to move forward.  

February 23, 2011 – At the National Press Club Wednesday morning, scientists showed a video of an ocean teeming with wildlife: colorful coral, crabs, sea anemone and bright orange starfish.

The video underscored some not-so-new, but still sobering, news. If trends continue unchecked, our ocean may soon be robbed of its rich coral reefs and many of the 4,000 fish species that depend on them.

Some 75 percent of the world’s reefs are facing the threat of extinction, and absent major changes, that number will rise to 90 percent by 2030, and reach 100 percent by 2050, according to a new analysis released Wednesday.

And reversing these trends will take a Herculean effort, NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenko warned. {continued}

Lauretta Burke, Katie Reytar, Mark Spalding, and Allison Perry

February, 2011 – This report provides a detailed assessment of the status of and threats to the world’s coral reefs. It evaluates threats to coral reefs from a wide range of human activities, and includes an assessment of climate-related threats to reefs. It also contains a global assessment of the vulnerability of nations and territories to coral reef degradation. {backlinks and more}

Scientists Forecast an Altered Ocean

Listen to the audio recording of the “February 23 launch event” in Washington, D.C.:

Many on this planet are way ahead of us, even some so called third world countries are advancing more rapidly, on not only advancing but gaining the highly needed experience, we once had, of the trades to carry out the developments.