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January 2022
The NOAA Marine Debris Program Releases its 2021 Accomplishments Report
The NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP) is proud to present our 2021 Accomplishments Report. The MDP, through its collaborative partnerships, made significant progress toward reducing the impacts of marine debris during the 2021 fiscal year (FY) by expanding grant programs to prevent and remove marine debris, supporting the response to the 2021 hurricane season, and advancing justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in program activities, among other efforts.
The FY 2021 Accomplishments Report highlights the accomplishments of the program across its ten regions, as well as in the areas of research, monitoring and detection, response, and education and outreach, and previews upcoming projects to remove, prevent, and research marine debris.
November 2021
COL Releases Report from Field Science Safety Workshop
In March 2021, California State University Desert Studies and the Consortium for Ocean Leadership held the Workshop to Promote Safety in Field Sciences. This workshop focused on addressing the special problems of remote research settings in harassment prevention, target support, and incident response. About 70 participants representing field practitioners from across the natural sciences and social scientists with expertise in the causes and impacts of gender-based harassment attended this three-day virtual meeting. The workshop resulted in 52 recommendations targeted at improving field science culture change, as well as misconduct accountability, policy, and reporting. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) and trainings were additional cross-cutting topics. The recommendations focus on improving experiences for field participants of all backgrounds and identities. They represent a starting point to inspire and guide scientists, ocean platforms, field stations, academic institutions, professional societies, funding agencies, and other actors in field science in improving the science environment in a collaborative, community-based way. The workshop report of recommendations is available at https://oceanleadership.org/field-science-safety-workshop/.
August 2021
NASA Earth Sciences Applications Week is August 9-12!
Next week is NASA Earth Sciences Applications Week 2021! Join NASA, August 9 - 12 for daily sessions about space-borne to boots on the ground solutions to our planet's most pressing concerns. For more information on these programs visit https://appliedsciences.nasa.gov/our-impact/events/2021-earth-science-applications-week
Ocean Exchange Call for Solutions is Now Open! Deadline August 23.
Learn more below and visit oceanexchange.org or contact Lauren Rasich, [email protected].
June 2021
Opportunity for Public Comment: Commercial Earth Observations and Geospatial Data and Services Practices
The United States Group on Earth Observations (USGEO) is preparing a document containing best practices for federal government procurement of commercial Earth observation and geospatial data and services, per the 2019 National Plan for Civil Earth Observations. This is an opportunity for the public to submit written comments or attend a virtual forum. Click here to comment: Request for Information and Public Virtual Dialogues on Commercial Earth Observations and Geospatial Data and Services Practices.
Public comments, which can be on the topic generally or in response to specific questions (found in “C. Best Practice Guide”) are due by June 30. There is also a virtual public meeting on June 23 from 1pm-2:30pm EDT.
May 2021
The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI), in partnership with SeaAhead, a Boston-based bluetech startup platform, is leading a blue innovation recovery initiative to provide direct support to regional seafood-related startups and small businesses that face significant operational challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Throughout the Gulf of Maine region, a burgeoning group of entrepreneurs are innovating in finfish, shellfish and algae aquaculture, as well as US wild fisheries. Their solutions – supply chain digitization, sustainable fisheries and aquaculture technology, value-added, traceable products, and more – are essential to global competitiveness in the blue economy. This SPRINT, funded by the EDA CARES Act, will help preserve the region’s momentum in blue innovation as entrepreneurs face an increasingly difficult operating environment.
Application and more info here.
SeaAhead Decarbonizing Maritime Virtual Conference to be Held May 25, 10 a.m.
To reach decarbonization goals for the shipping industry set by the United Nations IMO, the first net-zero ships likely need to enter the global fleet by 2030. But the environmental impact of the maritime sector is more than the sum of its vessels’ emissions; the OECD estimates that carbon and NOx footprints of ports will grow fourfold in the next 30 years unless they invest in emissions-free operations and power generation.
Join SeaAhead and our partners, on May 25 at 10am ET, for a lively exploration of the potential for offshore wind, green hydrogen, and other alternative fuels to help drive a decarbonized maritime industry, at sea and in port, by 2050. The event will include a keynote by Ørsted will give a keynote, startup pitches, and reverse itches and panel discussion featuring:
Claus Graugaard - Head of Onboard Vessel Solutions at Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping
Register here!
April 2021
3D at Depth Delivers Subsea LiDAR Metrology to Support North Sea Project
3D at Depth, Inc., the world's expert in commercial Subsea LiDAR (SL) laser technology and leading provider of underwater survey support services and 3D data solutions announced they have recently completed a series of 31 metrologies at eight locations on the Equinor Snorre Expansion Project, for Subsea 7.
The Snorre Expansion Project is the largest project for improved recovery on the Norwegian continental shelf and will increase production from the Snorre field by almost 200 million barrels, extending the field life beyond 2040. 3D at Depth Inc. completed a series of 31 metrologies at eight locations on the Equinor Snorre Expansion Project.
Subsea 7, a global leader in the delivery of offshore projects and services for the energy industry, contracted 3D at Depth's U.K. office to conduct metrologies as part of the company's installation campaigns for Pipeline Bundle systems. Each location required metrology measurements for multiple parallel spools which would be installed as single cassettes between the Pipeline Bundles to wellheads and manifolds. The flexibility of Subsea LiDAR (SL) technology and its workflow allowed for a smooth integration into the project, and every SL 3D data set was easily exported into standard formats for measurement, quality control, visualisation, and analysis. For more information visit 3datDepth.com.
Dr. Jessica Kastler Named Director of The University of Southern Mississippi's Marine Education Center
Longtime marine scientist and educator Dr. Jessica Kastler has been named director of The University of Southern Mississippi’s Marine Education Center (MEC), located at the University’s Cedar Point site in Ocean Springs, Miss. Kastler has been serving as the center’s interim director since last spring.
The MEC works across USM’s Coastal Operations to engage members of the public in ocean sciences, promoting careers and fostering community involvement through formal and informal education programs that provide participants with a better understanding of the Gulf.
Kastler, who came to USM in 2007, notes that she is excited to see the MEC gradually return to regular programming as the effects from the COVID-19 pandemic continue to recede.
“I look forward to guiding the MEC in a new landscape as it reopens from COVID-19 shutdowns to offer outdoor learning programs onsite, while continuing to develop the virtual programs we initiated in the past year as we worked remotely,” she said. “We will reach out to new audiences from diverse communities, including groups we can now work with from a distance. As we move forward with programs modified to reflect what we learned in the last year, we will collect concrete data to evaluate our success in reaching and teaching all of our audiences.”
President Biden Releases American Jobs Plan
On March 31, President Biden released the American Jobs Plan. The plan seeks to “unify and mobilize the country to meet the great challenges of our time: the climate crisis and the ambitions of an autocratic China” and “prioritizes long-standing and persistent racial injustice.” This $2.3 trillion package includes several provisions of interest to the ocean science community, which are outlined below.
BUILD WORLD-CLASS TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE: FIX HIGHWAYS, REBUILD BRIDGES, AND UPGRADE PORTS, AIRPORTS AND TRANSIT SYSTEMS.
Invest $621 billion in transportation infrastructure and resilience
• Repair roads and bridges, including the most economically significant large bridges in need of reconstruction and the worst 10,000 smaller bridges, including those providing connections to rural and tribal communities
• $17 billion to improve coastal ports, inland waterways, land ports of entry, and ferries
• Redress historic inequities and build the future of transportation infrastructure o $20 billion to reconnect neighborhoods cut off by historic investments and to ensure new projects increase opportunity, advance racial equity and environmental justice, and promote affordable access
- Inspire basic research and accelerate transformative investments from pre-development through construction, including $25 billion to support projects with regional or national benefits that are too large or complex for existing programs
• Invest resources wisely to deliver projects that produce real results
- This will require partnerships across government, unions, and industry; will support state, local, and tribal governments delivering projects; and will use smart, coordinated infrastructure permitting to expedite federal decisions while prioritizing stakeholder engagement and community consultation and maximizing equity, health, and environmental benefits
Invest $50 billion in dedicated investments to improve infrastructure resilience
• Safeguard critical infrastructure and services and defend vulnerable communities o Increase resilience in the most essential services
- Target investments to support infrastructure in communities move vulnerable physically and financially to climate-driven disasters
- Invest in vulnerable communities, including through a tax credit providing incentives to invest in disaster resilience and transition and relocation assistance to support community-led transitions for the most vulnerable tribal communities
• Maximize resilience of land and water resources to protect communities and the environment
- Protect and restore nature-based infrastructure: invest in coastal resilience to sea level rise and hurricanes and in the protection and restoration of major land and water resources (e.g., Everglades, Great Lakes)
- Empower local leaders to shape restoration and resilience projects
• Upgrade and modernize drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater systems
• Mobilize the next generation of conservation and resilience workers with a $10 billion investment that will put a new generation to work conserving public lands and water, bolster community resilience, and advance environmental justice through a new Civilian Climate Corps
BUILD, PRESERVE, AND RETROFIT MORE THAN TWO MILLION HOMES AND COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS; MODERNIZE OUR NATION’S SCHOOLS, COMMUNITY COLLEGES, AND EARLY LEARNING FACILITIES; AND UPGRADE VETERANS’ HOSPITALS AND FEDERAL BUILDINGS
• Modernize schools and early learning facilities to close the opportunity gap
- Invest $100 billion to upgrade and build new public schools. Funds first go to ensuring schools are safe and healthy and then invest in cutting-edge technology and labs
• $12 billion for community college infrastructure to address existing physical and technological needs and to identify strategies to address access to community colleges in education deserts
• $10 billion for modernization, sustainability, and resilience of federal buildings
INVEST IN R&D, REVITALIZE MANUFACTURING AND SMALL BUSINESSES, AND TRAIN AMERICANS FOR THE JOBS OF THE FUTURE
Invest in R&D and the technologies of the future—including investments in researchers, laboratories, and universities—with a $180 billion investment
• Advance U.S. leadership in critical technologies and upgrade our research infrastructure
- Invest $50 billion in NSF and create a technology directorate (that will focus on fields like semiconductors and advanced computing, advanced communications technology, advanced energy technologies, and biotechnology) that will collaborate with and build on existing programs across the government.
- $30 billion in additional funding for R&D to spur innovation and job creation
- $40 billion, allocated across federal R&D agencies, to upgrade research infrastructure in laboratories. Half would go to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSI), including the creation of a new national lab affiliated with an HBCU and focused on climate
• Establish the United States as a leader in climate science, innovation, and R&D
- $35 billion for solutions needed to achieve technology breakthroughs that address the climate crisis and position the United States as a leader in clean energy technology and jobs
- Launch an ARPA-C to develop new methods for reducing emissions, building climate resilience, and expanding funding for climate research
- $15 billion for demonstration projects for climate R&D priorities (including offshore wind) and in strengthening technological leadership in these areas
• Eliminate racial and gender inequities in R&D and STEM
- $10 billion to R&D at HBCUS and other MSIs
- $15 billion to create up to 200 centers of excellence that serve as research incubators at HBCUs and other MSIs to provide graduate fellowships and other opportunities for underserved populations, including through pre-college programs
Retool and revitalize American manufacturers and small businesses
• Create a national network of small business incubators and innovation hubs
- $31 billion for programs that give small businesses access to credit, venture capital, and R&D dollars. This includes funding for community-based small business incubators and innovation hubs to support growth of entrepreneurship in communities of color and underserved communities
• Partner with rural and Tribal communities to create jobs and economic growth in rural America
- Invest in rural and Tribal communities, including by providing R&D funding to land grant universities and by providing $5 billion for a new Rural Partnership Program to help rural regions (including Tribal Nations)
• $100 billion to proven workforce development programs targeted at underserved groups and to get students on career paths before high school graduation o Pair job creation efforts with next generation training programs
- Target workforce development opportunities in underserved communities
• $48 billion for workforce development infrastructure and worker protection, including apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships, strengthening the pipeline for more women and people of color, creating career pathway programs in middle and high schools, and prioritizing increased access to technical programs that connect underrepresented students to STEM and in-demand sectors through partnerships with institutions of higher education and employers
March 2021
The Global Ocean Oxygen Network (IOC Expert Working Group GO2NE) starts a new series on ocean deoxygenation. A new webinar will take place on 17 March 2021. The speakers will present latest science on the impacts of reduced oxygen in the open ocean and coastal zones. The webinar will feature two presentations by a more senior and an early-career scientist, 20 minutes each followed by 10 minutes moderated discussion sessions.
Moderator:
- Lisa Levin, Integrative Oceanography Division Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, USA
Speakers:
- Lillian McCormick, Integrative Oceanography Division Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, USA
- Karin E. Limburg, State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry, USA and Department of Aquatic Resources, Swedish Agricultural University
- Liz LoGiudice, Resilience Communications and Consulting, LLC, USA
Scripps Innovation Webinar Series
Title: Sustainable Ocean Development: How Academia and Industry Can Collaborate to Advance the UN Decade of Ocean Science
Location: Zoom webinar register here
When: March 11, 2021 12-1 pm PST
Summary: This year commences the decade the United Nations has designated as the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030. The "Ocean Decade" will create a common framework to ensure that ocean science can support nations in sustainable development of their coastal and marine ecosystems and monitor ocean health to protect the largest component of earth's system that provides global climate and food security. Founded in 1903, Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has a long history of leadership in oceanography, earth, climate and atmospheric science.
Scripps Oceanography would like to leverage its expertise to build actionable partnerships with interested industries to advance this sustainable development across all research priorities including innovative technology, risk and resilience to hazards, human health and the oceans, biodiversity and conservation, climate change impacts and adaptation, national security and polar science.
In this webinar, Dr. Margaret Leinen, Director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography and member of the Executive Planning Group of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, will discuss ways that industry can participate in the decade, from large scale operations to smaller scale localized efforts, and collaborate with academia.
