Summaries of marine diversity in eight settings around the globe have been published, with another 17 scheduled to be added in coming weeks. One of the discoveries was that the Gulf of Mexico is the fifth most diverse marine setting in the world for known species.
EPA and the Dept. of Energy have collaborated to develop an improved monitoring package that utilizes inline sensors in the water network and software called CANARY.
Census of Marine Life scientists have released an inventory of species distribution and diversity in 25 key global ocean areas. Read summaries of the findings and view image and photo galleries.
"Romeo Michaud looked at the Androscoggin River on Friday, remembering how he fished for hornpout as a boy. Over time, he and others stopped eating the fish they caught as the river became among the most polluted in the country."
"In the end, Gov. Charlie Crist’s effort to buy huge swaths of sugar company land for the Everglades restoration was just too much: too much money, too much land to handle, and too much of a fight with critics and the courts."
Reporters can find most of the environmental monitoring data EPA has collected on one webpage in a form that can be queried or downloaded.
Before leaving town for its August vacation, Congress stripped $12 million for the commission from an appropriations bill and denied that panel the subpoena power it needs to find out what happened or what should be done to prevent another spill.
St. Petersburg Times' Craig Pittman reports the scientists' announcement in May that research boats had discovered a 6-mile long underwater oil plume was greeted with shushing from the Coast Guard and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Scientists are now studying the effects of Prozac in water on shrimp. After being secreted by humans, drugs like Prozac find their way through sewage systems and into waterways. Their effects on shrimp could be fatal.
"Farmers and other pesticide users would not need to secure Clean Water Act (CWA) permits before spraying over water under Senate legislation offered late last week in response to a pivotal federal court ruling."
