Many octopuses evolved from a common ancestor that lived off Antarctica more than 30 million years ago, according to a "Census of Marine Life" that is seeking to map the oceans from microbes to whales. Researchers in 82 nations, whose 10-year study aims to help protect life in the seas, found a mysterious meeting place for white sharks in the eastern Pacific Ocean and algae thriving at -25 degrees Celsius (-13 Fahrenheit) in the Arctic.

By Alister Doyle - Reuters | Oslo , November 09, 2008

A survey of the potential of the Pentland Firth and the sea around the Orkney islands to generate energy from tidal devices is to be carried out. Development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is funding the work by Stromness-based company Aquatera. HIE said the results would fill gaps in what was already known about the areas. The Pentland Firth is the first UK marine site to be opened up for commercial-scale development. The Crown Estate has invited applications from developers to run marine energy projects in the firth.

BBC News , November 5, 2008

Plastic waste, toxic pollution and overfishing are tipping Britain's seas towards 'ecological disaster', a hard-hitting report warns. The Marine Conservation Society says that without urgent action, a growing number of fish, mammals and birds will be driven to extinction over the next few decades. The society wants a drastic cut in the use of plastic packaging to protect wildlife and an end to 'damaging' fishing practices that lead to hundreds of thousands of tons being thrown back into the sea each year. The 60-page report follows The Mail's campaign to reduce the amount of plastic bags littering the seas.

By David Derbyshire - The Daily Mail | London, UK , October 14, 2008

With the International Maritime Organization's adoption of new emissions standards for large diesel ships and their fuels, EPA can now move forward with a domestic rulemaking action under the Clean Air Act. When fully implemented, this will help reduce harmful emissions by 80 percent or more from large diesel ships, including those that are foreign-flagged operating in U.S. waters. "Massive reductions in air pollution from these large ships will help 87 million Americans living in areas around ports that don't meet air quality standards breathe cleaner air," said Margo T. Oge, director of the Office of Transportation and Air Quality. "Pollution emitted by ships along the U.S. coastlines and waterways can move inland where it worsens air quality." As emissions decline from other transportation sources, ship emissions will become a larger part of the nation's pollution inventory.

By Cathy Milbourn - Environmental Protection Agency | Washington, D.C. , October 10, 2008

The ocean may soon begin to sound more like New York City to dolphins and whales. As carbon dioxide levels rise and make the world's oceans warmer and more acidic, the increasing amounts of the gas could also make the seas noisier, especially in the soprano range, a new study suggests. The increased burning of fossils fuels such as coal and oil in the last few decades has injected more and more carbon dioxide into the Earth's atmosphere. The oceans absorb a large chunk of this extra carbon dioxide (about 40 percent).

By Andrea Thompson - , October 03, 2008

Dainty blue fish dart around coral shaped like moose antlers near the Mexican resort of Cancun, but sickly brown spots are appearing where pollution threatens one of the world's largest reefs. Parts of the reef, nestled in turquoise waters, have died and algae -- which feed on sewage residues flowing out of the fast-growing resort city -- has taken over. Coral reefs like Chitales, near the northern tip of a Caribbean reef chain stretching from Mexico to Honduras, are dying around the world as people and cities put more stress on the environment.

Reuters | Cancun, Mexico - The Times of India , September 30, 2008

Observations show that the oceans have been heating up since 1975. Ocean surface temperatures worldwide have risen on average 0.9[degrees]F, and ocean waters in many tropical regions have risen by almost 2[degrees] over the past century. This is 30 times the amount of heat that has been added to the atmosphere, a significant number, even though the ocean has a lot more mass than the atmosphere. Moreover, the incidence of coral bleaching has increased worldwide since 1979, and scientists now generally link these mass events to global warming. The largest bout of coral bleaching ever (1997-98) occurred during the warmest - at least up until that time - 12-month period on record, and in nearly every region of the world. It was a wake-up call that global warming is not just a distant threat.

By David Festa | RedOrbit - USA Today , September 21, 2008

Since man has inhabited the Earth common thought has been that the oceans are much too big to be affected by human action. The idea that the oceans are indestructible has met its end. Despite their size, the oceans are vulnerable to the same unsustainable trends that are degrading the terrestrial environment. The impact we have had on ocean ecosystems has been vastly underestimated. Did you know only 10 percent of all large fish — both open ocean species including tuna, swordfish and marlin, and the large bottom fish such as cod, halibut, skates and flounder — are left in the sea, according to research published in the scientific journal Nature? And the state of California warns those big predatory fish are full of the toxins and other pollutants that we cast into the oceans.

By Steve Sorensen - The San Jose Mercury News , September 18, 2008

The Central Coast has a legacy of environmentalism, especially when it comes to issues that affect the ocean. Most famously, the Santa Barbara Channel oil spill of 1969 galvanized the modern environmental movement. Santa Barbara again made national news last month when the County Board of Supervisors voted to urge California’s governor to lift a moratorium on offshore drilling in the interest of accessing a source of revenue and energy. Among the many who protest the board’s decision is ocean explorer, filmmaker, and educator Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of legendary Jacques Cousteau, director of the Santa Barbara-based Ocean Futures Society, and a leading voice for the preservation of marine ecology.

By Elizabeth Schwyzer - The Santa Barbara Independent , September 16, 2008

A coalition of 21 cities in Los Angeles County and the Building Industry Legal Defense Foundation has lost its legal bid to prevent the California state and LA regional water boards from applying clean water quality standards to stormwater. Ruling on a post-trial motion by three environmental groups, an Orange County Superior Court Friday reversed the part of a July 2, 2008 judgment that blocked the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board from enforcing many water quality standards that control stormwater runoff.

Environmental News Service | Los Angeles , September 01, 2008