blogs

By Juliet Eilperin

Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 1, 2009; A04

House Democrats introduced an ambitious climate bill yesterday aimed at pleasing both environmental and business interests, even as Senate leaders acknowledged that the party faces serious challenges in trying to pass a carbon limit in the near future.

The 648-page "discussion draft," crafted by House Energy and Commerce Chairman Henry A. Waxman (Calif.) and Rep. Edward J. Markey (Mass.), chairman of the subcommittee on energy and the environment, would create the first federal requirements to boost energy efficiency and ensure that a quarter of the nation's electricity comes from renewable sources. It also would cut the nation's greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent from 2005 levels by 2020, and by 80 percent by mid-century.

(Mar. 10, 2009; Day 121) - Crossing the finish line off Les Sables d’Olonne at
12h 43 19s GMT, Rich Wilson (USA) completed the 24,840 mile Vendée Globe solo
non-stop round the world race in ninth place from the original 30 starters.
Wilson finished 121 days 00 hours, 41 minutes and 19 seconds after leaving Les
Sables d’Olonne on Sunday November 9th. Wilson averaged 9.84 knots on the
water covering 28,590 miles. He sailed the 24,840 theoretical miles at an
average speed of 8.55 knots. Raphaël Dinelli (FRA) and Norbert Sedlacek (AUT)
are the remaining skippers still competing, now 557.6 nm and 980.2 nm from the

SETTING SAIL ON SEA OF DISPOSABLE PLASTIC
A handful of young men and women are constructing one of the strangest vessels
ever seen on the San Francisco waterfront - a fantastic plastic catamaran made
of cast-off plastic bottles filled with dry ice. When it is finished, sometime
next month (in April 2009), the boat, a 60-foot catamaran named Plastiki, will
sail out the Golden Gate bound across the Pacific for Australia, a voyage that will be either an absolute disaster or a huge sensation.

Due to a recent sewage spill in Contra Costa County that dumped almost a
million gallons of raw and partially-treated sewage into the San Francisco
Bay, a county advisory regarding the water quality led to Richmond YC
cancelling two small boat events over last weekend. -- Latitude 38, full
story: http://linkbee.com/HO4H

Sometimes it takes being asked the right questions to figure out if we're on the right track towards a sustainable lifestyle. The following quiz is a great starting point, of course Oceana offers us sailors some great tips on living blue too!

Answer the following 12 questions, keeping track of all your answers on a piece of paper (different letters get a different amount of points) and learn how eco-friendly you are using the link below.

1. You suck down a beverage and are left with the empty can. You:
a. Hold on to it until you find a recycling bin.

By Juliet Eilperin

Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 6, 2009; A02

Federal fisheries managers have voted to bar all commercial fishing in U.S. waters from north of the Bering Strait and east to the Canadian border in light of the rapid climate changes that are transforming the Arctic.

In a unanimous vote yesterday, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council ruled that scientists and policy-makers need to better assess how global warming is affecting the region before allowing fishing on stocks such as Arctic cod, saffron cod and snow crab.

Today, Monday January 19th after a spectacular day of racing Maria Vicari, President of Nautica Licensing addressed members of the press on their new fragrance "Oceans" due to launch globally next month. It's a water-based, 100% biodegradable and packaged environmentally with all proceeds going to Oceana.

Ms. Vicari shares the bands passion for the aquatic lifestyle and working with sailors has been a complete pleasure. More to come as I hope to speak more thoroughly about the sustainable sailor's lifestyle in weeks to come.

Imagine my ear to ear grin when I woke up this morning to see on the front page (above the fold) of the the Washington Posts the following:

Bush to Protect Three Areas in Pacific

Apparently, President Bush woke up New Year's day and had the same thought I did:  I am going to fully live up to my Ocean Conservation Yacht Club Commodore status.  Well Mr. Bush... you've made a good start.

From the Washington Post:

Bush to Protect Three Areas in Pacific

Marine Monuments Burnish an Environmental Record That Is Seen as Mixed

Cold-water fjords in Patagonia, Chile. Credit: Oceana

Members of Oceana's Chile office just returned from an expedition to the Patagonian fjords in southern Chile, and they took some breathtaking photos, including the one you see here. The expedition was part of their ongoing efforts to study the marine wildlife of the Patagonian town of Tortel and the surrounding fjords. Oceana's goal is ultimately to establish a Marine Protected Area over 4.5 million acres.