Dangers, Dilemnas, Distractions and Advantages, Inspiration, Oceans and Venues

TOP 10 REASONS WE ARE STARTING TO LOVE THE OCEAN MORE THAN OURSELVES

By Ximena Waissbluth | Chair, Surfrider Foundation Monterey Chapter

10. The ocean has really cool animals in it, with really cool names such as the smooth lumpsucker, velella velella, irawadaddy dolphin, and dogface pufferfish. You, however, have really gross animals inside of you with really gross names, such as Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus mutans and Bifidobacterium.

9. Look at a satellite image of this blue planet. Look at a satellite image of yourself.

8. Miles of bacterial and algal sea-slime-fields are blooming around the globe as warming waters alter entire ecosystems. Texas-sized garbage islands swirling around in the Pacific, growing every day. An albatross 1,000 miles from civilization picks up an eight-year-old disposable lighter and feeds it to her chick, and watches the chick choke and die.

7. George W. Bush gutted the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act; cut funding for the EPA and Superfund; loosened CO2 and mileage standards; opened National Forests to drilling and logging. Yet on June 15, 2006, Bush declared the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands a Marine National Monument. Even he sees that the oceans need protection.

6. Bioluminescence. Maybe in 300 years, when you’re genetically modified to bioluminesce every time your pheromones are abuzz, we could delete this one. But it’s 2006, and you’re opaque while the ocean is aglow.

5. This October the Joint Management Plan Review for three adjoining National Marine Sanctuaries (Monterey Bay, Cordell Bank, Gulf of the Farallones) finally came out. Less than 1 percent of the world’s oceans are protected; we are extraordinarily fortunate. Know your Sanctuary: look up the JMPR and write to NOAA. Then go surf, swim, walk.

4. “Likes: Red wine by a warm fire, fluffy animals, long walks on the beach, ESPN.” Hey Casanova—your “likes” are lame with no more long walks on the beach.

2. Oceans: thunderous, magnificent, dramatic, brilliant, heaving. Yourself: Probably dramatic, possibly heaving, and hopefully a few moments of brilliance. Oceans: home to 97 percent of all life; they provide oxygen, food and medicine. Yourself: .00000000006 percent of all life; provide hot air and gasses; you eat food and use medicine.

1. 2006 has been the year of the oceans as the slumbering masses wake up. The US Commission on the Oceans Report, the Pew Oceans Report, and the UN Report on the Marine Environment all say the same thing—the oceans are in crisis. We are on the precipice.