By ERIKA I. RITCHIE | The Orange County Register | Published: May 22, 2021 (Tribune News Service) An environmental group is asking the U.S. Navy to re-examine its operations in the Pacific Ocean following the death of two endangered fin whales that appear to have been struck by an Australian naval destroyer during a joint training exercise off San Diego. One of the whales, which had been towed out to sea after it was dislodged from the ship s hull, washed up Wednesday at Orange County s Bolsa Chica State Beach. In a letter sent this week to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, the Pentagon and the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Center for Biological Diversity asks the Navy to look at its three training ranges between Hawaii and Southern California and examine how the service s actions affect marine mammals and how it can further avoid killing or injuring animals.
Tests will assess if farms could reduce pollution and ocean acidification, boost wildlife habitat
A team of researchers led by Loretta Roberson, associate scientist at the University of Chicago-affiliated Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, has installed the first seaweed farm in Puerto Rico and U.S. tropical waters.
The farm is intended to test a system for offshore cultivation of tropical seaweeds to support large-scale production of biomass for biofuels and other products.
“Puerto Rico has stable warm temperatures and ample sunlight year-round, as well as a wide range of exposure to prevailing winds and waves,” said Roberson, the lead principal investigator on this research effort. “These conditions make its southern coastline an ideal test bed for exploring how environmental conditions influence the biological, physiological, and chemical properties of cultivated macroalgae, as well as the impact of seaweed farms on the sur
MBL begins first test of tropical seaweed farming for biofuels production
A team of researchers led by Loretta Roberson, associate scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, has installed the first seaweed farm in Puerto Rico and US tropical waters. The research array furthers the design and development of a system for offshore cultivation of tropical seaweeds to support large-scale production of biomass for biofuels and other valuable bioproducts.
Puerto Rico has stable warm temperatures and ample sunlight year-round, as well as a wide range of exposure to prevailing winds and waves. These conditions make its southern coastline an ideal test bed for exploring how environmental conditions influence the biological, physiological, and chemical properties of cultivated macroalgae, as well as the impact of seaweed farms on the surrounding environment.
A team of researchers led by Loretta Roberson of the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, has installed the first seaweed farm in Puerto Rico and U.S. tropical waters. The research array furthers the design and development of a system for offshore cultivation of tropical seaweeds to support large-scale production of biomass for biofuels and other valuable bioproducts.