News from Across the American Shoreline

Energy has always been big business in Texas. And, it just got bigger.

A dead North Atlantic right whale found floating off New York’s Long Island Monday afternoon could raise the official death toll of the endangered species to 29 in the last two years, jacking up pressure on the U.S. and Canadian governments to slow those losses.

Different management techniques have improved beaches in southwest Escambia County, Commissioner Doug Underhill said.

Long-sought reforms to Endangered Species Act (ESA) implementation have arrived. On August 27, 2019, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) finalized regulations (the 2019 Regulations) intended to make ESA listing decisions, critical habitat designations, and agency consultations more transparent and efficient while still protecting listed species.

As a microcosm of the challenges facing coastal cities around the world, New York’s Jamaica Bay pretty much has it all.

Planning a salmon barbecue? Your options will be limited this year. With a complete 2019 closure on Fraser River sockeye, due to dismal returns, your options are to buy Alaska sockeye or farmed Atlantic salmon.

Standing on the windswept beach, Guillermo Carmona looked out at the white-capped cerulean blue ocean and the hulk of a building that was once a beloved community center hosting town meetings and dances. Today, its scalloped roof slumps and its walls are pocked with gaping holes. The floor is littered with broken glass, sea bird droppings and trash. Nearby buildings are similarly decrepit; they once housed a fish market and an early childhood education program.

A drone company on Great Abaco, in the Bahamas, was prepared to deliver emergency supplies if the hurricane struck. Dorian had other plans.

Maryland officials placed new restrictions Monday on harvesting wild oysters this fall and winter but dropped a plan to shorten the season that had drawn fire from watermen and seafood dealers.

Hurricane Kiko continued to track west through the Eastern Pacific Ocean when NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite passed overhead and provided a view of the storm. Satellite imagery revealed an elongated shape, which indicated wind shear was still affecting Kiko.

In May this year, the Environment Agency launched its National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management strategy (National Strategy), warning that the country must prepare for the worst on climate change.

Tetra Tech, Inc. (TTEK) announced today that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) awarded the Company a $48 million contract to reduce and prevent the global pollution of marine debris in our oceans. Clean Cities Blue Ocean (CCBO) will serve as USAID's flagship program to target ocean plastics directly at their source in cities and towns.

If you want to understand the extent and power of what sea level rise in Long Island Sound can do, have a look at the less than 4 acres that is the Dodge Paddock/Beal Preserve in Stonington.

Hurricanes like Dorian and Maria may be disastrous for humans and their property, but some fish have actually evolved to thrive in severe weather.

Warming within the swirling ocean depths of the Gulf of Maine has implications for all life and livelihoods within the ecosystem. Scientists, fishermen and aquaculturists brace for challenges.

The City of Conway is currently going through a revitalization with city leaders trying to attract area newcomers by connecting the popular river front area with downtown merchants.

Warming temperatures in the Great Lakes are already causing population shifts among cold water and warm water fish, including those in inland lakes.

On Monday, September 16, NOAA Fisheries received a report of a dead North Atlantic right whale floating 4 miles south of Fire Island Inlet off Long Island, NY.

WELLFLEET — For those who love Cape Cod as an ocean playground, the world shifted a year ago today when a 26-year-old bodyboarder from Revere was fatally attacked by a great white shark at Newcomb Hollow Beach. Arthur Medici’s death was the first in Massachusetts in over 72 years and the only shark fatality in the U.S. in 2018. It devastated his family and shocked the local surfing community.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program has awarded $2 million to lobster research projects and a regional lobster extension program.

Two years after hurricanes Irma and Maria ripped through the islands, optimistic nature lovers are quick to point out signs of recovery – sea grape trees are once more putting out fruit; at least one species of humming birds is frequenting bird feeders; and snorkelers can find spots where schools of fish thrive and sea fans wave in the currents.

Jefferson County Ecosystem Restoration Project to include the 77,000 acres of freshwater wetlands and approximately 1 mile of rock breakwater to prevent barge / tug wake impact to the restored areas.

A recent scarp that was more than five-feet-tall occurred on a Florida beach in Perdido Key where there are no engineered or renourished beaches.

Book review: In “The Geography of Risk,” reporter Gilbert M. Gaul assesses the costs of beach overdevelopment -- and who pays for it Note: Listen to Gilbert Gaul on ASPN's Ship o Shore Podcast, hosted by Robert Frump; link at end of article.

“There are approximately 54 new inlets cutting through from the Atlantic Ocean to the Core Sound at various points of North Core Banks,” officials said in an advisory Monday.

I am eating an oyster on a boat in the Mosquito Lagoon. Dragonflies hover. Herons stalk the edge of the mangrove. Cages bob in chest-deep water, each holding a cache of bivalves in various stages of growth. Mullet breach amid the rows. The floating nursery, like its natural counterpart, is a haven for myriad species, an ecosystem unto itself.

As hospitals grapple with the growing problem of superbugs, a threat that could cost 10 million lives a year by 2050, new research suggests that humans aren’t the only animals that these serious, difficult-to-treat infections could affect.

Maradu, where the four apartments which the Supreme Court ordered to be demolished are located, has been under CRZ III category as per the coastal zone management plan of 1996.

RESIDENTS may have to pay more council tax to get coastal defences built near their homes, under a new strategy.

Suffolk's coastline is facing an uncertain future - and has some of the "fastest eroding beaches in Europe", according to an expert.

Where the Texas Gulf Coast meets Mexico, a trio of fossil fuel companies is planning an industrial complex the likes of which Texas’ Rio Grande Valley has never seen.

Last week, Florida A&M University (FAMU) in Tallahassee received almost $3.4 million in federal funds to continue studies on oceans and coastal communities.

MIAMI, FL / ACCESSWIRE / September 16, 2019 / NOAA has officially awarded Coral Restoration Foundation™ a grant of $2,575,016 as part of a new, cooperative, three-year agreement.

Tasked with finding ways to reduce flood risks and improve community resiliency, the Northern Virginia Coastal Storm Risk Management Study developed out of a two-year study of the North Atlantic Coast that Congress commissioned in 2013 after Hurricane Sandy devastated the eastern seaboard in 2012, directly killing 72 people in the U.S. and producing an estimated $71 billion in damages.

RALEIGH. Tanika Outlaw was working as the food and beverage manager at the Doubletree Hotel in New Bern last September when Hurricane Florence began shoving feet of water into the city’s downtown area.

As much of the East Side community remains strongly opposed to the city’s coastal-resiliency plan, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and Councilmember Carlina Rivera this week announced the hiring of an independent consultant to review the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project.

The Founding Fathers' old stomping ground is grappling with storm resiliency.

Days after Dorian veered away from the Florida coast pushing a potential seven-foot storm surge, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released an early look this week at plans to protect areas around Biscayne Bay from hurricanes predicted to grow more severe.

St. Augustine has begun installing what are known as tide check valves. These valves allow stormwater to drain out under low tide conditions, just like the city’s current drainage system, but during high tide these valves prevent ocean water from backing up into the stormwater pipe network.

U.S. needs better policy for flood zones, says NRDC report, or risks “cycle of flood-rebuild-repeat”

SINGAPORE — When Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong devoted a big part of his National Day Rally speech on Aug 18 to climate change, many listening may have encountered an unfamiliar word — “polders”.

Picture a washing machine. Now imagine nearly 50 million of them lining the 6.5-mile strip of white sand at Wantagh’s Jones Beach State Park, located just 35 miles east of Manhattan on a barrier island in the Great South Bay claimed by both Nassau and Suffolk counties.

Construction of harbours have caused coastal erosion and rough sea in various areas of Kerala, and the state is grappling to deal with it. Some say seawalls and geotubes aren’t the answer.

Settlement money from the 2010 BP oil spill will finance a $160 million restoration of two barrier islands and a headland off the coast of Terrebonne Parish.

While collecting water samples and plankton in Tampa Bay, researchers discovered a high concentration of microplastics, which are known to disrupt the marine food chain.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is bringing back his proposal to allow local municipalities to purchase sand from foreign counties to help fight beach erosion.

Real estate investors cautioned to consider climate risk before they buy -- It’s time for a real estate climate risk index

NARRAGANSETT — When Rhode Island commercial fishermen sat down a year ago with offshore wind developers, they say they made it clear that for the sake of navigational safety the minimum spacing of any turbines installed in ocean waters needs to be at least one nautical mile in every direction.

Douglas B. Mackie, Chief Executive Officer of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company (GLDD) from 1995 to 2011, passed away on September 11, 2019.

Russia's first floating nuclear power plant has reached its final destination in the country's remote Far East after a three-week, 5,000-kilometer journey.

EMERALD ISLE — Carteret County’s plan for a major Bogue Banks beach nourishment project to begin in November was bolstered financially Friday when the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced it approved $18 million in reimbursement money for the cost of replacing sand lost during Hurricane Florence last September.

Studying ecosystems affected by climate change takes an emotional toll on researchers.

“Snoozing crew raises specter of criminal charge in boat fire” was the headline of an AP story this week and if the feds do indeed charge the surviving crew of the dive ship Conception, it won’t be the first time in recent years that they have dusted off the archaic “seaman’s manslaughter” statute.

In late 2016, scientists aboard the U.K. research ship James Cook arrived 500 kilometers off the coast of northwest Africa, seeking two treasures joined by a curse.

Free beer for beach trash? Can't hurt.

In the US, it's cheaper to build and operate wind farms than buy fossil fuels.

On Thursday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) declared an Unusual Mortality Event for several species of ice seals in Arctic waters. Since June 2018, NOAA has documented 282 dead seals in the Bering and Chukchi Seas.

A study recently published from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography finds the seven-year-old network of underwater parks are allowing marine species to reproduce in safe places.

“It’s hard to predict if you’re safer over here than over there.”

Greater understanding and transparency of carrier vessel fleet dynamics would help reform management

Environmental experts on Wednesday warned House lawmakers about risks to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) posed by climate change, saying the situation is likely to worsen in the coming years.

An Evocation of Adventure: Manned Submersibles for Everyone! What If You Could Explore the Deep Sea in a Submersible? Become a submersible pilot! Learn about submersible mechanics, operations and safety with our two subs. Get access to ocean exploration technology and programs. Join us to explore the hidden wonders of our planet!

Barnum Point Preserve consists of 27 acres of land that was purchased by donations from more than 600 supporters and countless hours of dedicated volunteers. There are 7 different trails you can hike on the 27 acres. Future expansion of the park is slated for 2019 to double the area of the park and add more parking.

All along the Jersey Shore today, locals reminisce about that major storm of 2012, calling it “Sandy,” like a familiar old friend. But Superstorm Sandy was no friend to the Jersey Shore.

CHATHAM — When it comes to controlling shorefront erosion and maintaining navigation, Chatham Harbor poses some problems. The solution, or at least part of it, might be found on Tern Island.

Japan's environment minister says contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant may have to be released into the ocean because storage space will run out in 2022.

“We’re bolstering New York City’s defenses against climate threats with a bold and unprecedented $20 billion resiliency plan,” Jainey Bavishi, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Resiliency told Bklyner. “There is no quick fix for the risks we face, but the City’s efforts have already made New Yorkers safer and will continue to ensure that our neighborhoods, economy, and public services will be ready to withstand and emerge stronger from the impacts of climate change.”

Kudos to all – that was the sense of public comments Monday afternoon, Sept. 9 during the regular monthly meeting of Pawleys Island Town Council.

A water quality advisory for Gulf Harbors Beach was issued after sampling indicated a high level of fecal matter.

Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute's vast collection of deep-sea video footage is revealing new insights on some of the ocean’s most mysterious species. In a recent study, researchers compiled data from 18 years of rare video observations on deep-water skates.

As residents of the Bahamas’ northern islands grapple with death and destruction in the wake of Hurricane Dorian, engineers, scientists and government officials far and wide are addressing the dire need to better prepare for more intense and longer hurricanes.

WASHINGTON — U.S. House lawmakers approved bipartisan legislation Wednesday that would block new offshore drilling off the majority of the nation’s coast, including Virginia, despite pushback from many Republicans.

“A CANVAS IS DEFINED BY ITS EDGES. WE REFER TO IT BY IT’S SHAPE. A BEACH IS EXACTLY THE SAME, BUT THE EDGES ARE ALWAYS MOVING.” Tony Plat

Irrespective of the technique used for demolition, it will cause a huge environmental impact, incidentally, on the very element that the SC is trying to protect through its order - the Vembanad Lake.

VolkerStevin and Boskalis Westminster joint venture, VSBW, has been appointed as the principal contractor for delivering the Southsea Coastal Scheme worth £100m

Topsail Island’s last chunk of undeveloped land was listed for $7.9 million. Although the town of Topsail Beach and the N.C. Coastal Federation hope to preserve it, the state said it has no funds to purchase property that is “not nationally significant.”

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. was awarded a $7.5 million contract for a beach nourishment project for the Townsends and Cape May inlets, officials said.

The fate of the increasingly rare North Atlantic right whale has always been left up to humans. And, on the American Shoreline Podcast, catch Dr. Michael Asaro, head of the Right Whale Take Reduction Team at NOAA Fisheries. It's "game on" for the last 400 N. Atlantic right whales and the discussion about the best way to save them is heating up. We take you inside the discussions on the American Shoreline Podcast.

NOAA Fisheries will continue to work with the Maine lobster industry, others, to address risk the Maine lobster fishery poses to North Atlantic right whales.

The Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Maura Healey, has sent a letter to the coalition of New England governors (NEG) and Eastern Canadian Premiers (ECP) pushing for greater regional effort to prevent more North Atlantic right whale deaths.

The strange shapes rising out of the sand are hard to make sense of from a distance. Sun-bleached and jagged against the skyline, they resemble antlers of enormous deer, or perhaps the splintered bones of giants.

Portland city planners are proposing new zoning rules that would encourage developers to consider sea-level rise when building in flood-prone areas.

For years, Pawleys Island residents have watched their coastline recede after hurricanes and high tides.

It’s a success story for the birds! An increasing number of Osprey are spending their summers in Connecticut after migrating from as far away as Florida and South America, and the surging numbers are partially due to human help.

Construction services will consist of maintenance dredging of the federal navigation

Standing above the point where Chief Joseph Dam prevents thousands of chinook salmon each year from migrating upstream in the Columbia River, Darnell Sam praised new technology that could restore salmon runs all the way to Canada and beyond.

Plastic waste and microplastics have been found in the sea along the entire Northern Sea Route, Russian scientists confirm. The results of a recent expedition may provide crucial information about how some of the world’s most remote ocean areas are affected by the global issue of microplastics.

Italo Ferreira needed to compete to be eligible for Tokyo 2020

Federal government downplays the findings

(CNN) — A fisherman off the coast of Maine pulled in an incredibly rare two-toned lobster on Friday. It's a one in 50 million find.

The AIWA - the Voice of the Waterway - is a national non-profit organization with the mission of securing funding and support for the maintenance of the AIWW (Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway). We are the only organization dedicated to ensuring the future of the AIWW and proudly represent all stakeholders of the waterway. 

Visit WWSB for Video news story.

In Willapa Bay in Washington state, scientists discovered that water washing over tidal flats during high tides is largely the same water that washed over them during the previous high tide. This 'old' water has not been mixed with 'new' water and has lower levels of food for creatures in the bay. Oysters grown on flats where 'old' water stays longer showed a 25% drop in dry tissue weight per shell height.

Golf ball-size clods of weathered crude oil originating from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon catastrophe could remain buried in sandy Gulf Coast beaches for decades, according to a new study by ecologists at Florida State University.

The US Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board finally may be heading to a high level showdown over long-standing NTSB proposals for tougher regulations protecting passengers on small passenger vessels and duck boats – vessels used by millions of people per year.

Some of the first financial relief the Bahamas receives in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian may be a rapid insurance payout from a novel program just 12 years old.

CNS): A controversial $167 million resort project proposed for the quiet residential community of Beach Bay has not only raised significant concerns for the residents in the area but also the Department of Environment. The DoE has said that the National Conservation Council does not require the developers to conduct an EIA because local experts are already familiar with the site. However, the department has identified a number of problems with the planned development.

The state government seems to be caught between the devil and the deep sea in the Maradu apartments demolition issue.