A report commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) investigates the unusual crustacean mortality in the … read more

In late September 2021, large numbers of dead crustaceans began to wash up on the North-East coast of England. The … read more

Two leading marine biologists, Prof Daniel Pauly and Dr Dirk Zeller from the University of British Columbia’s Sea Around Us project, published findings last year that challenged fundamental assumptions about global fisheries. read more

There is growing concern about the environmental impact of microplastics in the ocean and waterways. They are widespread and persistent in the environment, and there is some emerging evidence that they may also pose a biological threat to a variety of organisms as well. Some concerns have even been raised that microplastics could potentially pose a threat to human health via the contamination of food. However, the exact impact of microplastics in this way is still unclear. Lots of attention has focused on plastic microbeads, used in cosmetic products, and many are calling for them to be banned in the UK, as they have been in the US. But what does the evidence show, are there other microplastics that are of even greater concern and what can we do about them? read more

A paper published in the journal Nature Geoscience has examined timescales of ocean warming in response to greenhouse gases in the Arctic. read more

Publishing in the journal Nature Climate Change, a group of researchers have modeled the effects of strategies to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and report that in their systems such strategies would still leave long term negative effects on oceans in terms of pH and temperature. read more

The effects of climate change on the world’s marine ecosystems is the subject of a paper published in the journal Science, with the authors discussing two scenarios of levels of carbon dioxide emissions and their potential impacts in terms of marine life and associated goods and services. read more

Ice2sea is an EU-funded project whose goal is to produce state of the art projections of sea level rise. Four of the lead UK scientists came to the SMC to discuss the project’s conclusions, including global mean sea-level rise to 2100 and beyond and the impact on Europe’s coastline. read more

A study published in Nature Geoscience suggests climate warming has led to Antarctic sea ice expansion, due to cool freshwater from melt beneath the Antarctic ice shelves insulating offshore sea ice from the warming ocean beneath. read more

A new report commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) highlights how humans have massively altered global cycling of nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients. While this had huge benefits for world food and energy production, it has also created a web of water and air pollution that is damaging human health, causing toxic algal blooms, killing fish, threatening sensitive ecosystems and contributing to climate change. read more

MEPs voted through reforms to the Common Fisheries Policy, including measures to protect endangered stocks and a ban on “discards”, the practice of throwing unwanted dead fish back into the sea. read more

Large numbers of seabirds washed up along the south coast were found to be covered in a sticky, glue-like substance. read more

Ice sheet loss from Greenland and the Antarctic will contribute to sea level rise. A new study published in Science combines multiple satellite data to estimate the mass balance of Earth’s polar ice sheets and its effect on sea level. read more

Sea-levels are rising 60 per cent faster than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) central projections, new research published in Environmental Research Letters suggests, while temperature rises appear to be consistent with the projections. read more

NERC council announced that the proposed merger of the British Antarctic Survey and National Oceanography Centre will not go ahead and BAS and NOC will remain as NERC’s centres. read more

Growing concern was expressed over the merging of the British Antarctic Survey with the National Oceanography Centre. read more

The NSIDC in Colorado reported that the Arctic sea ice extent was at its lowest level since satellite measurements began in 1979, breaking the previous record set on 18 September 2007. read more

Nature published a paper suggesting carbon could potentially be transported to the bottom of the ocean, and stored there, by sinking microscopic phytoplankton following iron fertilization. read more

According to a study in Science, a decade-long record of nearly all of Greenland’s major glaciers suggests that that Earth’s sea level may not rise 2 full meters over the next century as previously predicted. read more

Following a earthquake off the coast of Indonesia measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale, and with a tsunami warning issued across the Indian Ocean, quotes from the UK and Australian scientific community were sent out. read more