Sea change for ocean management

SAN DIEGO - Ocean ecosystems around the world are threatened by overfishing, energy exploration, pollution and other consequences of industries. Data indicates ways to protect these ecosystems, but current management strategies sometimes can't react quickly enough, said San Diego State University biologist Rebecca Lewison. She and colleagues are endorsing a new approach called "dynamic ocean management" in a paper published March 11 in the journal BioScience. Lewison, and colleagues from Stanford University and NOAA, argue for an approach that incorporates real-time data from satellite data, ocean monitoring arrays and climate fluctuation reports into a conservation and sustainable resource use application. With support from NASA and the Center for Ocean Solutions, the researchers are working to develop approaches through which ocean managers and industry work together to manage resources. But, the success will depend on cooperation from industry in terms of contributing data and following the guidelines based on the information. (Source: Eurek Alert 03/11/15)