San Francisco EcoSalon on Oceans: Depleting the Bountiful Sea

The evening of October 21 brought about 130 E2 members and friends together at the St. Francis Yacht Club on the San Francisco Bay for an EcoSalon on the global oceans crisis. The program addressed the effects of human activity on ocean ecosystems with a focus on worldwide fish populations. Dr. Daniel Pauly, Professor at the Fisheries Centre of the University of British Columbia and NRDC Trustee, gave a remarkably graphic portrayal of the decline in global fisheries due to improved fish detection and extraction technologies. These have not only increased our capacity to harvest fish from the sea, but also destroyed much of the ocean floor habitat needed by fish populations to regenerate.

The Honorable Leon Panetta, former White House Chief of Staff under President Clinton and Co-Director of the Leon and Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy, talked about his role as Chair of the Pew Oceans Commission. Last spring, the commission produced "America's Living Oceans," the preeminent report documenting the decline of the oceans, and proposing solutions to the challenges we face in reversing the decline.

Sarah Chasis, Director of NRDC's Water and Coastal Program, outlined NRDC's agenda for legislation to support a new system of oceans governance that will allow for a return of species abundance and diversity in the oceans and a vigorous, sustainable fishing industry.

Boston EcoSalon: "Oceans: A National Treasure at Risk" On Dec. 9th, E2 and NRDC will sponsor a panel discussion in Boston, "Oceans: A National Treasure at Risk."

Speakers will include: David Rockefeller, Jr., who's a member of the Pew Oceans Commission; director and former chair of Rockefeller Co., Inc., and vice chair of the National Park Foundation; Dr. Daniel Pauly, professor at the Fisheries Centre of the University of British Columbia, author of the book "In a Perfect Ocean: The State of Fisheries and Ecosystems in the North Atlantic, " and NRDC board member; and Sarah Chasis, senior attorney and director of NRDC's water and coastal program. The panel will discuss the urgent problems facing our oceans' ecosystems, recommendations proposed by the Pew Oceans Commission, and legislative solutions to these issues. Further details to come.