Oceans

ISSUES

Marine pollution is the result of products being thrown into seas and oceans, mostly by mankind: domestic waste (sewage and rubbish, pollutants in runoff water...), industrial waste (hydrocarbons, metals, synthetic chemical and organic substances, radionuclides...) and agricultural waste (fertilisers, pesticides...). This includes water pollution and marine sediments, and more generally all damage to marine ecosystems caused by harmful substances being discharged into the sea, either by their nature or their quantity.
Fragile coastal areas
Most of the pollution comes from continents and is carried by rivers and winds. It is concentrated in coastal waters which provide water for 99% of total fish production. In fact, only a small amount of industrial pollution on the high seas is the result of accidents or malice: shipwrecks, deballasting, degassing and oil spills which are spectacular and disastrous when they reach the...

NEWS

Sorry, most of the news are only available in French language for the moment.

FRANCE - BREST - Des associations de défense de l'environnement du Finistère ont déposé mardi une nouvelle plainte contre X au...

LIECHTENSTEIN - LUXEMBOURG - Les exploitants qui ont des installations à proximité d'une zone polluée peuvent être présumés...

FRANCE - Le tribunal correctionnel de Brest a condamné mardi 2 mars le capitaine russe du Matterhorn et l'armateur du navire à...

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DEBATES

The Nitrogen Fix: Breaking a Costly Addiction

Fred Pearce

A single patent a century ago changed the world, and now, in the 21st century, Homo sapiens and the world we dominate have an...

Ghost nets – an underestimated danger

Large amounts of fishing gear lost at sea or abandoned by...

llegal Oil Discharge in European Seas

One-third of global marine oil transportation passes...

FOCUS

Extinctions

Polar bears will not be the only ones to disappear because of global warming. Many other – less visible or less symbolic – species will also be threatened. For them, global warming will be the last straw as man...

VIDEOS

11/03/2010	There's some scary creatures in the ocean... none more scary than plastic....	27/01/2010	Cathy Connor, geologist in Alaska tells us about the effects of climate...
07/01/2010	Une autre vidéo du choc entre le navire baleinier et celui des militants...	06/01/2010	Des images du choc qui a conduit au naufrage du bateau Ady Gil de Sea...

GREEN TIPS

Sea Criminals Firmly Dealt With

In November 2003, the Brest (France) magistrate’s court fined the captain of the ship ‘Voltaire’ €100 000....

INDICATORS

Biocapacity
Ecological footprint

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