This June has been remarkable for the number of news events that have positively supported Sea Port’s optimistic and enthusiastic commitment to our Go Blue! seafood initiatives for environmental sustainability, personal health, and social justice.  As Sea Port celebrates its annual June CFEST Seafood Celebration, we want to highlight some of this month’s positive news developments. Most importantly, Sea Port wants to emphasize that we believe that our worldwide seafood industry is the most responsible and proactive of all the world’s economic sectors in driving the needed environmental and social justice improvements associated with the utilization of our productive and awe inspiring aquatic resources.

 

·         U.S. State Dept. downgrading Thailand to Tier 3:  Ultimately positive to drive social equity and eliminate the slave trade which is the second most common and lucrative global crime behind illegal arms trading

·         EPA Proposes guidelines to cut carbon pollution from existing  coal-fired power plants:  ultimately positive to mitigate ocean warming and acidification

·         FDA & EPA new proposed guidelines for seafood consumption for those pregnant and for young children:  Overwhelmingly positive

·         White House announced initiatives to combat IUU fishing, seafood fraud, and global overfishing:  Ultimately positive for advancing the long term sustainability of seafood production & marketing

·         White House and other nations announcing the formation of additional Marine Protected Areas:  Ultimately positive for enhancing adjacent fisheries and protecting biodiversity

·         National Strategic Plan for Aquaculture announcement:  Ultimately positive because aquaculture is the world’s fastest growing animal protein production system (outdoing beef production!)

·         The State Department’s “Our Ocean”, the Capitol Hill Ocean Week, World Oceans Day, and NOAA’s June  National Ocean Month all have worked to inform the politicians at home and abroad about the importance of our worldwide fisheries and aquatic environments and the solvable threats they face

Sea Port believes our seafood industry was born of struggle, courage, and most importantly of a positive and enthusiastic “can-do” attitude and because of this, we in the seafood industry will be the primary drivers of ocean health and human wellbeing in terms of social equity, prosperity, and personal health.  Please leave any comments or email me directly at dglaubke@cport.net.     Sincerely, Dave Glaubke, Director of Sustainability Initiatives

World Oceans Day:  The perfect time to rekindle the conservationist spirit of Theodore Roosevelt to help expand worldwide marine protected areas

Currently approximately 13% of landmasses on our Earth are protected from all or limited human influence by way of national parks, reserves, preserves, wilderness areas, and refuges. It is now time that our world oceans are accorded the same level of protection.  To be at a commensurate level the amount of protected ocean areas would need to more than quadruple.

"Of all the questions which can come before this nation, short of the actual preservation of its existence in a great war, there is none which compares in importance with the great central task of leaving this land even a better land for our descendants than it is for us." - Theodore Roosevelt

During Roosevelt’s presidency, he protected approximately 230,000,000 acres of public land and encouraged other nations around the world to do the same with their own natural wonderland areas.

World Oceans Day is the perfect time for all nations to embrace the enduring conservationist spirit of Theodore Roosevelt and work together to help bring our wondrous oceans up to the same level of protection that the world gives to its lands.

In the naturalist spirit of Teddy Roosevelt, enjoy and celebrate World Oceans Day!

Sincerely, David Glaubke

Director of Sustainability Initiatives, Sea Port Products Corp.