We’re fans here of Google Earth, not simply for it’s innate ability to locate remote surf spots, but it’s power in displaying data that was once only static. The Google Earth image above allows us to visualize, for the first time, the impact humans are having on the ocean’s ecosystems. The full map shows that over 40% of the world’s oceans are heavily affected by human activities and very few areas remain untouched, including the Pacific Northwest.
An Oregon State University team reports that the “dead zones” found off the coast of Oregon are unlike anything recorded over the past 50 years. Scientists first noticed the “dead zones” in 2002, when an area of ocean water with low oxygen content formed in the near shore Oregon coast between Newport and Florence, causing a massive die-off of fish, crab and other marine life. They suspect that the “dead zones” could be fueled by stronger winds that might reflect larger global warming trends.
Global warming is expected to heat the air over land quicker than over the water, creating the potential to drive more winds thus causing more upwelling. As nutrients rise to the top, they eventually sink and die drawing more oxygen out of the water as they decay.
It’s a rapid and disturbing shift in ocean conditions in the Pacific Northwest in what has traditionally been one of the world’s more productive marine areas.
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation just released a new map layer for Google Earth that allows users to explore pollution data from over 30,000 industrial facilities in North America. You can learn about the pollution profile of each facility, including which pollutants are generated and how the facility handles them. There a quite a few along the Northwest coast, almost all lumber or pulp mills. Check what chemicals Georgia Pacific is releasing off the coast of Oregon.
