arctic sunrise
Posted by jossc — 9 May 2007 at 12:00am
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The weather gods are shaking their fists at us again, forcing the Artic Sunrise to seek shelter in one of the three large bays of Stronsay in the Orkney Isles. Which is bad news for our mission, but good news for the 'twitchers' amongst the crew as the island abounds with birdlife and we've arrived here smack in the middle of the breeding season. Large colonies of gannets and fulmars live on the cliffs to the south and west, and there's also a loch and marshes which are havens for ducks and waders including the rare pintail (perhaps only 50 breeding pairs in Britain). And there are land (as opposed to sea) birds here too - swallows flew overhead as we lowered our anchor chain yesterday evening.
Posted by Willie — 9 May 2007 at 12:00am
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Greenpeace's call for 40 per cent of our oceans to be set aside as reserves may sound radical, or even far-fetched. But it isn't.
Others, such as the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution have echoed what we're asking for. And sometimes, size DOES matter.
Large-scale Marine Reserves build in resilience to the ecosystems they encompass, allowing them to adapt to changes we might not even be able to predict (as well as those we are anticipating, like climate change). Most of what politicians have proposed quite simply doesn't go far enough: they are either too small, or too weak (the proposals, not the politicians).
Posted by Willie — 8 May 2007 at 11:05am
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
We've had 'weather' out at sea, so again we've sought some shelter of the remote island of Fetlar. It's both reassuring to be near land when the wind's blowing, and frustrating when we can't set foot on it. I think many people on board would love to go for a nice long walk that didn't involve stairs or a handrail.
Posted by jossc — 8 May 2007 at 10:57am
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
Marlin, swordfish, tuna, snapper, sea bass and cod. What have they all got in common, apart from the obvious? Well, they are all large predatory species which occupy the top spot (or close to it) in the food chain in their respective neigbourhoods. Or at least they used to. Last November, an international group of ecologists and economists, led by Boris Worm of Dalhousie University, published a study that made headlines around the world.
Posted by jossc — 7 May 2007 at 12:00am
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
Posted by Sten the activist
Life on a ship is special, there's nothing else like it.
You're thrown together with a small group of people in a small space, in a big void. In these conditions you get to know people much faster than you usually do in normal life. I've met a lot of people onboard who I really like, and I know I'm going to miss when I leave the ship. And then, of course, I've encountered one or two who I like a bit less.
I've visited places I hadn't been to before - Bergen and the Shetlands so far - and done the things I came here to do - bobbed around in a dry-suit in front of a trawler, holding a 'Cod in Crisis' sign to get the message out that the North Sea needs marine reserves.
Posted by Willie — 6 May 2007 at 9:00am
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
A couple of rock doves passed over the Arctic Sunrise this morning, heading for nearby cliffs on Fetlar. These birds are typically found on cliffs like those around Shetland, but are probably better known as the feral pigeons that have colonised the artificial cliffs we have built in our towns and cities.
Posted by Willie — 5 May 2007 at 12:00pm
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
A gannet in the waters of Shetland © Greenpeace/Christien Åslund
On Friday morning we left the shelter of Shetland, where we had spent a day at anchor in a secluded bay off the northerly island of Fetlar. I've never been there before, but it was a lovely spot to stop. We didn't go onto land, which was a shame because some of the crew had been practising their ceilidh dancing especially since we were headed towards Scotland's most northerly isles.
Last edited 1 January 1970 at 1:00am
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Posted by Willie — 4 May 2007 at 12:00pm
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
We often talk about 'destructive' fisheries on the oceans campaign - so I thought it was maybe time I explained what that means when we talk about cod. A purist could say that all fishing is destructive, in that it destroys the fishes' life at least, I guess.
Posted by jossc — 2 May 2007 at 5:00pm
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Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog
A fulmar soars above the North Sea © Greenpeace/Gavin Newman
Out on the North Sea, aside from the vessels and the oil platforms we pass, we're always surrounded by life. And no, I don't just mean the ship's crew.
