Amidst escalating investments in offshore oil and gas extraction, research has revealed the growing footprint of industrial activities at sea. On top of the well-documented climate impacts of this development, one of the recently recognized consequences is the persistence of chronic oil pollution in areas most severely affected by extractive activity and fossil fuel-powered shipping. There are now public data platforms to democratize information about pollution at sea, including SkyTruth’s Cerulean, the world’s first free, open-source platform for automated identification of potential marine oil slicks and their likely sources. Ocean advocates around the world have utilized the platform to highlight oil pollution, identify polluters, and make visible the footprint of industrial development at sea - in particular, the increasing burden posed by the expanding offshore oil and gas industry. New data instruments are making visible the hidden costs of offshore industrial development, opening new avenues for more impactful ocean advocacy.
Despite the increasingly sophisticated data available to environmental defenders, much remains to be done to understand and illustrate escalating pressure on the world’s ocean. Increased attention from governments and funders would enable ocean advocates to close data gaps, highlight the need for stricter enforcement, and secure immense climate and biodiversity benefits. This year, SkyTruth is launching an updated version of the Cerulean model and releasing additional research on the world’s most polluting vessels and infrastructure. Meanwhile, other organizations such as Earth Insight are using open data to analyze and visualize fossil fuel expansion threats to critical ecosystems and communities. Panelists will share what they have been able to achieve through recent breakthroughs in data-driven ocean advocacy, and discuss the data advancements they are still seeking in order to help the world deliver on global climate and biodiversity goals by protecting the ocean from industrial development.
Moderator:
Shaila Huq, Communications and Engagement Manager, SkyTruth
Panelists:
John Amos, CEO, SkyTruth
Anna Bebbington, Senior Spatial Analyst, Earth Insight
Upasana Khatri, Senior Attorney, Center for International Environmental Law
David Cañas, Scientific Advisor, Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense AIDA
Andrew Hartsig, Senior Director, Arctic Program, Ocean Conservancy
29 сен 2024
