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Dive into the Depths: Join Andrew Lewin on 'How to Protect the Ocean' – Your Gateway to Exclusive Ocean Insights! Explore the latest, uncharted realms of ocean science and conservation that you won't find anywhere else. Andrew takes you on an inspiring journey to uncover the hidden gems of oceanic discovery and initiatives. Tune in to discover how you can transform your life for a better ocean, one episode at a time. The How To Protect The Ocean is your resource to keep you informed on the latest ocean news; teach you how to speak up for the ocean; and, how you can take action to live for a better ocean. There is so much information on the ocean and the issues that are affecting it that it can be difficult to find optimism in the future of the ocean. Climate change, overfishing, plastic pollution, water pollution, and coastal development have altered the ocean in ways that have negatively changed the way we use it. The repercussions of climate change, including the ominous specter of rising sea levels, the relentless march of warming ocean temperatures, and the ominous shadow of ocean acidification, have not only altered the very fabric of our coastlines but have also conjured fiercer storms and summoned floods with growing frequency. The fossil fuel industry may whisper in your ear that the situation is insurmountable, an inescapable fate. However, this podcast is here to unveil a different narrative, one that empowers you to take action. It illuminates the path to change by casting your vote for leaders committed to implementing climate-rescuing policies and by offering invaluable insights into how each of us can shrink our individual carbon footprint. The grim reality of overfishing casts a long shadow, fueled by governmental shortcomings in the stewardship of both commercial and recreational fisheries. Within the delicate balance of our oceans, every fish population possesses a threshold - a point at which the relentless harvest of fishermen begins to erode their numbers. The management of these aquatic resources is a formidable task, as the elusive currents of the sea often defy easy tracking. Furthermore, the menace of illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing looms large in many nations, adding to the crisis. Yet, a glimmer of hope shines through the depths. A beacon for responsible consumption emerges in the form of seafood programs, guiding conscientious individuals toward choices that safeguard our oceans. By heeding these programs, you not only savor the delights of sustainable seafood but also become an informed guardian of marine ecosystems. The relentless scourge of plastic pollution has unleashed an epidemic of death upon the denizens of our oceans. It's a ruthless killer, claiming the lives of hundreds of thousands of marine mammals, majestic sharks, grandiose fish, gentle sea turtles, and the graceful sea birds that soar above. The malevolence of this crisis knows no bounds, with microplastics infiltrating even the remotest depths of the ocean and etching their presence along every coastline. To mount a defense against this ecological cataclysm, the clarion call for action echoes on the international and national stages. It beckons governments far and wide to adopt resolute policies, wielding the power to outlaw the menace of single-use plastics and demanding the meticulous detoxification of our supply chains. In this grand battle to safeguard our seas, the fight against plastic pollution knows no borders. The ominous specter of water pollution looms large, a consequence of our thoughtless disposal into the arteries of our planet – our streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans. This callous act reverberates, sending shockwaves through the intricate ecosystems of our coastal havens, where the likes of coral reefs, resilient mangroves, and swaying seagrasses thrive. But alas, this intrusion is not benign; it bears the capacity to corrode and dismantle these vital sanctuaries, the very lifebloo

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Whales Are Sprinters: What a Blue Whale's Heart Does When It Lunge Feeds

2026/10/05

What happens to the heart of the largest animal on Earth when it charges into a swarm of krill? Dr. Ashley Blawas, a postdoctoral scholar in Jeremy Goldbogen's lab at Stanford's Hopkins Marine Station, joins Andrew to unpack new research published in PNAS that measured the heart rates of lunge-feeding blue whales and humpback whales using suction-cup ECG tags. Ashley explains the three phases of lunge feeding (accelerate, engulf, filter) and why these giants behave a lot like human sprinters. Their heart rates stay high after each lunge, then gradually recover while they glide and filter, refuelling muscles for the next burst. She also shares how body size gives big whales a heart rate range of roughly sevenfold, compared with about threefold in humans, which may be one of the keys to life at the largest scale. Along the way, Ashley tells the story of how beach vacations in North Carolina and a biomedical engineering degree at Duke led her to whale physiology, how COVID pushed her PhD into molecular research, and where this work is heading next. Think minke whales, North Atlantic right whales, and one day a "smartwatch" that could help track whale health over time. Takeaways Lunge feeding has three phases: acceleration (about 4 m/s), engulfment (a few seconds), and filtering (up to 1 to 1.5 minutes in the largest blue whales). Blue and humpback whale heart rates mimic human sprinters, staying elevated after a lunge and recovering gradually. That elevated heart rate likely helps oxygenated blood restore energy stores between lunges. Big whales access a heart rate scope of roughly 5 to 35 bpm, about sevenfold, versus about threefold in humans. Data came from nine tag records on blue and humpback whales across multiple field seasons. Tags attach with suction cups from a roughly 6 m carbon fibre pole and record for about 12 to 36 hours. Lunge feeding only pays off when prey patches are dense, which makes finding those patches a survival issue. Future work targets minke whales, ram-feeding right whales, and long-term health indicators like heart rate variability. Links for Ashley's Work: The PNAS paper discussed in the episode: Sprint-like cardiac dynamics support repeated acrobatic lunges in foraging rorqual whales Ashley's website: ashleyblawas.com Goldbogen Lab: goldbogen.stanford.edu and whales.stanford.edu Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

The Pollution That Breeds: How the Great Lakes Stopped Invaders

2026/10/02

In 1988, someone found a striped mussel the size of a fingernail in Lake St. Clair. Within a few years, zebra mussels coated pipes, boats, and the bottom of the Great Lakes, and they became the poster child for "it's too late." Andrew closes Marine Pollution week with the pollutant that breaks every rule: a living one that reproduces instead of diluting. He follows two invaders. Zebra mussels rode in on ship ballast water, clogged power plant intakes, and stripped plankton from the base of the food web. Lionfish, likely released from home aquariums, spread from Florida across the Caribbean and cut the number of young native fish settling on reefs by about 79% in one experiment. Then comes the fight back. Ballast water rules tightened between 1993 and 2008, and new invasions in the Great Lakes fell 85%, to the lowest rate in two centuries. In the Bahamas, keeping lionfish low on small patches of reef let native fish rebound by 50 to 70%. Andrew wraps with the role every boater and paddler plays: clean, drain, and dry, every time. Takeaways: Invasive species are biological pollution, and they multiply over time. Zebra mussels arrived in ballast water and were found in Lake St. Clair in 1988. Densities at one Michigan power plant topped 700,000 mussels per square metre within a year. Lionfish likely reached the Atlantic through aquarium releases and now range from North Carolina to the Caribbean. Lionfish cut the number of young native fish settling on test reefs by about 79% in five weeks. Stricter ballast rules dropped new Great Lakes invasions from 26 to 4 per 13-year period. Keeping lionfish numbers low on targeted reefs let native prey fish rebound by 50 to 70%. Florida divers removed 31,773 lionfish in the 2024 Lionfish Challenge. Ontario has required boaters to drain water and remove plants and animals before moving a boat overland since 2022. Clean, drain, and dry every boat, canoe, kayak, or paddleboard between waterways. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

How Beach Cleanup Data Helped Canada Ban Plastic

2026/10/01

You rinse the yogurt tub, check the number on the bottom, and drop it in the blue bin. In Canada, only about 9% of plastic waste actually gets recycled, and the global rate is the same. Andrew breaks down why plastic is so hard to recycle, why microplastics are so hard to study, and what the controversy over plastic-in-the-brain headlines does and doesn't tell us. Then the story moves to a beach in Stanley Park in 1994, where Vancouver Aquarium staff and volunteers started picking up trash and writing down what they found. That cleanup grew into a national program, and its data fed into the federal science assessment that led Canada to list plastic manufactured items as toxic and ban six single-use items. Industry groups took Ottawa to court and won the first round in 2023. On January 30, 2026, the Federal Court of Appeal reversed that ruling. Andrew walks through what that win delivers: a ban projected to keep more than 22,000 tonnes of plastic pollution out of the environment over ten years, and a Federal Plastics Registry that tracks plastic from the producer to its end of life. He's honest about the setbacks too, then closes with the simplest action in the series: join a shoreline cleanup and record what you find. Takeaways: Canada recycled only about 9% of its plastic waste in 2016, and 86% went to landfill. Globally, plastic waste doubled from 2000 to 2019, and 22% was mismanaged. Plastic is many materials, which is a big reason recycling struggles. Microplastics are everywhere, and that makes clean lab controls hard to find. Some high-profile studies on plastic in the human body now face methodological challenges. Volunteer shoreline cleanup data informed Canada's science assessment of plastic pollution. Canada listed plastic manufactured items as toxic in 2021 and banned six single-use items. The Federal Court of Appeal upheld that listing on January 30, 2026. The Federal Plastics Registry now requires companies to report the plastic they put on the market. Join a shoreline cleanup that records its data, and your tally counts. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

What Happens to Fish When Our Pills Reach the Water?

2026/09/30

In 2001, government scientists started adding a tiny amount of the synthetic estrogen found in birth control pills to a remote lake in northwestern Ontario, at levels already measured in city wastewater. Within seven weeks, male fish were making egg-yolk protein. After two summers, some had eggs growing in their testes, and the fathead minnow population collapsed to about 1% of normal. Andrew explains how the same chemistry leaves our bodies every day, passes through treatment plants built for sewage and bacteria, and flows into rivers, lakes, and the coast. Hormones are only part of it. In Sweden, researchers at Umeå University found that perch exposed to the anti-anxiety drug oxazepam, at levels matching wild fish, became bolder, fed faster, and drifted away from their schools, all behaviours that make a small fish easier to eat. Andrew then goes back to DDT, when bald eagles fell to 417 nesting pairs in the lower 48 states before the 1972 US ban let them climb past 71,000 breeding pairs. The recovery story continues at Lake 260. Once the hormone additions stopped, the minnows came back to pre-experiment levels within three years. Switzerland is now upgrading about 120 treatment plants with ozone or activated carbon to remove more than 80% of these micropollutants, paid for by a small annual fee per person. Andrew closes with the part you control today: take your leftover and expired medications back to a pharmacy. Takeaways: Your body doesn't use every bit of a pill, and what's left leaves in urine. Most treatment plants remove solids and bacteria, and many drug compounds pass straight through. At Lake 260, synthetic estrogen at about 5 to 6 nanograms per litre collapsed the fathead minnow population to about 1%. Lake trout that ate those minnows declined too. Oxazepam made perch bolder, faster feeders, and loners, raising their risk from predators. Bald eagles went from 417 nesting pairs in 1963 to more than 71,000 breeding pairs after DDT was banned. Lake 260's minnows recovered within three years once the hormone additions stopped. Switzerland is adding ozone and activated carbon treatment to about 120 plants to remove more than 80% of micropollutants. Ontario's free pharmacy return program collected more than 330,000 kg of medications in 2024. Keep taking what your doctor prescribes, and return the leftovers to a pharmacy instead of flushing or trashing them. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

How Did Humpback Whales End Up in New York Harbour?

2026/09/29

This summer, people are boarding whale watching boats and seeing humpbacks feeding in sight of the Manhattan skyline. Fifty years ago, that same water was an open sewer, and every toilet on Manhattan's West Side flushed straight into the Hudson River, untreated. Andrew tells the story of how the whales got here, and why it took most of a century. He starts with the cause: sewers built to empty into the rivers, roughly 590 million gallons of raw sewage a day by the early 1900s, and floating screens at Coney Island to keep it away from swimmers. Then the turn. The city began testing the harbor in 1909 because people demanded it. In 1966, Hudson River fishermen met in an American Legion hall in Crotonville and used an 1899 bounty law against polluters, founding what became Riverkeeper. The Clean Water Act followed in 1972. The North River treatment plant, first proposed in 1938, finally opened in 1986 and ended daily raw sewage discharges into the Hudson, with the West Harlem community carrying the cost of its siting and sparking the environmental justice group WE ACT. The results are hard to argue with: bacteria below dry-weather swimming standards since 1992, record oxygen levels, and 500 individual humpbacks identified in New York waters by Gotham Whale, helped by menhaden catch limits that let their food rebound. The work isn't finished, since heavy rain still pushes sewage through roughly 700 overflow outfalls. Andrew closes with one action: find your local Waterkeeper and follow your own water. Takeaways: New York's sewers were designed to empty straight into the Hudson, the East River, and the harbor. By the early 1900s, roughly 590 million gallons of raw sewage a day flowed into the harbor. The city's Harbor Survey began in 1909 because of public outcry, and it still runs today. In 1966, Hudson River fishermen used an 1899 bounty law against polluters and founded what became Riverkeeper, now a model for more than 300 Waterkeeper groups. The 1972 Clean Water Act required real treatment and funded it. The North River plant took nearly 50 years from proposal (1938) to opening (1986). The plant's siting in West Harlem led to the founding of WE ACT for Environmental Justice. Bacteria have stayed below dry-weather swimming standards since 1992. Humpback sightings in the harbor estuary jumped from 1 (2011 to 2013) to 45 (2014 to 2016); 500 individuals have now been identified. Cleaner water and 2012 menhaden catch limits worked together to bring the whales back. Combined sewer overflows during heavy rain are the unfinished business. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Plastic Is Still the Ocean's #1 Villain, with Dr. Judith Weis

2026/09/28

Plastic keeps getting made, it never goes away, and almost none of it gets recycled. Dr. Judith Weis, Professor Emerita at Rutgers University Newark and Andrew's very first guest on this podcast more than 2,000 episodes ago, returns for her fourth appearance to talk about the second edition of her book, Marine Pollution: What Everyone Needs to Know. Judith walks through every major category of marine pollution: nutrients, metals, oil, pesticides, marine debris, pharmaceuticals, ocean acidification, and one category that surprises most people, biological pollution. She explains why microplastics earned a brand new chapter, why they're so hard to study when they're in every lab and every body, and what Canada's legal fight over listing plastic as toxic means for regulation. There's good news too. Judith grew up near a Hudson River full of raw sewage. After the Clean Water Act and new treatment plants, New Yorkers now walk the waterfront, the water is swimmable in dry weather, and humpback whales feed in New York Harbor. Andrew and Judith ask what that comeback can and can't teach us about plastic, and what you can do today. Takeaways: Every major type of marine pollution comes down to three questions: where it comes from, what it does, and what we can do about it. Judith calls plastic the number one villain in marine pollution today because production keeps rising and recycling doesn't work at scale. Microplastics are 5 mm or smaller, mostly invisible, and carry chemicals both inside them and stuck to their surfaces. They're so widespread that researchers struggle to find microplastic-free controls for experiments. Canada listed plastic manufactured items as toxic under CEPA, banned six single-use categories, and saw that listing upheld on appeal. Large tanker spills have become far less common, with double hulls part of the reason. Sewage treatment after the Clean Water Act transformed the Hudson River and New York Harbor, and whales are back. Pharmaceuticals and hormones pass through treatment plants and change fish behavior and biology. Invasive species count as biological pollution, and unlike chemicals, they reproduce. Beach cleanups, local environmental chapters, and cutting your own plastic use are practical places to start. Buy the book: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/marine-pollution-9780197753811?cc=ca&lang=en& Join the newsletter Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

You Left a Public Comment. Now What?

2026/09/25

All week, Andrew has asked listeners to comment on and show up for California's marine protected area review. Today he answers the question that comes after: once the meeting ends and the news coverage stops, how do you find out if anything actually changed? He works through four practical questions every ocean advocate should know how to answer. First, where to find the current rules for any of the 124 MPAs in California's network (the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's own MPA pages). Second, why a Fish and Game Commission vote isn't the finish line, since approved changes still go through the state's formal rulemaking process before they're enforceable, which can take months. Third, how the rules get enforced on the ground, including MPA Watch, a statewide community science program where trained volunteers record how people use the coast inside and outside MPAs. Fourth, what happens to a petition that doesn't get adopted, and why the 10-year adaptive management cycle means it can come back. Andrew closes with the bigger picture from this week: MPA design brings together natural science, social science, and the voices of everyone who uses the coast, and everyone deserves to feel safe speaking. He wants to hear from California listeners about MPA Watch and this week's episodes. Next week, Dr. Judith Weis joins the show to talk marine pollution. Takeaways: CDFW's MPA pages are the authoritative, current source for maps and rules at every MPA in California. A Commission vote starts the formal rulemaking process; a change only becomes enforceable once that process is complete. The gap between approval and enforcement can take months, and that time is spent making sure a rule holds up in law. MPA Watch trains volunteers to record human activity inside and outside MPAs, and CDFW and research partners use that data. About 2,000 volunteers had joined MPA Watch by 2019. California reviews its MPA network every 10 years, so a petition that doesn't pass this cycle can be revisited with new science and data. MPA design draws on natural science, social science, and community input together. You can take part by checking the rules, joining MPA Watch, or simply attending a Commission meeting to observe. Website: https://californiampas.org/about-mpas/california-state-mpas Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Does Your Public Comment Count? Two Ocean Wins Show How

2026/09/25

Earlier this year, about 65,000 people submitted comments on a federal deep-sea mining proposal near the Northern Mariana Islands, most of them opposed. The area under consideration nearly doubled anyway. So why should anyone show up to a public meeting about the ocean? Andrew Lewin makes the case with two marine protected area processes that earned broad public support by design. The first is the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park's Representative Areas Program, which rezoned the entire park between 1999 and 2004. Two formal community participation phases, one before any draft existed, drew more than 31,000 public submissions, while standing local advisory committees kept fishers, tourism operators, and coastal communities in the conversation year round. No-take zones grew from about 4.5 percent of the park to 33.3 percent. The second is the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off California's Central Coast, nominated by the Northern Chumash Tribal Council in 2015 and designated in October 2024 after a staged NOAA process that drew more than 110,000 comments, over 98 percent in support. Andrew explains what those processes had that a bare petition process lacks: staged phases, standing advisory structures, clear ownership of the proposal, and a room where people feel safe to speak. He connects it to what happened in California's MPA review, covered earlier this week with Anupa Asokan, and to the Fish and Game Commission meetings in Sacramento this October. He wants to hear about your own public comment experiences, good or bad. Takeaways: A petition process with no staged phases, standing advisory structure, or way to reconcile competing input tends to produce conflict and weak buy-in. The Great Barrier Reef rezoning ran two formal public phases, in 2002 and 2003, and drew more than 31,000 submissions. Local marine advisory committees kept dialogue with fishers, tourism operators, and communities going between the formal windows. No-take zones grew from about 4.5 percent to 33.3 percent of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park in 2004. Andrew recalls fisher tracking data being used to place new no-take areas where they would have the least impact on fishing. A study of the rezoning found science, leadership, public engagement, and politics all had to work together for approval. The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary was the first tribally nominated national marine sanctuary in the US, and more than 98 percent of comments supported it. Without buy-in, a marine protected area risks becoming a paper park. Knowing how the process works makes it easier to show up, speak, and support others in the room. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

The Blob Hit California's Kelp. Protected Kelp Came Back Faster.

2026/09/23

In 2014, just two years after California finished its statewide network of marine protected areas, a marine heatwave known as The Blob settled over the Pacific coast and stayed for two years. Kelp forests collapsed up and down the state, and sea star wasting disease wiped out sea stars on a scale few scientists had seen. For a network built partly to protect kelp habitat, it was the worst possible first test. Andrew Lewin walks through what the state learned when it checked. California's first Decadal Management Review pulled together long-term monitoring across kelp forests, rocky reefs, the intertidal, sandy beaches, and more, producing seven technical reports plus an independent synthesis from the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis so the state wasn't grading its own work. A UCLA-led study in the Journal of Applied Ecology then used nearly four decades of satellite imagery to show that kelp inside MPAs recovered better after the heatwave than similar unprotected coastline, most clearly in Southern California. The reason comes down to predators. Inside MPAs, California sheephead and spiny lobster were protected from fishing and kept urchins in check, so recovering kelp beds weren't mowed down into urchin barrens. Andrew covers the 2023 recommendations that came out of the review, how the Ocean Protection Council is folding them into California's 30x30 commitment, and why he'd like to see these assessments happen every five years instead of every ten. Thursday, the series turns to who gets heard in what happens next. Takeaways: The 2014 to 2016 marine heatwave (The Blob) and El Niño hit two years after California completed its MPA network, collapsing kelp forests statewide. California's first MPA Decadal Management Review, released by CDFW in January 2023 with the Ocean Protection Council, drew on long-term monitoring across multiple habitats. The review produced seven technical reports and one synthesis report, with the synthesis led by an outside group, NCEAS, for independent perspective. A UCLA-led study in the Journal of Applied Ecology used satellite imagery from 1984 to 2022 and found kelp inside MPAs recovered better after the heatwave than matched unprotected sites, most clearly in Southern California. The likely mechanism is a trophic cascade: protected sheephead and spiny lobster keep urchin populations from exploding into kelp-eating barrens. CDFW's recommendations are organized around MPA governance, the MPA management program, and overall network performance. The network covers 16% of state waters across 124 MPAs, and the Ocean Protection Council is treating it as a foundation for California's 30x30 goal. Regular, checkable assessments show where protection is working and make the case for expanding it. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

300 People, 50 Tribes, One Meeting: How California Built Its Marine Protected Areas

2026/09/22

In 1999, California passed a law ordering the state to fix its patchwork of ocean parks. For two years, almost nothing happened, and two attempts to get the process moving both failed. It took a 2004 public-private partnership, roughly $35 million in public and philanthropic funding, and a decade of work before the state had a real network of marine protected areas. Partway through that decade, more than 300 people from over 50 tribal nations walked into a public meeting in Fort Bragg to protest how the process was treating their rights. Andrew Lewin walks through what actually happened between the 1999 Marine Life Protection Act and the 124-MPA network Californians know today: the 2004 partnership with the nonprofit funder Resources Legacy Fund that finally got the process moving, the region-by-region design work built on stakeholder groups, a Science Advisory Team, and a Blue Ribbon Task Force, and the Fish and Game Commission votes that made each region official, starting with the Central Coast in 2007. The process also shows where good intentions ran into real conflict. On California's North Coast, tribal sovereignty and traditional gathering rights were not built into the process from the start, and it took a public confrontation before the state addressed it. The North Coast's final proposal, with a formal tribal gathering exception, was not adopted until 2012, and tribal leaders accepted it with conditions rather than a full endorsement. Andrew connects this history to yesterday's conversation with Anupa Asokan about the network's ongoing adaptive management review, and explains why managing an MPA network never really finishes. Takeaways: California's Marine Life Protection Act passed in 1999 but sat mostly unused for its first two years, surviving two failed implementation attempts before a 2004 public-private partnership with the nonprofit funder Resources Legacy Fund got the process moving. The full process to build California's network of marine protected areas took about a decade and roughly $35 million in public and philanthropic funding. Each of the four coastal regions went through the same design steps: a stakeholder group draft, a Science Advisory Team review, a Blue Ribbon Task Force recommendation, and a final vote by the state's Fish and Game Commission. The Central Coast was designated first, in 2007. The process did not build in tribal sovereignty and traditional gathering rights from the start. In July 2010, more than 300 people from over 50 tribal nations took over a Blue Ribbon Task Force meeting in Fort Bragg to protest it. The North Coast region's final proposal, including a formal tribal gathering exception, was adopted in 2012, and tribal leaders accepted it with conditions rather than a full endorsement. California's network now includes roughly 124 marine protected areas and recreational management areas, and it is still being managed through an ongoing adaptive process, the same one covered in yesterday's episode with Anupa Asokan. Managing a network of marine protected areas does not end at designation. It requires monitoring, reassessment, and revision, and that takes sustained funding, time, and public patience. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

California Votes on 15 MPA Changes in October. Who Got a Say?

2026/09/21

California has a network of 124 marine protected areas, and in October the state's Fish and Game Commission takes up 15 proposals that could change it. The proposals came out of the network's first 10-year management review, an adaptive management process written into the law so the network could respond to shifting fish populations, a warming climate, and evolving public values. Anupa Asokan, founder of Fish On, explains what that review looked like from inside the room. Anupa is a marine scientist, angler, and surfer who started Fish On to give conservation-minded anglers and spearfishers a voice. She describes a review where the state asked the public to submit petitions instead of assessing the whole network itself, where early agency evaluations left out climate change and equitable access until people pushed for them, and where a public meeting on tribally sponsored petitions drew offensive comments that, she says, no state official condemned. She also credits the Ocean Protection Council for weighing in with its own recommendations, including a climate lens and support for some tribally led proposals. Andrew and Anupa also talk about starting a conservation nonprofit with the help of a fiscal sponsor, why MPAs act as an insurance policy for fisheries management, and what data the state could share first to lower the temperature between groups. The Commission hears MPA petitions October 15 and 16 in Sacramento. Anupa lays out how to send a letter, join the meeting, and find other groups working on the petitions, and every link is in the show notes. Takeaways: California's 124-MPA network faces its first major adaptive management decision, with 15 proposals before the Fish and Game Commission on October 15 and 16. Anupa says the state relied on public petitions instead of assessing the network itself, which put the burden on communities and advocacy groups. The petitions range from a kelp forest package to fishing industry requests to open reserves to tribally sponsored new areas. She says early agency evaluations skipped climate change and equitable access until people pushed, and she credits the Ocean Protection Council for adding both. A safe and respectful public process is part of good management, because people who fear speaking up do not speak. Fish On has an editable letter to the Commission at fishon.us, and Anupa says there may be group rides to Sacramento. Fish On describes its members as fishers fighting for their fish. Fish On's Website: https://www.fishon.us/ Fish On's Resource to Speak Up for California's MPA system: https://www.fishon.us/news-resources/speak-up-for-californias-mpa-future Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Millimeters That Matter: The Sea Level Rise Threshold Coastal Wetlands Can't Survive

2026/09/17

Sea level rise. It's a phrase everyone's supposed to be afraid of, and almost nobody can picture. A couple of millimeters a year sounds too small to matter, until you find out coastal wetlands have an exact, measured speed limit for how fast they can keep up, and the ocean is closing in on it. Marshes and mangroves have kept pace with a rising sea for thousands of years by building their own soil upward, layer by layer, as plants grow, die, and get buried in place. That strategy has a hard limit. Peer-reviewed research puts it at roughly 6.1 millimeters of sea level rise a year, the point past which soil simply can't build fast enough. NASA's own sea level data shows the global rate has already gone from about 2 millimeters a year in the early 1990s to roughly 4.5 millimeters a year today, nearly doubling in three decades and closing that gap fast. There's a second strategy, and it's already working in real places. When a marsh can't out-build the tide, it can move inland instead, if there's room. Maryland's Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge has lost more than 5,000 acres of marsh, nearly half its historic wetland, and faces up to three feet of sea level rise in the Chesapeake by 2100. Its 2013 Blackwater 2100 strategy uses conservation easements to pay landowners to keep migration corridors open, and it's already protected more than 3,000 acres along the Nanticoke River and Coursey Creek. This episode connects back to Monday's interview with Dr. Adam Langley and lands on what coastal communities can actually do about it. Takeaways: Marshes and mangroves survive sea level rise by building soil upward, but that strategy has a hard limit: peer-reviewed research (Saintilan et al., 2020, Science) puts it at roughly 6.1 millimeters of sea level rise a year. NASA's sea level data shows the global rate has already climbed from roughly 2 millimeters a year in the early 1990s to about 4.5 millimeters a year today, nearly doubling in three decades. When building up stops working, marshes and mangroves have a second option: shifting inland, provided there's open land behind them to move into. Maryland's Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge has already lost more than 5,000 acres of marsh, nearly half its historic wetland, and its 2013 "Blackwater 2100" strategy uses conservation easements to keep migration corridors open along the Nanticoke River and Coursey Creek. The plan is working but unfinished: roughly 812 acres are protected along Coursey Creek and 2,300 along the Nanticoke, with about 5,000 acres still unprotected. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

What the Coast Is Worth: How a Dollar Number Is Already Funding Its Protection

2026/09/17

A boat's wake looks harmless right up until you watch it happen over and over. Every wake a boat throws off chips away at a shoreline that took centuries to build, and it happens on calm days, sunny days, days with no storm anywhere near. A NOAA study at Snow's Cut, North Carolina found that roughly half of all boat wake heights on that stretch of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway exceeded the largest wind driven waves measured there, and boats moving at the slow, considerate seeming "plowing" speed threw the tallest wakes of all. Habitat pushes back, and now that push has a number attached to it. A study by Doughty and colleagues found mangroves and marsh can reduce wave height by up to 90 percent, and marsh grass paired with an oyster reef cuts wave energy from boat wakes specifically by 67 percent compared to bare mud. Once a benefit like that is measurable, it becomes fundable: global blue carbon storage in mangroves, marsh, and seagrass is valued at nearly $191 billion a year, and a single restored 100 acre wetland saves local water systems about $17,000 a year, the same figure from earlier this week's Nature's Kidneys episode. Mexico's Riviera Maya coastline puts that funding model into practice. Its coral reef shields around $10 billion in annual tourism revenue, but that value sat informal for years, until a 2018 partnership between The Nature Conservancy, the Quintana Roo state government, local hotels, and the insurer Swiss Re turned it into a parametric insurance policy on the reef itself. When Hurricane Delta hit in 2020, the policy paid out $850,000 within days, funding volunteer brigades that stabilized over 2,150 coral colonies and reattached more than 13,500 coral fragments within three months. This episode closes out this week's coastal habitats series and lands on the one call to your local marina or town council that can actually move the needle. Takeaways: Boat wake erosion is mechanical, not climate driven: NOAA's Snow's Cut study found roughly half of boat wake heights exceed the largest wind driven waves, and slow "plowing" speed produces the tallest wakes of all. Healthy habitat is a measured defense: mangroves and marsh can reduce wave height by up to 90 percent, and marsh paired with an oyster reef cuts boat wake wave energy by 67 percent (Doughty et al., PeerJ). Once a coastal benefit is measurable, it becomes fundable: global blue carbon storage is valued at nearly $191 billion a year, and a single restored 100 acre wetland saves about $17,000 a year in water treatment costs. Mexico's Riviera Maya reef shields around $10 billion in annual tourism revenue, and a 2018 insurance partnership turned that value into a parametric policy that pays out automatically after a storm, no lengthy damage assessment required. When Hurricane Delta hit in 2020, that policy paid out $850,000 within days, funding the stabilization of over 2,150 coral colonies and the reattachment of more than 13,500 coral fragments within three months. The model is now expanding to Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras, with mangroves named as the next expansion. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Red Tide, Decoded: Why It Isn't Random, and How to Track It

2026/09/15

No smell. No warning. Just a beach full of people who start coughing at the same time, grab their towels, and leave. That's red tide, and it feels completely random until you know what's actually happening in the water. Karenia brevis, the algae behind it, produces a toxin called brevetoxin that rides the wind and waves into the air along the shoreline, which is why people can start coughing with no visible sign anything's wrong. The 2017 to 2019 Southwest and Southeast Florida bloom cost the region an estimated $2.7 billion, mostly in tourism losses, and it wasn't a freak event. Follow the water back far enough and it traces to nitrogen and phosphorus flowing out of the Kissimmee River basin, through Lake Okeechobee, and down the Caloosahatchee River into the Gulf, fueling the same algae that's always been there into a much bigger, longer bloom. Here's the turn: this is trackable. Mote Marine Laboratory's Beach Conditions Reporting System lets anyone on the Gulf Coast check named beaches for red tide conditions before they ever leave the house, the same way you'd check a weather forecast. This episode also connects back to the nutrient-pollution mechanism from the "nature's kidneys" episode with Adam Langley, and lands on one thing you can actually do this season. Takeaways: Red tide is caused by Karenia brevis, an algae that produces brevetoxin, a toxin that becomes airborne in sea spray and can cause coughing and respiratory irritation, worse for people with asthma but capable of affecting anyone near the water. The 2017–2019 Southwest and Southeast Florida red tide bloom cost the region an estimated $2.7 billion, mostly in tourism-dependent business losses. Red tide blooms are naturally occurring, but excess nitrogen and phosphorus flowing from the Kissimmee Basin through Lake Okeechobee and down the Caloosahatchee River make them bigger, longer, and more frequent. A legally mandated program has cut phosphorus leaving Everglades-area farmland by roughly 55 percent long-term, against a 25 percent legal minimum, but the broader system still isn't meeting the water quality standard the Gulf and estuaries need. Mote Marine Laboratory's free Beach Conditions Reporting System lets Gulf Coast beachgoers check red tide conditions beach by beach before they go. Gulf Of Mexico Red Tide Tracker: https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/science-areas/habs/hab-forecasts/gulf-coast/ Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Nature's Kidneys: How Coastal Wetlands Stop Ocean Pollution

2026/09/15

Green water. A smell that won't go away. Sometimes, dead fish washing up on shore. That's what too much nitrogen does to a coastline, and it's easy to hear stories like this and feel like the ocean is just losing. This episode is the opposite of that. Here's what most people don't know: a healthy stretch of marsh or mangrove can pull nitrogen straight out of the water before it ever becomes a problem. A single restored 100-acre wetland cut nearby ammonia by 62 percent and total nitrogen by 37 percent, and saved local water systems about $17,000 a year, all within three years. Then there's Tampa Bay: a bay written off as dead in the 1970s that came back so completely it now underpins roughly 1 in 5 jobs in the region, because people regulated pollution and rebuilt the habitat doing the filtering. This episode walks through the real mechanism (how wetland soil locks nitrogen away for centuries), the Tampa Bay turnaround in full, and the Mississippi River's springtime dead zone, then lands on one thing you can actually do this season. Takeaways: Excess nitrogen, not nitrogen itself, is what causes algal blooms, red tide, and dead zones along the coast. Healthy coastal wetlands (marshes, mangroves, seagrass) pull nitrogen out of the water before it reaches a bay, and lock it away in oxygen-starved mud for centuries. A single restored 100-acre wetland cut nearby ammonia by 62% and total nitrogen by 37% within three years, saving local water systems about $17,000 a year (Skidmore and Karwowski, Journal of AERE). Tampa Bay went from a 1970s pollution poster child to a bay where seagrass nearly doubled (21,600 to over 40,000 acres) after regulation and habitat restoration, and now supports roughly 1 in 5 regional jobs. Cutting back on synthetic lawn fertilizer, or switching to a slow-release or organic option, reduces the same runoff that overwhelms a wetland's filtering capacity. Support Independent Podcasts: https://www.speakupforblue.com/patreon Need help with your ocean non-profit, company, or project? Get the help you need with Pisces Oceans Inc.: https://www.piscesoceans.ca Connect with Speak Up For Blue Website: https://bit.ly/3fOF3Wf Instagram: https://bit.ly/3rIaJSG TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@speakupforblue Twitter: https://bit.ly/3rHZxpc YouTube: www.speakupforblue.com/youtube

Podcast reviews

Read How To Protect The Ocean podcast reviews

4.8 out of 5

190 reviews

★★★☆☆

BatmanCrothers 2026/08/18

Good concept, cringe hosting

This guy sure loves to hear himself talk. Great topics and well spoken, but a lot gets lost in the ramble. Bringing on a guest to “interview” just to ...

★★★★★

SelkieLady 2023/01/03

For the Oceans

Been following this show for quite awhile and LOVE it. Informative, never boring and always gets to the heart of the matter without the sensationalism...

★★☆☆☆

listener113344 2022/06/01

Hmm…

Speaks authoritatively about every ocean topic, but gets a lot of things wrong. Very opinionated. Rarely interviews actual experts. Is very self-promo...

★★★★☆

Laini99 2022/04/15

Why no mention of the leading causes of ocean pollution?

I left 4 stars cuz I might just be missing it and not here to be a jerk. I am legitimately confused though about why the Auto and Fashion industry who...

★★★★★

kateallcock 2021/03/17

Brilliant podcast

This is my favourite podcast I have found so far!! The host is great at disseminating information but it’s also not just scientific dribble - it’s fun...

★★★★★

BlueVenom18 2020/12/10

Informative

Wow total gem of a find!

★★★★★

Fancy Scientist 2020/10/17

Stephanie

This podcast is so informative and talks about really important and timely issues. Andrew's advice for marine biologists is spot on!

★★★★★

obacker19 2019/11/11

Transformational!

Podcasts like this show are what give me hope for the future as someone who feels the weight of our planet's environmental clock ticking away. Absolut...

★★★★★

Aprilxiaotong 2019/10/29

I think this is absolutely great

I'm studying in the field of the law of the sea, and pay more attention to the legislation of BBNJ. Checking all podcasts related to the ocean and sud...

★★★★★

Fortis_Rising 2019/08/06

Corrupted

Love the episodes, new to the podcast. Sounds like SUFB 847 has been corrupted around 3:44 mark.

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