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March 20, 2009

The Scanner

I’m gone for a week and look at all the juicy ocean news I missed! This week,…After being hunted to near-extinction in the 19th century, the North Atlantic right whale appears to be making a slow comeback thanks to changes in shipping lanes, fishing gear restrictions, and lower ship speed limits….An undersea volcano in Tonga began erupting smoke, steam and ash thousands of feet into the air….Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced a ban on the hunting of harp seals younger than 1 year old…. A Canadian biologist reported that of 371 leatherback sea turtle necropsies he performed since 1968, over one third of the turtles had ingested plastic. …Speaking of plastic, Sarah at WaterNotes recently gave up Diet Coke cold turkey after realizing that she had generated approximately 1,825 plastic two-liter bottles in five years. Go Sarah!…A new study co-athored by Oceana board member Daniel Pauly cautioned that there are not enough fish left in the sea to include the consumption of omega-3-rich fish oils in dietary guidelines in developed countries….Jane Lubchenco was confirmed as NOAA administrator, and Andy Revkin asked her about her goals on Dot Earth. …Nine-year-old Alexa and her journalist mom Cindy launched the Oceans4Ever blog, which includes a “Freaky Fish Friday” series… we’re intrigued.