One hundred forty odd miles southeast of Nantucket, the cod-gray seas of Georges Bank turned to Mediterranean blue. We had left the continental shelf and were motoring out over one of the deep sea canyons.  The first sperm whale we came upon was floating dead in the water. Likely killed by a ship strike. We went on that day to find two very alive sperm whales blowing and diving.

That day, many years ago, I was angry about how we mistreat whales and the state of our oceans. I acted.  In 2003, I was founding chairperson of Ocean Champions, the only political voice for oceans.  In 2007, I was founding executive director of the Ocean River Institute, providing individuals and groups specific opportunities to make a difference saving wildlife, protecting ecosystems, in environmental education, science, and conservation.  In 2016, at the urgings of the above mentioned organizations and many others, President Obama created the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.  In 2017, I was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Humanitarian Achievement Award. (Click here for my interview and life story with a member of the Marquis Who’s Who nominating committee).

In this video, Rob talks of sperm whales and marine national monument.

And now the real work begins.  Separate from government, we must come together to protect the whales, coldwater corals, benthic and pelagic marine life, plankton, nexton, and neuston of the NE Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.

I invite you to make a donation and join the Deep Sea Canyon Rangers and Seamount Guardians.  A wondrous ocean place awaits your discovery and involvement. (click here)

Why?

Citizen scientists are needed to remotely monitor the surfacing and presence of whales in relation to ship traffic – to require ships to slow to ten knots with attentive lookouts in the presence of whales, or stay out of the Marine National Monument.

Rob talks about seamounts and the looming threat of precious metal mining.

Seamount Guardians defend the monument from the solar cell industry stated interests in mountain-top removal mineral mining with remotely operated submersibles of the ferromanganese crust on the four seamounts for tellurium because that would be more profitable than buying tellurium from China.

Hawk-eyed citizens block the oil and gas leasing permits requested by many big oil companies to explore and drill Lydonia Canyon, one of the three canyons in the Marine National Monument.

Rob talks about coldwater deep sea corals.

Canyon Rangers to work with the fishing industry to prevent fix-gear entanglements, mid-water trawling bycatch, and disturbance of ancient coldwater corals.

Citizen oceanographers to monitor the Atlantic Ocean’s absorption of heat from global warming with the thickening of shelf waters and the sinking of the thermocline, the boundary between two bodies of water, shelf and slope.

Rob explains why this is really important.

Come on aboard with the friends of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument acting for healthy ocean ecosystems through education, research, conservation, and stewardship.  Click here & Join us.