Friday, October 7, 2011

A Brief Overview of Environment California’s Ocean-Related Endeavors

In her role as a dedicated member of the green environment and sustainability community, Mary Cicalese maintains membership in several green organizations like the International Society of Sustainability Professionals and Environment California. Mary Cicalese, who works as the founder and CEO of Green Research One World (GROW), provides clients with opportunities to enhance their sustainability.

Environment California, an organization that possesses several initiatives that pertain to subjects like environmental health, global warming, preservation, and energy, created three programs that aim to preserve the health of the California's oceans. These programs, the Great Pacific Cleanup, Stop Offshore Drilling, and Protect Fish and Marine Mammals, were created to preserve the natural beauty of the California oceans and coasts. This article is meant as a summary of the three programs that comprise the ocean-related endeavors of Environment California.

1. The Great Pacific Cleanup. A huge patch of garbage known as the Pacific Garbage Patch resides between California and Hawaii in the ocean waters. Twice the size of the state of Texas, the Pacific Garbage Patch is mostly composed of plastic and other inorganic materials. Environment California has enacted a program to ban plastic bags and Styrofoam take-out containers in several communities in the state to counteract the growth of this patch.

2. Stop Offshore Drilling. The coast of California has been drill-free for four decades, while new pressure to drill in this area was recently put upon lawmakers. Environment California strives to affect the decisions of these officials and end the possibility of offshore drilling off the California coastline.

3. Protect Fish and Marine Mammals. Another of Environment California’s initiatives to keep its coasts and ocean clean and healthy, Protect Fish and Marine Mammals is a program that aims to protect marine wildlife like red snapper, grouper, pacific rockfishes, and cod, from becoming extinct or remaining at historically low levels of population.