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A healthy planet and healthy people need a healthy ocean. Make a donation today to help MERI preserve our oceans for tomorrow.

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WHAT'S HAPPENING AT MERI

On Thin Ice: The Changing World of the Polar Bear

Marine Author & Artist Richard Ellis to Lecture on September 23

Once hailed as an example of successful conservation, the great white bear now faces the consequences of global climate change, which threatens to wreak havoc on the sea ice where it lives and hunts. Join MERI as acclaimed author Richard Ellis discusses the world’s largest land predator, its complex relationship with humans, and its current plight in a rapidly changing world. The New York Times calls Ellis “a prolific and graceful writer who’s written some of the best natural history books of the past decade.” Click here for more info.

Plastics in Lobsters?

MERI Recommends to DEP Board that Bisphenol-A be Restricted

At an August 19th hearing on the chemical Bisphenol-A (BPA), MERI recommended that BPA be designated as a high priority chemical and become subject to restriction under Maine’s Kid-Safe Products Act. MERI’s position was informed by a review of the growing body of scientific literature linking BPA to endocrine disruption and altered cell function in people and animals. Among the highest volume chemicals produced worldwide, BPA is used in plastic bottles, metal cans, electronics, receipts, and many other consumer products. Recent scientific research shows that chemicals related to BPA could even be impacting lobsters in the Northeast. Read a statement by MERI director Dr. Susan Shaw here.

Join MERI’s 20th anniversary campaign to restore health to the marine environment.

Oceans 20/20 - Vision for the Planet

Even before the spill, the Gulf of Mexico was damaged. Our oceans are contaminated—even at their greatest depths—by pesticides, plastics, fertilizers, fire retardants, herbicides, and other industrial chemicals.

Will we act in time to save the living heart of our planet?

Oceans 20/20: Vision for the Planet is MERI’s ambitious campaign to stop the flow of toxins into the sea and restore health to the oceans. It is built on clear understanding derived from 20 years of scientific research on the marine food web, and a clear strategy to educate the public and prompt bold, effective policy change in the years ahead.

The campaign’s success depends on caring individuals and institututions that understand our oceans are a vital, irreplaceable planetary resource. Please support our efforts! Contribute to MERI now.

OF SPECIAL INTEREST

On August 2nd, the EPA released results of acute toxicity tests of oil and dispersant mixtures. In a statement, MERI's director details the reasons why the EPA’s narrowly-focused tests should not be the basis for broad conclusions about the toxicity of oil-dispersant mixtures. Read her statement here.

Countless gallons of toxic crude oil and dispersants have entered the Gulf of Mexico. With 20 years of experience tracking toxins in the ocean food web, MERI brings critical expertise to the crisis.

MERI's director, Dr. Susan Shaw, is a marine toxicologist. She dove in the oil slick in May to witness impacts first hand, and has since become an influential voice in the media and scientific community on the impacts of the oil and dispersant mix.

Watch Dr. Shaw's TED Talk on the Gulf

MERI stands with many marine scientists in opposing the use of toxic dispersants in the Gulf. Studies have shown that oil and dispersants combined are more toxic than either alone.

Read Dr. Shaw's op-ed in the New York Times to learn about the dispersant Corexit. Visit our news page to read articles and listen to interviews in which she explains the impact oil and dispersants have on every level of the ocean food web.

Support MERI's proposal for independent research

To assure that short- and long-term impacts of toxins in the Gulf of Mexico are fully understood, MERI is calling for an independent, collaborative investigation that will examine effects at every level--from phytoplankton, fish, and birds, to marine mammals and humans. Learn more here.

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