In a not-often-seen move, U.S. Senators have sided with environmentalists and passed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.

The Act passing is a win-win for everybody: it not only keeps us at the forefront of understanding threats to the ocean and finding new ways to address emerging problems, but also promotes knowledge of how CO2 absorption is affecting ocean ecosystems, protects important coastal and estuarine areas that are under threat, and it improves exploration, research, mapping & observation.

“This wise decision could not have come a moment sooner… These challenges can only be solved if scientists and ocean experts have the information they need to intelligently inform their decisions.” – Laura Burton Capps, Ocean Conservancy Sen. VP

1. The Ocean and Coastal Exploration and NOAA Act will authorize the National Ocean Exploration Program, National Undersea Research Program, and the Integrated Ocean and Coastal Mapping Program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to increase scientific knowledge for the management, use and preservation of oceanic, coastal and Great Lake resources.
2. The Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act will authorize the establishment of an integrated system of coastal and ocean observations for the nation’s coasts, oceans and Great Lakes.
3. The Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act will authorize a coordinated federal research program on ocean acidification.
4. The Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Act will authorize funding for a program to protect important coastal and estuarine areas that have significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, aesthetic, or watershed protection values, and that are threatened by conversion to other uses.

Also, checkout International Ocean Cleanup

Ever wonder where military vehicles windup once they retire ?

Well, the National Guard has teamed up with SCDNR to create underwater habitats for sea creatures and fish – a sure shot haven for offshore fisherman no doubt.

SCDNR’s site has an image of the current reef sites, structures and GPS coordinates, used by the $16M/year offshore fishing industry off SC.

Here’s a short video of 45 artificial reefs, including ‘concrete cones’, off our coast:

*UPDATE 12/14/10: Artificial reef-building wastes money