SeaForester - Restoring the forgotten Forests in our Ocean_Health & Fitness

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But something similar is happening under the ocean completely out of view, destroying marine vegetation and our ‘forgotten forests’. Many seaweed forests have simply completely disappeared, destroyed by pollution, ocean heatwaves and other factors. They used to cover most coastlines in temperate climates. Now, from Antarctica to Australia, Canada and Norway, they are under threat as our planet catapults towards increasingly rapid environmental degradation. Yet, restoring those forests could be a crucial step to mitigating climate change and limiting the loss of biodiversity in the ocean. There are already dozens of such efforts under way across the globe – in Australia, Portugal, Korea, California and elsewhere – but much more needs to be done. Far too little attention is paid to seaweed, yet these plants can reverse acidification in our oceans, build up depleted fish stocks and capture carbon at least five times more efficiently than tropical forests. At the same time the total area along our coasts, in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres where the sea is sufficiently shallow to allow sunlight to penetrate and sustain marine vegetation, is roughly the same as all of the world’s tropical forests combined, about the size of Europe or the United States. Unlike plants and trees on land, planting seaweed needs no fertilizer or soil. Seaweed species, such as kelp, are among the world’s fastest growing plants, delivering rapid rates of photosynthesis. They can grow many meters in just a few months. In theory, spores can be sprayed under water and there will be a seaweed forest within a year. When it is grown it can sustain about 100 grams of fish per square meter of forest because of the nutrients it contains and the habitat it creates, according to scientific studies. If we take an area of 5,000 square kilometers, which represents just 0.03 percent of our global target coastal zone with shallow water, kelp forests can support 500,000 tons of fish. All other benefits follow from there, including the ability of seaweed forests to reduce coastal erosion, a service that could become increasingly crucial if we don’t stop rising sea levels soon. Growing seaweed forests, or restoring ones that have disappeared, is a viable method of helping nature help itself to mitigate climate change. A crucial task to restore our seaweed forests is data. We do not yet have a complete survey of the world’s seaweed and kelp forests, nor exact information on how much of them and how fast they have disappeared. This is key to know how and where to act with most urgency. With new technologies for monitoring the earth’s surface this should not be impossible. What we do know is that industrial and agricultural waste discharged on our coasts has helped destroy seaweed forests in many coastal regions. Warming seas, sudden extreme water temperature changes and overfishing have also played big parts. With greater scientific knowledge some of this may be mitigated. There are thousands of seaweed species in the world and they grow in different water temperatures. Different approaches can be used, from seeding on stones and artificial structures, to restore seaweed forests and the huge ecological benefits they bring. Our ocean accounts for nearly two thirds of the world’s carbon sinks and seaweed forests, along with sea grass and mangroves, are all key ecosystems in that process. They all need urgent attention. Objectives Four teams servicing seaforesters world wide Seaforestation Initiate and participate in projects Research and Development Finance Fund projects globally Novel financing mechanisms Data Collect, monitor and process data Shared knowledge hub Communication Communicator and educator Events and networking .team-player {height: 100%;}#team .row { margin-bottom:30px; }.team-player >.card {height: calc(100% - 10px); padding-top:10px;padding-bottom:10px;}.advisor-card >.card { padding-top:10px;}.project-card >.card { min-height: 260px; padding-top:10px; padding-bottom:10px;}.project-card >.card>.card-title { margin-left: 0.25rem; margin-right: 0.25rem; } .card > .col-md-6:first-child { flex-basis: auto !important; margin-bottom:10px; } Here is our team PÅL BAKKEN Pål founded SeaForester in 2017, after concluding that something fundamental needed to be done to save the ocean from environmental degradation following a long career as a seafood and seaweed entrepreneur. Read More AXEL BUGGE Axel joined SeaForester in 2019 as co-founder, focusing on communication of the initiative, after a long career as a foreign correspondent for the Reuters news agency. Read More MATHIAS KUTZNER Mathias Kutzner is a Tech-Entrepreneur, Mentor and Angel Investor. For the past 20+ years he founded and co-founded several digital startups ... Read More INÊS LOURO Inês, a marine biologist, is scientific coordinator at SeaForester, having worked full-time on the initiative since 2018. Read More JAN VERBEEK Jan was employed by the Seaforest Cascais project in 2019, where he is leading the development and testing of methods for cultivation and restoration of kelp and other seaweed forests along the municipality’s coastline. Read More Advisors Isabel Sousa Pinto Isabel Sousa Pinto is the Group Leader of the Coastal Biodiversity Lab at CIIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre for Marine and Environmental Research. Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Porto. Member of the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP) on the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Ester Serrão Ester Serrão is full Professor at the University of Algarve and coordinator of a research team at CCMAR (Centro de Ciências do Mar do Algarve) working on Biogeography, Evolution and Conservation of Marine Biodiversity at CCMAR. Her team studies how marine populations persist, disperse and evolve in response to habitat and climatic changes. She has developed several initiatives for conservation of biodiversity including in the USA the Pew Marine Fellow award for Marine Conservation and several national and international research projects. She has trained and provided first research opportunities to many students and young researchers. She has over 200 indexed scientific papers. Hartvig Christie Hartvig Christie, Senior scientist at Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA). He has more than 35 years’ experience with ecological studies of benthic coastal ecosystems, mainly kelp forests and other seaweed and seagrass systems. Long time near shore field work experience (included diving) as well as experience with field experiments and experiments in mesocosms and aquaria. Larger projects include; Natural processes as well as effects of pollutions; Methods for and surveys of monitoring; Structure and stability of kelp forest systems vs. sea urchin grazed systems; Biodiversity and food chain studies in kelp forest and sea grass systems; Disappearance and regrowth of kelps; Effects of eutrophication on macroalgae systems; Ecological effects of artificial reefs and other types of habitat restorations; Ecological impact of kelp harvest and kelp cultivation. Experienced in different types of communication of scientific topics: More than 70 papers published in international journals; More than 140 applied scientific reports in Norwegian or English; More than 30 contributions at international conferences; A high number of contributions on national meetings, in newspapers or popular magazines, in radio, and on TV. Yngvar Olsen Yngvar Olsen is full Professor at Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) from 1995 with 30 years of experience in the research field of marine ecology and marine aquaculture, including farming and biochemistry of marine macroalgae. He has published >160 papers in international per-reviewed journals and educated 18 PhD students. He was senior scientist in SINTEF Aquaculture (1986-95) and later Director of the Strategic Marine Focus Area at NTNU (2006-13). Beside he has been a member of the Board of Directors/Vice President of World Aquaculture Society (2002-06), a member in the International Advisory Board of GEOMAR (2004-12); ERC panel 9 (2013-present), member of MARINFORSK Board in the Norwegian Research Council (2014-present), participant in SAPEA Working Group on Food from the Oceans (2017). He has been Principal Advisor in FAO-project Offshore Mariculture and a Founder of the European Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Platform (EATiP). David Carlisle David Carlisle is an angle investor and the founder of a market-leading aviation fuel efficiency software and consultancy company, ETS Aviation Ltd. The business was acquired by the Boeing Company in 2014.Mr. Carlisle is a veteran of the aviation industry with more than 20 years as a senior pilot and senior manager. He was with NetJets in Lisbon for more than eight years during its transition into Europe’s largest business aviation operator.He believes passionately that ecologically based enterprises and non-profit environmental projects need to become mainstream, in order to speed up the change needed for our planet’s sustainable future. To do this capitalism needs to shift towards growth with an ecological dimension Francisco Saraiva Gomes Francisco is an executive specialized in the aquaculture industry. Prior to founding Pontos Aqua, Francisco led the Aqua Business Unit for Novus International in becoming a leading global provider of sustainable health and nutrition solutions for the aquaculture supply chain across all major species and markets. Throughout his career, Francisco has accumulated a unique and generalist executive experience in the aquaculture industry. Francisco’s career span trough a wide variety of operational roles, including the shrimp industry in Madagascar, several consulting projects throughout Africa, Latin America and Europe, management and business development for two premier global engineering firms, operational management in clam and oyster production in southern Europe and aquaculture expert for the European Economic and Social Committee. Francisco was also Director of the Board of the World Aquaculture Society. Francisco received his doctoral degree from Auburn University, USA in Aquaculture, his undergraduate degree in Marine Biology from Lisbon University, Portugal, and Executive Education in Leadership & Management in Harvard Business School. Projects Seaforest Portugal Testing efficient methods for the recovery of kelp populations Read More Seaforest Cascais Assessing the potential for seaforestation in Cascais Read More Green Gravel Restoring blue forests with green gravel: a novel solution to ‘future-proof’ kelp forests Read More Blue Front Yard Valuing seaweed forests and developing guidelines for municipal seaforestation projects Read More Restoring Saccorhiza polyschides kelp forests in Cascais A community project to restore the lost seaweed forests of Cascais and empower the local community Read More Kelp Forest Restoration in Norway Strategy document on kelp restoration in Norway with focus on sea urchin removal Read More Other Relevant Projects Cultivating Resilient Marine Forests Read More Operation Crayweed, Australia Read More Giant kelp restoration in Baja California, Mexico Read More Orange County Kelp Forest Ecosystem Restoration Project Read More Restoring Tasmania’s disappearing giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests Read More What We Do SeaForester aims to reverse the alarming disappearance of seaweed forests in the world in order to safeguard the oceans’ vital role of carbon sequestration, maintaining fish stocks and securing the planet’s wellbeing.To do that, SeaForester initiates, manages and encourages seaweed reforestation projects worldwide. Devastating environmental loss of seaweed is unfolding without any significant public awareness. To address that void, SeaForester aims to communicate and educate the public, as well as the scientific, political and business communities, of the far-reaching benefits of seaweed.Its mission is simply to restore the forgotten forests in our ocean.SeaForester is also taking the first steps to collect, monitor and process data on seaweed globally in order to ensure efficient information-sharing and the rapid adoption and launch of seaforestation around the world.Local coastal communities on all continents are our targets. Green Gravel Green Gravel is one of the most promising techniques for kelp forest restoration in the world, holding out the possibility of the adoption of projects on much larger scales. After careful consideration and our involvement in a Green Gravel project in Australia, SeaForester has decided to back this approach as its main tool for seaweed restoration and is involved in promoting it through a global group of scientists and projects (www.greengravel.org).The method, which has been tested in a number of places including Norway, Australia, California and by us in Portugal, involves seeding small rocks with kelp spores in the laboratory and then planting them in the ocean. When the young kelps on the rocks are dropped into the ocean from a boat, they attach to the underlying reef on the seafloor. This technique is cheap, simple, and does not require scuba diving, highly trained field workers, or engineered structures. The ease of scattering the gravel from a boat means the process can be scaled up to treat large areas.Green gravel also represents an exciting avenue to ‘future proof’ restoration efforts. By seeding gravel with resilient species or assemblages, we may be able to enhance the resilience of kelp forests to future disturbance or climate change. News Lisbon, June 8, 2021 PRESS RELEASE - Seaweed experts launch global group to restore kelp forests with new technique Email Us Reach out if you would like to be part of this initiative: email [email protected] × Seaforest Portugal The project tests efficient planting methods for the population recovery of four native kelp species along the Portuguese coastline in order to improve ecosystem functions and conserving threatened endemic genetic diversity. Scientific surveys and citizen science actions for mapping marine seaweed forests are developed to enhance the data availability of their distribution across continental Portugal and its archipelagos. This information is key to establish the current status of seaweed resources in Portugal and inform current and future conservation and restoration efforts. Seaforest Cascais In collaboration with the Câmara Municipal de Cascais, we are assessing the potential to restore seaweed forests along the coastline of Cascais. Through a combination of scientific research, citizen science and community engagement, we envision that this initial feasibility project will provide the first step towards enhancing the health and value of Cascais’ blue front yard. The project was developed to 1) assess the historic and current status of seaweed populations, 2) identify potential environmental stressors that inhibit the natural recovery of seaweeds, 3) test best seeding techniques for endemic seaweeds and 4) develop a plan for future seaforestation activities in Cascais. Green Gravel SeaForester is supporting a seaweed restoration project on the western coast of Australia, where forests have been hit by marine heatwaves and algal turfs. The overall aim of this project is to overcome key challenges in kelp forest restoration by progressing the novel ‘green gravel’ technique from concept to application and providing scalable and practical solutions to ‘future-proof’ kelp forests. This project will use large-scale field and mesocosm experiments, cutting edge genomics and community engagement. Specifically, the objectives are to conduct the first in situ and “at scale” kelp restoration using green gravel across replicate coastlines and species where kelp has been lost, develop cost-effective and practical green gravel techniques that make kelp restoration achievable for diverse user-groups ”future proof” kelp restoration initiatives by testing resilience of green gravel seeded with different genotype and species mixes and develop a green gravel implementation model applicable from local to global scales through a global green gravel action group, communication and case studies. Blue Front Yard The “Blue Front Yard” project was developed in collaboration with WWF. The main mission of this project is to develop a set of science and economy-based strategies and tools to encourage municipalities to invest in, and sustainably manage, their own blue front yard. The project develops an approach to provide coastal municipalities with reliable, scientifically-sound estimates of seaweed ecosystem services and their monetary value to industry and local communities, focussing on three main services – climate regulation, nutrient cycling, and fish production. A strategy document for the practical implementation of seaforestation projects is created to guide local authorities in the planning and executing of restoration initiatives. We also explore strategies for stakeholder involvement and sustainable financing of restoration projects. Restoring Saccorhiza polyschides Forests in Cascais This community project was developed in partnership with Mossy Earth. The dive centre of the Club Naval de Cascais (CNC) has been identified as the main community partner with whom SeaForester collaborates in all aspects of planning and execution of activities. The project involves carrying out a trial to test the effectiveness of the “spore bag” seeding technique to contribute to the re-establishment of Saccorhiza polyschides along the southern coast of Cascais. The area of subtidal reef that is being restored is located in one of CNC’s frequently visited local dive sites. It is envisioned that CNC and its group of local divers will carry forward the work as a community-led initiative, leading to further restoration actions in the future and long-term management. Kelp Forest Restoration in Norway To reduce the number of sea urchins in northern Norway and aid kelp forest recovery, we aim to communicate the value of kelp forests and the societal and ecological benefit of initiating kelp restoration activities through the creation of a kelp restoration strategy document. The purpose of the document is to provide information to local authorities and practitioners on how to plan and execute restoration actions to recover kelp forests from urchin barrens. We also aim to produce tailormade fact sheets to key stakeholder groups to communicate the most important conclusions and recommendations put forward in the strategy document. We envision that our work will contribute to increasing public awareness and engagement, incentivize investment, and help government to implement environmentally and economically sustainable solutions for the recovery of kelp forest ecosystems and their services. Cultivating Resilient Marine Forests Kelp-forest habitats are in decline along New Zealand’s coastlines, echoing global patterns of loss. A key symptom of kelp-forest decline is a collapse of valuable coastal fisheries that are reliant on the services that they provide. In New Zealand this impact is being felt within the two most lucrative inshore fisheries, rock lobster (~$800 million p.a.) and paua (~$160 million p.a.). We will develop the infrastructure and methodology to genetically select and reseed climate change resilient strains of Macrocystis pyrifera into areas where kelp-forests have been lost or are threatened by warming. This project will safeguard and stimulate fisheries value in a changing ocean and deliver economic and cultural benefits to the communities that rely on them. It will also initiate research around a nascent seaweed aquaculture industry in New Zealand which shows significant economic potential, but is currently hindered by a lack of knowledge regarding culturing practices. This project brings together national and international scientific experts, commercial fishing representatives from New Zealand’s rock lobster and paua industries and members of Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu’s customary fisheries management team to rebuild and buffer these valuable ecosystems against climate change related stressors. The research team will leverage international expertise and apply it in a New Zealand context to achieve success. They will undertake marine reforestation which complements terrestrial restoration efforts to produce an example of true ecosystem-based management Operation Crayweed, Australia After dense forests of Crayweed (Phyllospora comosa) disappeared from the Sydney coastline a group of researchers from the Sydney Institute of Marine Science developed a project in order to restore the lost seaweed forests as well as to restore the associated community.The successful method implemented by the team was the transplantation of fertile adults from existing healthy populations and attachment to deforested rocks using a biodegradable mesh drilled into the ocean floor.To know more about this project please check their website at http://www.operationcrayweed.com Giant kelp restoration in Baja California, Mexico In 2017 a group of researchers decided to initiate a project for the restoration of the giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) in Baja California Seaweed populations disappeared there after the EL Niño in 2014/15 and there were heatwave events of more than 250 per year. After this no natural regrowth resumed and this loss of complexity led to the creation of urchin barrens.The group decided to develop a feasible method, with low production costs and easy to replicate, in line with a eco-friendly framework and a method able to use materials readily available in Mexico. The structure created was one similar to a table with juvenile individuals attached and aligned with the currents to promote transportation of spores to nearby rocky reefs. One week after deployment, the juveniles were growing and after four months the first recruits were detected in the modules.If you want to know more about this project, please see the group’s website at: https://www.blueforest.mx Orange County Kelp Forest Ecosystem Restoration Project Restoring kelp forest ecosystem by involving the community to create stewards for our coastGiant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests are known as the rainforests of the sea. They are resilient but after 40 years of piling on stressors, the ecosystem collapsed in the 1980’s. By 2000 the kelp forests of Southern California had decreased by 80%. This vital habitat helps feed families and is relied upon by more than 800 species. Get Inspired’s marine biologist, Nancy Caruso, began a community-based restoration program in 2002 to restore the kelp forests to the 22 miles of coast in Orange County, California. She taught more than 5,000 students to grow kelp in their classrooms and trained 250 volunteer divers to do the restoration work. By 2009, there was more kelp than had been in Orange County in 25 years. Get Inspired is now focused on restoring green abalone (Haliotis fulgens), white seabass (Atractoscion nobilis), and pismo clams (Tivela strultorum) using the same model of students culturing the organisms and volunteers doing the field work. A new threat has invaded our kelp forests, Sargassum horneri. We are now looking at ways to eradicate this species to rebalance our kelp forest community.For more information about this inspiring work, please visit www.getinspiredinc.org Restoring Tasmania’s disappearing giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests Investigating the potential of using warm-tolerant genotypes for the restoration of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests in Tasmania, Australia.Dense giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests were previously an iconic feature of the Tasmanian coast, but the loss of ~95% of these giant kelp forests across wide regions of Tasmania has seen them nationally listed as an endangered marine community. The collapse of giant kelp forests is associated with ocean warming stemming from increased influence of warm East Australian Current water in eastern and southern Tasmania. Nonetheless, scattered healthy giant kelp persist across the historical range, indicating the potential existence of warm-tolerant populations/individuals. This project aims to identify and cultivate warm-tolerant giant kelp from these remnant patches, and then use these as the foundation for restoration of giant kelp in Tasmania. The team: Dr Cayne Layton, Dr Masayuki Tatsumi, Assoc Prof Jeff Wright, Prof Craig Johnson. Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaFor more information about this project, please visit www.imas.utas.edu.au/kelprestoration Previous Next × Learn more at https://how.studio Previous Next × PÅL BAKKEN Pål was born on the Norwegian island of Frøya, which sits on the doorstep of the Atlantic Ocean. In his youth he spent his summers on the island fishing and harvesting wild seaweed for his father’s seaweed factory. He knows the sea’s abundance well. After finishing a degree in business in the United States, Pål started what became the first Norwegian seafood company in Japan, which went on to become the market leader for fresh Atlantic salmon in the country. He sold the company seven years later and continued in the seafood business for 5 years in Singapore. Pål learned about seaweed cultivation in Asia and a few years later, after he moved to another country facing the Atlantic – Portugal – he turned to seaweed again and founded Seaweed Energy Solutions. SES is a pioneer in seaweed cultivation in Europe with patented seaweed cultivation technology and extensive knowhow across the seaweed value chain. Now, he wants to put life back in the sea and is convinced that must be done by reintroducing marine forests where they have disappeared. He holds a BSc in Finance & Marketing from the University of Oregon. AXEL BUGGE Axel has been posted in Denmark, the U.K., Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Portugal and his native Norway as a correspondent. Most recently he was head of Reuters in Portugal. His consciousness about the environment has developed through covering innumerable natural disasters, from the destruction of the Amazon forest in Brazil to the wildfires that devastated central Portugal in 2017. He has been published widely as a journalist in leading media, such as the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Times and the Guardian. He holds a Bsc/Econ in International Politics and a MA in International Journalism from City University, London. In his spare time he writes, having co-authored two crime novels and a tale about modern-day slavery in the Amazon. MATHIAS KUTZNER Mathias Kutzner is a Tech-Entrepreneur, Mentor and Angel Investor. For the past 20+ years he founded and co-founded several digital startups, supported founders and corporate innovation hubs, and invested in more than a dozen startups, lately focusing on resource and energy efficiency as well as sustainable product and services.Mathias studied Computer Science as well as some Chemistry and Aerospace Engineering in Berlin, Germany. INÊS LOURO Inês is a marine biologist with a MSc in Marine Biology from the University of Aveiro (Portugal). She has participated in projects concerning mollusks ecotoxicology and fish ecology in the Aveiro estuary. Always interested in the conservation of marine ecosystems, she later studied the pelagic fish populations in the Mira beach (Coimbra) and also the impacts of the catch rejections from an artisanal type of fishery (Arte Xávega) in the same location. Since February 2018 she has been working full time on the SeaForester initiative, primarily with data handling and research. JAN VERBEEK Jan is a marine biologist and scientific diver with an MSc in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation attained under the EMBC+ programme. During his time in the United Kingdom, Jan worked for the Welsh environment agency as a scientific diver, monitoring marine protected areas, as well as a member of the LIFE Natura 2000 Programme, developing conservation management plans for EU protected habitats and species. As an environmental data and reporting officer, he contributed to reporting obligations to the European Commission related to the Water Framework Directive. Jan became increasingly involved in marine habitat restoration initiatives in Portugal such as the restoration of seagrasses and soft corals in the Arrábida marine park. Previous Next © , made with favorite by SeaForester.