The race to mine the deep seabed has begun. But as international attention turns to this emerging industry, a critical question remains largely unasked: What irreplaceable cultural treasures might we destroy in the process?

Threats to Our Ocean Heritage: Deep Sea Mining is the first peer-reviewed book to explore how DSM intersects with underwater heritage, policy, and community rights, offering crucial insight as international attention turns to the seabed.

What Sets This Work Apart

Truly Interdisciplinary Approach: Archaeologists, ecologists, Indigenous leaders and legal experts come together to explore what’s truly at stake – not just ecologically, but culturally.

Indigenous Voices Included: The book features powerful case studies from New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, including Indigenous testimonies published in full.

Practical Solutions: The work offers practical tools for integrating cultural heritage into environmental impact assessments.

Vivid Visuals: Photographs and graphics reveal the hidden world of the deep sea and what is at stake.

Key Features:

• Examines the cultural risks of DSM in the context of the BBNJ Treaty and International Seabed Authority
• Features case studies from New Zealand and the Pacific Islands
• Includes Indigenous testimonies published in full
• Provides tools for integrating cultural heritage into environmental impact assessments
• Contains vivid visuals that reveal the hidden world of the deep sea

Part of an Important Trilogy

Threats to Our Ocean Heritage: Deep Sea Mining is the third component of a trilogy of books initiated by The Ocean Foundation, supported by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, and published by Springer that focus on the risks to the ocean’s natural and cultural heritage, noting that the zones at risk should extend to include seas, lakes and other aquatic places.

Combined, the volumes Threats to Our Ocean Heritage: Potentially Polluting Wrecks, Bottom Trawling, and Threats to Our Ocean Heritage: Deep Sea Mining are raising international awareness of the interaction of the physical, biological, and chemical risks to heritage in the ocean. Inadequate operating standards and legal safeguards are also a factor and increase the overall risk. All aspects of the associated risks are well covered and discussed in the three volumes and especially here for deep sea mining (DSM).

The post New Release: Threats to Our Ocean Heritage – Deep Sea Mining appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

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Steadfast, serene, immovable, the same
Year after year, through all the silent night

-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Lighthouses have their own enduring attraction. For those who come from the sea, it is a beacon of safe passage to port, a connection to those on land who wait. For those who are on land, it is inspiration, comfort, and a connection to the ocean in all its moods.

National Lighthouse Day is celebrated on August 7th. This weekend in Maine, it is Open Lighthouse Day—a day to visit many of the 65+ standing lighthouses in the state. There are more than twenty lighthouses within a dozen miles of me as I write.

I am lucky to live on an island that is home to three lighthouses. Each of them is a key part of navigating the waters of the Kennebec River for the 11 miles from the Atlantic Ocean up to the city of Bath. Although the Coast Guard has automated the light functions and there are no longer lighthouse keepers here, the lighthouses themselves are privately owned. Each of them has its own story. Each of them is still here because of a dedicated group of volunteers willing to be part of a “Friends of” group or a national society or association dedicated to lighthouses.

Doubling Point Lighthouse’s flashing light is a particularly comforting sight during the long nights of late fall and winter. Established on the Kennebec River in 1899, it was sited to warn mariners of two hazardous, double-bend turns as they come down the river to the sea. The Friends of Doubling Point became the stewards of the lighthouse and its property in 1998. Since the unforeseen collapse of the walkway to the Light in the fall of 2023, the property has been off-limits to visitors while the Friends have worked to raise enough money to rebuild the walkway. It is nice to report that while the Light remains closed to visitors, construction on the walkway has just begun!

The Doubling Point Range Lights (aka the Kennebec Range Lights) are key to navigating those tricky double bend turns when coming up the river from the Atlantic Ocean. Built in 1898 after Congress provided $17,000 three years earlier to light the river, the two white octagonal wooden towers adorned with a red roof are of similar design.

The lights are positioned at the end of a long, straight section of the river. One tower is located near the water, and the other is 235 yards further inland and is slightly elevated. As long as mariners keep the two lights positioned one above the other as they steer their vessel, they are certain to be in the center of the channel. For a vessel coming upstream near the Range Lights, the river makes a 90° turn to the west, and then after a half mile another 90° to resume its course north – hence the name Doubling Point.

Squirrel Point Lighthouse sits on the southwest corner of Arrowsic Island. In 1895, then-President Grover Cleveland appropriated $4,650 to commission the Squirrel Point site and construct the light tower, keeper’s dwelling, and barn. The Citizens for Squirrel Point have been designated as its stewards by the US Coast Guard. In August, they celebrated the installation of a new metal bridge that is higher and better suited to withstanding the rising sea level and changing storm patterns that had devastated the old wooden bridge. Like their counterparts who serve as stewards of other lighthouses, the group has returned to addressing the priority needs of the lighthouse tower and its supporting buildings.

Lighthouses are by definition built in places that are vulnerable to wind, rain, storm surge, and other events. Rising sea levels and increasingly intense storms have only made the challenge of maintaining these historic structures that much greater. As a historical, cultural, and maritime heritage, their upkeep means so much more than the bottom line—and our global lighthouse treasures are woefully underfunded.

I am looking forward to meeting with lighthouse stewards and advocates from around the world in October. It is always nice to connect my local experience with the expertise of others and to share a common goal: To protect the lighthouses and other aids to navigation that, even in this age of satellites, GPS, and other technology, are the reliable beacons that ensure that those at sea can make their way to port.

The post The Lighthouses of Maine appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

This summer has been different. This summer, I have been close to seals and owls, osprey and porpoise—and all the life below unseen. This summer, I went kayaking for the first time in a decade or more. This summer, I camped on an island and watched the moon rise over my tent as I listened to the waves lapping on the shore. This summer, I accepted that invitation to join friends on a boat ride to dinner a few towns over and home again in a glowing sunset. This summer I got to take my grandson on his first boat ride and to see his first lobster up close and personal as it came out of a trap.  He’s not quite ready for the nutcracker and lemon butter approach to lobster, but he seemed pretty happy to be out there with us. I hope we get to do it again next year.

All of these adventures reminded me of why I do what I do.

Summer is not over, of course, and the summer weather will linger. The hurricane season is ramping up, and so too are the busy months of fall. As we look ahead to restoring the ocean’s abundance and growing the regenerative blue economy, I will also reflect on the spring and summer. Like other members of The Ocean Foundation team, we’ll be picking up the threads of various meetings and weaving them into a work plan, we will be hopeful that the hurricane season does not prove to be deadly after the horrific storms we’ve already seen this year, and we will be grateful to all of the members of our community who pitch in—for us, for their communities, and for the future.

The post Getting in Rhythm with Summer appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

These wrecks are often located near vulnerable coastal populations, marine protected areas, important fishing grounds, and even World Heritage sites, making the need for action even more urgent.

Supported by Lloyd’s Register Foundation, Project Tangaroa was established by Waves Group and The Ocean Foundation to bring together global experts in developing international standards and protocols for managing these potentially polluting wrecks (PPWs).

The newly published report provides in-depth analysis and expert insight that underpins the Malta Manifesto, released in June 2025. It marks a significant step forward in shaping international cooperation to address this global threat, with contributions from marine scientists, maritime archaeologists, salvage professionals, and other specialists.

The post New Report: Tackling the Global Risk of Polluting Shipwrecks appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

At those meetings, we discuss restoring abundance, ensuring the ocean continues to generate oxygen and store excess carbon emissions—all the services affected by human activities.  As important, the ocean also provides boundless opportunities for recreation and enjoyment—as the millions who head to the seashore for vacations can attest.

Too often, I fail to take advantage of the opportunities available to me, living as I do along the coast. Last summer, I had a wonderful day trip where I got to visit some very special islands and even climb to the top of the historic Seguin lighthouse. This summer’s adventures included a day trip to Monhegan. For fair-weather visitors, Monhegan is for hiking, touring the historic buildings on Lighthouse Hill, browsing the galleries, and eating fresh seafood or enjoying the local beer. It is a place that is short on water and long on charm and history. Twelve miles off the coast of Maine, it has been inhabited by humans for over 400 years. The year-round population is under 100 people, but in the summer, thousands make the trek by boat.

Puffins flew across the bow as we chugged towards the island of Monhegan for the day. The cries of cormorants, gulls, and other seabirds greeted us as we pulled into port. So did the pickups from the island’s inns, ready to take the luggage from the overnight guests as we walked off the boat and onto the island on a bright sunny day.

I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t mention that the Monhegan lobster fishery is a community resource, collectively managed and collectively harvested, with more recent oversight by Maine’s Department of Marine Resources. For almost a century, Monhegan’s lobstering families have put their traps in the water on Trap Day (now in October) and pulled them ashore about six or so months later. They were among the first to return undersized lobsters to the sea to grow some more. And they lobster through the winter months when higher prices can make withstanding the weather worth it. 

The crossing back to Boothbay Harbor came with its own charms: A knowledgeable captain, a shark sighting, more puffins, and a few porpoises. We shared our space with others. We met the women of a mainland fishing family returning from their day out, hearing about catching bluefin tuna and waving to their families as they ushered us in. Two young boys stood in the bow with a great deal more confidence and joy than on their first-ever ride that morning, when their anxious hands gripped the railing as they got used to the rolling waves. As the efficient crew tied the boat to the pier and we lined up to thank the captain in turn as we disembarked, one of the boys looked up to her and said, “Riding on the ocean was great. Thanks.”

Sometimes, the threats to the ocean and the life within seem overwhelming when we’re up to our necks in the whats, the ifs, and the what ifs. Those times are perhaps when we need to remember the sense of gratitude that comes from a great day on the sea and the power of community to restore. I like to think I’m grateful for The Ocean Foundation’s community every day—and it is also true that I may not thank you all enough for the support you offer.

So, thank you. And may you get your time by the water, on the water, or in the water as you please.

The post Reconnecting with the Sea appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

The Blue Paper, The Future of the Workforce in a Sustainable Ocean Economy, commissioned by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy (Ocean Panel) provides a glimpse of what a sustainable ocean economy may look like for people over the next 25 years. It draws from the best available data and literature, and in-depth expert consultation, to examine the future of employment within a range of ocean sectors.

The paper provides advice on how different stakeholders can work towards the vision of a sustainable ocean economy. But to achieve this potential, a just transition that incorporates inclusion and fairness is essential. The authors identify the critical challenges that need to be surmounted, including addressing data limitations, skills gaps, insufficient training and educational resources (especially in developing nations), regional disparities in infrastructure, and inadequate funding and institutional capacity.

The post Ocean Panel’s New Blue Paper appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

In various forms, essays and podcasts, I have suggested reciprocity as a concept for consideration as a value on which to build our response to the environmental degradation of the terrestrial and ocean systems on which we depend for survival. In the present time of uncertainty, it seems useful to address the concept again.

Reciprocity is a state of mutual exchange, the categorization of an action by its motivation and consequence in relationship to another.  To explain, I have asked these questions:

What if we accepted the power of reciprocity as a standard of behavior at all levels, in all areas of exchange, with Nature? What if we acknowledged that the land and sea provide us value, not for the taking and exhausting as an entitlement, but as the giving of a gift, the making of a loan, with a consequent obligation that we give back that value through complementary behavior, equitable patterns of consumption, and forms of exchange that sustain Nature through accepted future obligation? What if we accept such a reciprocal relationship and system of connection with Nature as our obligation, our contribution, to ourselves, our children, and the public good?

Let me offer three illustrative statements, with examples of what I mean.

First: By not taking, we are giving back. If we choose to forego or reduce our consumption of fossil fuels or plastic bags or tuna, we are leaving that value for others, a collective choice that taken to scale will extend or conserve that resource at a sustainable level.

Second: By paying a fair price for what we need and use, we are giving back. If we pay for our consumption at a level of true cost – withdraw subsidies for fossil fuels, reinvest such underwriting in clean technology, price water as the most valuable commodity on earth, include insurance payment for disaster response and reparation from environmental destruction as part of regulatory requirement and permit fees, evaluate government investment projects based on a neutral or positive comparison of public benefit versus private profit, increase taxes and royalties to establish financial disincentives for polluting industries,  allocate penalties to support of non-polluting alternatives, and many other financial calculations and market applications based on the value added by environmental protection and sustainability outcomes.

Third: By acting and applying these values, we are giving back. Modify personal, family, and community behaviors in every way possible to affirm these values through action.  Become a “sustainability” citizen, A Citizen of the Ocean. Set an example. Sign petitions. Vote. Demonstrate when necessary. Communicate your commitment at every level, and hold others accountable in your daily purchases, your employment, your investments, civic organizations of which you are a member, schools that you attend or have attended, churches that you belong to, recreational activities that you enjoy, and politicians that you support. Communicate. Advocate by example. And amplify your voice by joining other exemplars into a movement of giving back.

Now, of course, I can easily anticipate the reaction to these ideas today: as politically naïve, impractical and impossible, too liberal, too radical, too whatever – all the predictable response by those who don’t care, whose personal benefit is threatened, or who are afraid of any change. But in fact, it is their behavior that exemplifies these accusations: the simplistic political recalcitrance that sustains the status quo, the impracticality, indeed impossibility, of sustaining our way of life at present levels of consumption, the radical inflexibility and fearfulness that have brought governance to a standstill. What I am describing here actually is a democratic process and expression of popular will based not on narrow ideology and vested interest but on our understanding of the consequences for us all if we fail to act.

Reciprocity makes everyone a winner, everyone a builder, everyone a giver. It is a simple framework that allows us to understand another way of being, how to support, individually and collectively, a shift from our present way that is making us all losers, all destroyers, and all takers until we have nothing left. Is that really what we want for the land, for the ocean, for ourselves and our future?

Reciprocity. It seems so clear. Think what the land gives us. Think what the ocean gives us. Are we not obligated to respond? Let’s start giving back.

The post World Ocean Radio Reflections – An Ocean Of Gratitude appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

As I write this, I am struck by the convergence of conversations I’ve had this week. From the Blue Economy Finance Forum in Monaco to the UBS Nature Finance Conference in London, and finally at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference in Nice, the message has been remarkably consistent across continents and cultures. The smart money is moving toward the sustainable blue economy. It is not driven by sentiment—it is driven by returns.

World Ocean Day on June 8th marked the start of what became an intense week of discussions on blue economy finance. From the questions and comments during and after my four speaking opportunities across three major conferences, one thing has become crystal clear. The financial community is waking up to the fundamental truth that environmental scientists have known for decades: the health of our ocean directly correlates with the health of corporate balance sheets.

It’s About Value, Not Values

The blue economy—the sustainable subset of ocean-related economic activities—represents one of the most compelling investment opportunities of our time. Not because of ideology, but because of cold, hard financial data. While the broader $2.5 trillion ocean economy includes everything from offshore oil to cruise ships, the sustainable blue economy is projected to reach $3.2 trillion by 2030, consistently outperforming both the traditional ocean economy and broader market indices.

This reality hit home during our launch of the Malta Manifesto on Potentially Polluting Wrecks. What began as an environmental initiative quickly revealed itself as a massive financial opportunity. The thousands of wrecks littering our ocean floors aren’t just ecological hazards—they’re material risks to marine industries, coastal tourism, and insurance markets. Companies that proactively address these risks are positioning themselves for competitive advantages that their less observant peers have yet to recognize.

The Blue Economy’s Financial Reality

Blue economy investing isn’t just about saving whales—it’s about capturing the sustainable portion of ocean commerce that’s dramatically outperforming traditional ocean industries. The numbers don’t lie. Companies with strong marine stewardship practices consistently outperform their peers.

In Monaco, in Nice, and in London, conversations with people from more than thirty countries across six continents reinforced this point. Why would any serious investor want less material data about any risks, much less ocean-related risks? The effects of climate change, overfishing, pollution, and regulatory changes pose significant financial challenges for unprepared companies. Conversely, businesses that proactively address these challenges through sustainable blue economy practices are positioning themselves for sustained competitive advantages.

At the UBS Nature Finance Conference (London), portfolio managers shared data showing consistent outperformance from companies with strong ocean stewardship practices. This isn’t correlation—it’s causation driven by operational advantages, regulatory positioning, and brand premiums that flow directly to shareholder returns.

Material Ocean Risks That Impact Your Portfolio

The financial implications of ocean-related risks are both immediate and significant. Take the shipping industry, where new maritime regulations can compel companies to spend millions on retrofits and operational changes overnight. During the Blue Economy Finance Forum, we heard case studies of shipping companies that had anticipated these changes versus those caught flat-footed—the performance differential was stark and measurable.

Seafood companies confront even harsher realities as overfished stocks directly squeeze their supply chains and diminish pricing power. Meanwhile, sea-level rise isn’t a distant threat—it’s already affecting coastal real estate values and infrastructure investments today. The insurance executives I spoke with in Nice were unanimous: ocean-related risks are repricing entire market sectors.

The social dynamics are equally material to business performance. Shipping and fishing companies with poor labor practices are increasingly facing consumer boycotts and regulatory scrutiny, both of which directly impact revenue. Coastal businesses have learned that they cannot operate effectively without support from the local community since operational licenses and market access depend on these relationships. The transparency revolution in supply chains has created premium pricing opportunities for companies that can trace their seafood products, while those that cannot face margin compression.

Strong governance translates directly into risk management advantages in the complex world of ocean business. Well-governed companies navigate the maze of international maritime laws more effectively, avoiding costly violations that regularly sink their competitors’ quarterly results. They also invest strategically in marine technology innovation, positioning themselves ahead of regulatory curves and capturing first-mover advantages in emerging markets.

The Investment Opportunity

Ocean-centric companies with strong environmental and social practices aren’t just doing good—they’re delivering superior risk-adjusted returns through measurable operational advantages. Advanced monitoring systems are cutting fuel costs and optimizing shipping routes, while sustainable fishing practices ensure long-term supply security that their competitors lack.

The premium pricing story is particularly compelling. Consumers consistently pay more for certified sustainable seafood, and companies with clean ocean reputations command brand premiums that flow directly to the bottom line. These aren’t feel-good marketing campaigns—they’re revenue drivers with measurable impact on profit margins.

Perhaps most importantly, businesses that stay ahead of environmental regulations avoid the costly scrambles that devastate their competitors when new rules inevitably arrive. They’re also capturing first-mover advantages in rapidly growing markets, such as offshore renewable energy and aquaculture automation, positioning themselves as innovation leaders rather than regulatory followers.

The Malta Manifesto discussions revealed another dimension: companies that address legacy environmental liabilities, such as potentially polluting wrecks, aren’t just managing risk—they’re creating new revenue streams through remediation technologies and services that will define the next decade of ocean business.

Real Returns from Blue Investments

The data is compelling: maritime companies with strong environmental practices show 15% better stock performance over five-year periods. Sustainable seafood companies trade at premium valuations. Offshore renewable energy investments are delivering double-digit returns.

This isn’t theory—it’s measurable financial outperformance driven by material business advantages. Across all three conferences this week, the institutional investors I met shared remarkably similar performance data, regardless of their geographic focus or investment mandate.

A Non-Partisan Investment Discipline

Ocean-centric investing succeeds because it focuses on fundamental business realities. The ocean doesn’t care about ideology—physics, chemistry, and biology govern its systems. Those systems are at their best when least disrupted by harmful human activities, the same activities that increase economic risk. Companies that understand and adapt to these realities create shareholder value. Those that don’t face rising costs and shrinking opportunities.

This point resonated across cultures and political systems. Whether speaking with European pension fund managers, American family offices, or Asian sovereign wealth funds, the investment thesis remained consistent: ocean health equals financial health.

Savvy investors ask: Why would you ignore material information about regulatory risks, resource availability, and competitive positioning just because some call it “environmental”?

The Bottom Line

Blue economy investing provides additional insight to make more informed investment decisions about companies whose fortunes rise and fall with the health of marine ecosystems. It’s about maximizing returns through comprehensive risk analysis that captures opportunities traditional metrics miss.

The sustainable blue economy is growing faster than both the broader ocean economy and the global economy as a whole. The question isn’t whether to invest in blue economy opportunities—it’s whether you’ll identify and capture the best ones before your competition does.

After fourteen days, ten flights, and countless conversations with the world’s leading blue economy finance professionals, one conclusion emerges clearly: the convergence of World Ocean Day with these three major conferences wasn’t coincidental. It signals a fundamental shift in how global capital markets view sustainable ocean-related investments.

Because ultimately, it’s about value, not values. And the ocean delivers both.

Blue economy investing represents a rapidly evolving investment discipline focused on sustainable ocean activities. Like all investments, blue economy strategies carry risks and may not be suitable for all investors. Mark J. Spalding advises the UBS Rockefeller Ocean Engagement Fund (past performance does not guarantee future results).

The post The $3.2 Trillion Blue Economy That Too Many Investors Are Missing appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.

PRESS RELEASE from Lloyd’s Register Foundation
For immediate release: 12 June 2025

LONDON, UK – Nearly 80 years on from the end of World War II, a call to tackle the toxic global legacy of shipwrecks it left behind has been issued by an international coalition.

On 12 June, as part of the third UN Ocean Conference, Project Tangaroa – a global community of experts coordinated by Lloyd’s Register Foundation, The Ocean Foundation and Waves Group – has published The Malta Manifesto, in a bid to encourage governments to act decisively before the situation reaches breaking point.

It is estimated that at least 8,500 potentially polluting wrecks (PPWs) are sitting at the bottom of the ocean, the majority left by the First and Second World Wars. The true number is likely to be much higher. This is a global issue, with wrecks strewn from the Baltic and the Mediterranean in Europe, to the Arctic, the Caribbean, and the coasts of Latin America. High concentrations can also be found in the South Asia-Pacific region – a result of numerous naval battles in the Pacific theatre of World War II – where many coastal and island states lack the resources to deal with them effectively.

These wrecks, the coalition says, contain vast quantities of oil and other hazardous materials, including munitions, and are becoming more unstable – a process exacerbated by impacts of climate change such as increased storminess and ocean acidity. Some are already leaking oil into the oceans, putting marine ecosystems, vital fishing grounds and vulnerable coastal communities at risk.

In The Malta Manifesto, Project Tangaroa outlines a framework to tackle the problem, advocating for a precautionary approach and global cooperation to implement sustainable long-term solutions. The Manifesto features seven key calls to action, covering financing, standards, regional and national planning, innovation, training and data sharing, for governments, industry, researchers and civil society globally to address the challenge. It aims to transform the situation before the 100^th anniversary of World War II in 2039.

Lydia Woolley, Project Tangaroa Programme Manager at Lloyd’s Register Foundation and formerly the UK Government’s Receiver of Wreck, said: “PPWs pose a great global threat to coastal communities and marine ecosystems. Left unmanaged, they could result in the destruction of vital fishing grounds and coastal tourism, with devastating effects on the marine environment, human health and wellbeing, as well as local and regional economies.

“However, our message is not fatalistic – it is one of urgent encouragement. Thanks to the work of the global community of experts brought together by Project Tangaroa, we already know how to manage the risks posed by these wrecks – but we need the resources to put this knowledge to use at the required scale.”

Simon Burnay, Chief Executive of Waves Group, added: “Collectively, we have the proven experience and methodologies for assessing and reducing the risks posed by PPWs. An internationally accepted standard will help scale these capabilities globally, providing funders with the assurance needed to have a lasting positive outcome for future generations.”

A critical recommendation of the Manifesto is the establishment of an international PPW Finance Task Force, to drive international cooperation and innovative financing solutions – involving the private and philanthropic sectors as well as government – to deliver the funding required for a challenge of this scale and urgency.

Mark J. Spalding, President of The Ocean Foundation, said: “We have thousands of environmental time bombs ticking on our ocean floor, with billions in remediation costs and no dedicated funding mechanism. The bureaucratic luxury of slow responses doesn’t match the environmental urgency – we need a Finance Task Force with the authority to act before 2039.”

Some important work to assess and make safe individual PPWs had already been conducted or is ongoing. Although these efforts have been limited – typically in response to an identified oil leak or request for intervention – they may serve as a useful blueprint for larger-scale action.

HMS Cassandra, a British cruiser, was sunk in the Baltic Sea on 5 December 1918. En route to support Latvian and Estonian forces against the Bolsheviks in the immediate wake of the First World War, the ship hit a mine near the Estonian island of Saaremaa, with the loss of 11 of her 400 crew.

Responding to the concerns of the Estonian government about the condition of the wreck, the Salvage and Marime Operations team (SALMO), part of the UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) arm, is currently working with Waves Group to conduct a detailed survey.

Matt Skelhorn, Head of the UK MOD Wreck Management Programme at DE&S SALMO, said: “With the survey of the Cassandra, we’re already putting into action the proof of concept for the Malta Manifesto. We look forward to sharing the survey outputs in due course, which will inform how we continue to work with the Estonian government to take action to prevent oil leakage if required. Cassandra has the potential to become a blueprint for future international collaboration when it comes to addressing the risks caused by PPWs.”

The SALMO team has been closely involved with Project Tangaroa since its inception, providing critical insights on the practical and political challenges involved with the management of its own inventory of more than 5,000 wrecks around the world, and welcomed the launch of the Manifesto.

Matt said: “The Malta Manifesto is a critical step towards the appropriate management of PPWs across the world. It clearly articulates the risks posed, and the vital need for international collaboration and agreed standards, as well as enhanced resilience, response capacity and local empowerment to address this globally significant challenge.”

On 11 June, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – key supporters of Project Tangaroa – submitted a statement to the UN Environment Programme urging action on PPWs.

Dr Christopher Underwood, President of the ICOMOS International Committee on the Underwater Cultural Heritage (ICUCH), said: “ICUCH is fully supportive of the Malta Manifesto: it provides clarity on the risks and consequences of PPWs and describes a roadmap aimed at promoting preventative action, rather than facing the very real alternative possibility of hugely damaging oil spills.

“The timely example of HMS Cassandra reminds us that many of these wrecks are also the last resting place of some or all of their crews. As such, the upmost care must be taken to minimise their disturbance during surveys and interventions. The Malta Manifesto, critically, recognises this and other management issues that reveal a complexity in addressing both natural and cultural perspectives.”

Read The Malta Manifesto in full on the Lloyd’s Register Foundation website.

Media Contact:

Ed Morrow – ed.morrow@lrfoundation.org.uk, for more information on Project Tangaroa and The Malta Manifesto.
Media interviews can be arranged via lrfoundation@wpragency.co.uk.

About Project Tangaroa

Project Tangaroa is a Lloyd’s Register Foundation-funded programme delivered through Waves Group in partnership with The Ocean Foundation, and supported by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) International Committee on the Underwater Cultural Heritage (ICUCH). It was initiated to develop a global framework for the near- and long-term assessment, intervention and sharing of data on potentially polluting wrecks.

Find out more at project-tangaroa.org.

About Lloyd’s Register Foundation

Lloyd’s Register Foundation is an independent global safety charity that supports research, innovation, and education to make the world a safer place. Its mission is to use the best evidence and insight to help the global community focus on tackling the world’s most pressing safety and risk challenges.

For more information about Lloyd’s Register Foundation, visit lrfoundation.org.uk.

About The Ocean Foundation

The Ocean Foundation is the only community foundation working exclusively for the ocean, supporting marine conservation and ocean science through strategic partnerships and innovative funding mechanisms. As a leader in ocean heritage protection, The Ocean Foundation co-led Project Tangaroa. This groundbreaking initiative documented potentially polluting wrecks globally and developed the foundational research demonstrating the urgent need for dedicated financing mechanisms to address underwater environmental threats. Through its work on maritime heritage preservation and wreck remediation, The Ocean Foundation has established itself as a key advocate for protecting our ocean’s cultural and environmental legacy while addressing the modern challenges posed by historical maritime activities.

For more information about The Ocean Foundation, oceanfdn.org.

About Salvage and Marime Operations (SALMO)

The Salvage and Marime Operations team (SALMO), part of the UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) arm, is a team of civilian specialists who support the Royal Navy and MoD. SALMO’s role includes responding to any Royal Navy incidents at sea involving ships, submarines and aircraft, and providing underwater engineering support to maintain Royal Navy vessels.

As part of SALMO’s work, the SALMO Wrecks team is responsible for managing the environmental risk presented by the inventory of more than 5,000 shipwrecks around the world which were under MOD-ownership when they sank. Where wrecks containing significant amounts of oil pose a pollution risk, the SALMO team may work to safely extract the fuel. SALMO Wrecks manage this risk on behalf of the Royal Navy, with whom they work closely to ensure any wrecks where service personnel lost their lives are preserved as far as possible.

For more information, consult JSP 418 Leaflet 10 on legacy shipwrecks.

The post New Manifesto Warns of Catastrophic Damage to Coastal Communities and Marine Life from Polluting War Wrecks appeared first on The Ocean Foundation.