An oil tanker breaks up off the coast of Spain, contaminating beaches and killing over one hundred thousand birds. Colorful coral reefs turn a deathly white around the world. Six whales die in the Bahamas from bleeding near their ears after the Navy tests an active sonar system there. After so much bad news, people are thirsting for workable solutions to the oceans crisis.

Heal the Oceanprovides a refreshing change in the literature by emphasizing success stories in the struggle to save the seas. The author-a marine ecologist dedicated to protecting and restoring ocean ecosystems-first describes the nature of ocean environments and then discusses current and emerging threats, including pollution, overfishing, poor land use, deep sea mining, and the search for new energy sources. Heal the Ocean then urges that we build upon efforts that have successfully countered such threats, including:

allowing natural processes to restore the San Francisco Bay and Delta

innovative wastewater treatment at Ecoparque, Baja, California

the world's first scientifically designed marine reserve network in California's Channel Islands

traditional stewardship of land and sea by native Hawaiians

economic incentives for sustainable fishing in Alaska

new international fishing agreements with teeth

shifting consumer demand to sustainable seafood

building constituencies for ocean conservation and creating a new ocean ethic using sophisticated social marketing and community-building techniques

Upbeat and inspiring, Heal the Oceanwill appeal to professional environmental advocates, community leaders, opinion-shapers, and policymakers, as well as any citizen aspiring to protect the ocean.

Rod Fujitais a Senior Scientist with Environmental Defense, in Oakland, California. He has studied the ocean for over twenty years, logging hundreds of hours underwater studying ocean wildlife, as well as playing a key role in setting up marine reserves in the Florida Keys and the Channel Islands, California.

Heal the Ocean is about people and communities overcoming serious threats to the ocean, ranging from farm runoff to overfishing. It illustrates the problems besetting the ocean, both current and emerging, starting with the coastal zone and moving out through nearshore waters, the continental shelf, to the open ocean and deep sea. Drawing on the authors own experiences, the book is strongly solutions-oriented.

Rod Fujita is a Senior Scientist with Environmental Defense, in Oakland, California. He has studied the ocean for over 20 years, logging hundreds of hours underwater studying ocean wildlife, as well as playing a key role in setting up marine reserves in Florida and the Channel Islands, CA.