marine Scientific Editorial

Fostering a prosperous Blue Economy comes with many multi-faceted challenges, requiring stakeholders to systematically balance the responsible use of marine resources with sustainable development practices. In these pages, we profile some of the companies leading the charge. From energy to food to scientific progress, the ocean is foundational to governments and communities worldwide.

To diversify the global energy mix, offshore operators are looking for emerging tech-led opportunities, like floating offshore wind, to accelerate efficiency gains and unlock untapped renewable power sources. Nortek is proving instrumental in measuring vital ocean parameters for decision-making in challenging offshore environments by integrating its profiling technology onboard lidar buoys.

The lab-to-market journey is complex, but testbed programs like Innovate BC’s Integrated Marketplace streamline the route to market for collaborators like Gitxaala Environmental and Shift Coastal Technologies to chart the future for marine monitoring.

With environmental mitigation pressures top of mind, carbon credit programs have entered the landscape with unique solutions. The International Marine Mitigation Bank (IMMB) and its partner, Fish Reef Project®, are simplifying blue carbon credits and are helping companies minimize environmental impacts associated with day-to-day operations.

Marine survey companies, like Morgan & Eklund, Inc. (M&E), are at the forefront of coastal disaster recovery. Equipped with the latest advanced bathymetric technology, M&E delivers vital, robust data sets to help coastal managers coordinate post-hurricane recovery efforts.

In this month’s “topside talks” geobiologist Dr. Jeffrey Marlow shares his recent experience onboard Schmidt Ocean Institute’s RV Falkor (too). From remotely operated vehicles to advanced bubble mapping to in situ sensor technology, research expeditions, like this one, are returning to shore with the data—and often already armed with near real-time analysis—needed to plan, review, and assess marine scientific priorities in the field.

In this edition of environment coastal & offshore (eco) magazine—The Blue Economy—we explore some of the latest projects, technologies, and practices fostering the sustainable use of ocean assets while growing economic benefits and bolstering livelihoods.