June 8: World Oceans Day Brings Focus on Gulf Oil Spill

While the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill makes news because it is on the United States' doorstep, spills commonly occur in other parts of the world with much less media attention.

On June 8, 2010, which is World Oceans Day, the nonprofit conservation group SeaWeb will host a "Noon Newsmaker" news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. The topic will be the state of the world's oceans and the most challenging ocean conservation issues, including the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and what to expect in the way of long-term consequences of this disaster.

Speakers will be conservationist Celine Costeau, Gulf marine biodiversity researcher Thomas Shirley, and LSU oceanography professor Robert Twilley (who heads the Coastal Emergency Response Assessment Group).

RSVP by June 4 to Anne Bolen; or contact Ken Goldman, 703-587-3226.

SeaWeb has also recently published a special edition of its Marine Science Review,which featured citations and abstracts about the impacts of oil spills.It can be downloaded from here:http://www.seaweb.org/resources/msr.php

And you can follow a daily roundup of news about the oil spill in SeaWeb's Ocean News portal.